By Marv Knox No matter what we think about a grand jury’s decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Michael Brown, can we acknowledge attitudes about race divide our nation? The grand jury’s Wilson/Brown decision…
Is Jesus irrelevant to the immigration debate?
By Alan Bean Elation and outrage. President Obama’s executive decision on immigration sparked one reaction or the other in the American soul, if there is such a thing. Perhaps we must speak of two American souls. All agree that the…
So very, kind of pretty much, thankful
By Michael Ruffin On the one hand, I have an easy time giving thanks. On the other hand, I have a difficult time giving thanks. Let me try to explain. Giving thanks comes easy to me because I have so…
Giving thanks: A defining attitude
By Barry Howard Giving thanks is more than a holiday slogan. Like a catalyst, real gratitude reshapes our attitude and reconfigures our personality. Elie Wiesel proposes that, “When a person doesn’t have gratitude, something is missing in his or her…
On megachurches, Millennials and modernism
In my hometown there is a church. This church has a sanctuary. A steeple. A large staff of religious professionals. A jet. A hashtag campaign for each sermon series. A fleet of boats. A “membership” of over 8,000. And at…
After Ferguson, a letter to my children
By Greg Jarrell Dear John Tyson and Zeb, You make my heart sing. The joy in your eyes as you take in the world sometimes takes my breath away, which makes it hard to tell you about the shadow sides…
The season to ‘stir-it up’
By Scott Dickison I recently learned of a tradition in the Anglican Church that celebrates the final Sunday before Advent as “Stir-Up Sunday.” Apparently the name “Stir-Up Sunday” comes from the opening words of the collect for the day in…
Churches less inclined to look to denominations for resources
By George Bullard It is no longer true that denominations provide a majority of the resources needed by many of their congregations. It has been at least a quarter of a century or longer since many denominations in North America…
Endings and beginnings — both essential to healthy churches
By David Hull I write these words in the midst of a most unusual week. The first part of the week was spent in the home of my deceased parents. Their house is for sale, most of the furniture has…