“Hey, are you OK? As soon as I heard, I thought of you.” That’s what I heard on the other end of the phone from my best friend the day Queen Elizabeth died. Why did the death of a monarch…
Lessons in coffin carrying
Years ago, as a pastor, I noticed when one of our ordinarily regularly attending senior adult men stopped attending his men’s Bible study class, as well as Sunday morning worship. I contacted the man I’ll call Bill and asked if…
Defender of the Faith or Defender of Faith — a distinction informed by Baptist history
With the death of Queen Elizabeth II on Sept. 8, her heir, Charles, became King Charles III. Accompanied by grief and grateful tributes from around the world, Elizabeth II’s death marks the end of a lengthy era of British history…
Reflections from London on the queen’s life and death
The queen is dead. Long live the king. From my earliest childhood memories during World War II, Elizabeth has been a constant in my life — a changeless symbol of stability during unstable times. By an accident of timing, I…
Condolences and clarity concerning the death and life of Queen Elizabeth
The death of Queen Elizabeth requires deep reflection. She was matriarch to her children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and other family members. She was monarch of Britain for 70 years. Most people in Britain, across the British Commonwealth and across the…
I love the recognition of a life, but the obsession with the monarchy still bothers me
Since the queen died, the coverage has been 24/7. It goes beyond a death and a funeral. We seem obsessed with the royals, but I’ll have to say I’ve had a hard time getting on board with all the royal-to-do….
The monarchy Christians
Mark Wingfield posted a query on Facebook that deserves a deeper look. He wondered about the evangelical response to the death of Queen Elizabeth. And he asked the simple journalistic question: Why? I venture a partial response. The evangelical support…
An angry tweet about colonialism while others pay tribute to Queen Elizabeth
As the world mourned the Sept. 8 passing of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, her legacy drew mixed reaction from Africa, where at least 15 countries once were held under British colonial rule. The legacy of Britain’s rule lies behind some…
Womanhood, white Christian nationalism and Queen Elizabeth
On Thursday evening, church bells began to chime in Oxford, where I am living for much of this fall while on research leave from Baylor University. I’d planned a long writing day, but I simply sat, my front door open,…