I was recently with a group of pastors and laity from The United Methodist Church (the denomination I’m a part of). There, I lamented the fact that some pastors are afraid of addressing things like Christian nationalism within their congregations….
Southern Baptist megachurch pastor returns to misogyny as a text
Apparently, Josh Howerton must be getting jealous of JD Vance taking all the limelight for sacralized misogyny because he’s back in the news again with a new sermon series called “Fight For Your Family.” Earlier this year, the pastor of Dallas…
Here’s HELP for navigating a ‘purple’ church in an election year
In every election year, pastors face the reality of political conflict and tension in their congregations. This year is that and more. For 20 years, I served as pastor of what some call a “purple” church — a mixture of…
My 13th sermon
On the day the Southern Baptist Convention voted on an amendment to prevent women from preaching and serving as pastors, I was trying to figure out the ending to my sermon. It was my ninth sermon at Second Baptist Church…
We’re still terrified and amazed
I think I know why the women were too terrified to say anything that first Easter morning. It’s the Gospel of Mark’s year in the Lectionary, which means this Easter we were left with an unsatisfying ending to the resurrection…
The joy of (preaching about) sex
Liberal ministers in New York do not preach on adultery — unless they start a series on the Ten Commandments without thinking ahead. I did not think ahead. Preachers find it awkward to preach about infidelity, because the church often…
Four sermons
I consider myself fortunate to have come of age in the 1960s and to have been educated at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in the early 1970s. None of us has much control over the time in which we live. Although…
WWJP? A checklist for testing the Christlikeness of your pastor’s ‘sermon’ about Israel
It’s been said many Christians have two things for Sunday lunch: fried chicken and fried pastor. I once got a Sunday afternoon phone call lambasting me for a Memorial Day homily during which veterans lit a candle not only for…
Keep preaching, even when it doesn’t make sense
One of the most influential artists of the 20th century, painter Pablo Picasso, once said, “The world today doesn’t make sense, so why should I paint pictures that do?” It is quite the statement from someone who painted more than…