Rochelle Walensky, director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, revealed more than a statistical update during a briefing last Monday, sharing her concern about the uptick of new coronavirus cases even as more than 2 million Americans are…
How to follow a leader
We see many American citizens proclaiming an inseparable love of God and country right now. Although it has a new tenor, we have depended on this idea to justify our national actions in domestic and world wars, environmental disasters and…
Helping when it costs you something: A love lesson from the ditch
As an educator, I am captivated by the conversation between Jesus and a lawyer described in Luke 10:25-37. The expert in civil and religious law asked how he could inherit eternal life, which he could answer by quoting a command…
As a single mother, I find the Nativity story harrowing
Christmas decorations appeared earlier this year in my small town, even before Thanksgiving. Houses and lawns transformed overnight into wonderlands of color. Despite a year that body-slammed many of us, my neighbors used the night’s canvas to paint pictures of…
62 years later, we learned the truth about Uncle Ray, a truth we needed to know
Veterans Day seemed a bit more sacred to me this year. After a contentious election and reshuffling of chief military officials, I thought about our connections to those who serve on the home front or abroad, often in life-altering, terrifying…
What presidential candidates should learn from Quakers and preschool teachers
As I watched the first round of presidential debates alone in my living room, I was tempted to take shelter behind my couch and occasionally peek over the top. I was distressed by the hostile tones, the snarky comments, the…
What I learned about voter suppression while sitting in the Quiet Chair as a child
Summer visits to my grandmother’s farm included accompanying her to work decades before the Take Your Daughter to Work Day evolved. Her 25-plus-year career as the registrar of voters in a Louisiana parish populated by struggling farmers spanned the Jim…
Beware: We can march and pray for good, yet still do harm
During the days between Sept. 11, 2001, and the beginning of the Gulf Wars, my 7-year-old son and I participated in peace demonstrations with friends. Our clever anti-war signs got honks and waves from most folks driving and walking by….