Growing up, many of us were taught the first Thanksgiving was held in 1621 in Plymouth, Massachusetts, by a group of Pilgrims and members of the Wampanoag tribe. Some of us even held classroom reenactments of the event, donning funny…
At Salem, a reminder the Puritans were Christian nationalists too
Last year my wife and I, on a trip to Maine, included our annual detour to Salem, Mass. It’s a fascinating city just outside Boston, filled with literary and pre-Colonial history. Quite an industry has grown up around the historic…
Roger Williams and the courage to speak clearly
Roger Williams agreed with the Puritan overlords of Massachusetts Bay on most points of doctrine, but when his thinking diverged from accepted orthodoxy, he said so. Plainly and without apology. In The Bloudy Tenent of Persecution, Peace and Truth are…
A risky experiment: Justice, freedom and compassion in America
Now the only way to avoid this shipwreck, and to provide for our posterity, is to follow the counsel of Micah, to do justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly with our God. For this end, we must be knit…
Hoping for cessation of ‘war on Christmas’ rhetoric? Don’t, historians say
Another season of the so-called “war on Christmas,” especially in the wake of Donald Trump’s election, may be just enough to drive some people over the edge. And all indications are it isn’t going to go away. “There is no…
Laughter can foster forgiveness and heal relationships, minister says
A lot of ministers and congregations frown on the use of humor in the pulpit — or anywhere else in the church. Many consider it to be sacrilegious, blasphemous or, at best, disrespectful to crack a joke to open a sermon….
Let’s bring back blue laws to increase church attendance?
Should we bring back Blue Laws to increase our Sunday worship attendance? No, but the thought of it does raise some interesting questions. What were Blue Laws? Actually there are still some around so “was” is not in every place…
Would the real Jesus please stand up?: A Holiday Book Review
On American soil, Jesus was the subject of more evangelical hymns than the Father and the Holy Spirit combined. In fact, while evangelical hymns largely ignored the church, the sacraments, and the Trinity, they were obsessed with Jesus. American Jesus:…