When I was a young-ish reporter working on a medium-sized daily newspaper in Florida, one of the more dreaded assignments was the Saturday work known as “bits and ‘burbs.” That jargon stood for the oft-scorned task of collecting suburban news…
United Methodists renewing their vows through annual Wesley Covenant Service may struggle this year
Whatever future 2022 may hold, one thing is certain: Come the first Sunday in January, millions of United Methodists will renew their vows in a beloved tradition known as the Wesley Covenant Service. This year, however, the covenant service takes…
A daughter’s tribute — 50 years later
My brother was 15 and I was 18 when our father died Dec. 4, 1971 — 20 days short of his 46th birthday. Initially it was thought he died of a heart attack; he’d been sick all that previous year….
United Methodists approach Advent living in ‘now’ while longing for ‘not yet’
The season of Advent always comes as a time of “now-and-not-yet.” Scripture readings for this period of the Christian year hark back to God’s promise to Israel of a deliverer and forward to the time when God’s promise of salvation…
Gov. Abbott’s COVID-19 vaccination ban tramples on my religious practice
Like me, many Christians in Texas live in a state of perpetual agitation over the actions of our governor, Greg Abbott, regarding sensible public health practices around the coronavirus pandemic. His latest action — an executive order “banning any entity in…
United Methodists chafe at their wilderness wandering
Some have likened the current time in the United Methodist Church to the biblical exodus of Hebrew slaves from Egypt. Others have found a parallel in the Israelites’ exile in Babylon. Still others see the UMC living through the same…
United Methodists counter grim climate outlook with hope and action
While the world stood aghast at apocalyptic images of environmental extremes caused by climate change both in real life and in a new scientific report, United Methodists faced the global challenge with renewed commitment to hope and action. “The new…
Disputes between bishops and dissidents roil United Methodists
Some 13 months before the United Methodist Church’s top legislative body, the General Conference, decides whether to break up the worldwide denomination, pitched battles are taking place between church authorities and dissident congregations and groups at both ends of the…
New ‘non-binary’ category almost a non-event for United Methodists
What if United Methodists faced a potential conflict and nobody cared? That seems to be the case with a new “non-binary” category for local church membership reports. Something that would have caused massive fireworks in the past has been announced…