“We pray and walk through our community, looking for persons of peace with whom we can connect.” “Persons of Peace.” That’s a term I’ve heard multiple times during my summer sabbatical study of how churches are engaging in Christian community…
“They are children”: Preachers and politicians part ways at the border
While politicians apportion blame for the thousands of unaccompanied Central American children arriving at our border, the faith community looks for ways to help. I over-simplify, of course. We confront a complex tangle of rhetoric and response, and there are…
Counting the cost of government funding
The White House recently announced that President Obama would make good on a 2008 campaign promise and sign an executive order banning workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. According to a White House Official, the…
The “ruinous consequences” of payday lending
“Very few things harden the heart more than usury in all its forms.” A Baptist pastor in North Carolina wrote those words in the October 31, 1840 edition of the Biblical Recorder. Citing a slew of Bible verses from Exodus…
“Can’t we just play nice?”
“Look for the words ‘social justice’ or ‘economic justice’ on your church website. If you find it, run as fast as you can.” That was the advice of Glenn Beck to his radio show listeners on March 2, 2010. It was…
The bigger picture
The recent kidnapping of hundreds of school girls by the Islamic terrorist group, Boko Haram, in Nigeria is a tragedy that has both shocked the world and gotten its attention. Hopefully, the world won’t miss the bigger story going on…
Al Mohler, Jesus and the death penalty debate
Would Jesus support the death penalty? Mother Theresa posed the question to the Governor of California in 1990. She was pretty sure he knew the answer. According to a recent Barna poll: Only 5 percent of Americans believe that Jesus…
SCOTUS got this one wrong
With all due respect to my blogging colleague, Jonathan Waits and his blog post, the US Supreme Court got the decision wrong about the town of Greece, NY and their ceremonial prayers. How prayers are handled in government sponsored settings…
Motives matter
If a random Google search is anything to go by, it was Ralph Waldo Emerson who originated this clever quip, albeit in a slightly altered form: “I dream of a better tomorrow, where chickens can cross the road and not…