The first national gathering of Fresh Expressions United Methodist has moved its site from Florida to North Carolina after potential attendees raised concerns they would not feel safe in the “anti-woke” atmosphere of the Sunshine State. Michael Beck, director Fresh…
Evangelical leaders condemn DeSantis for politicizing state executions
The presidential aspirations of Gov. Ron DeSantis have exacerbated the challenges facing Florida’s Death Row inmates and the activists trying to help them, said one of the state’s leading opponents of capital punishment. “Florida is a very dark place for…
What Ron DeSantis and the TheoBros share in common
The headline in The Atlantic declared: “The Cost of Ron DeSantis’ Ideological Purity.” That got my attention, because “ideological purity” is big theme among religious conservatives these days — especially among that group we sometimes call the TheoBros. Those are…
14 dangerous words
Never underestimate the power of words or a string of words. A news story about the Florida Board of Education — not a local school board but the state board — adopting new standards for teaching American history for children…
I was thirsty and you made me work in the heat without water
This morning, I took my dogs for a walk because it was the coolest time of the day when their paws wouldn’t be scorched on pavement in our multiple days of temperatures that feel like it’s 100+ degrees. Living in…
GOP candidates make their case to conservative Christian activists
They’re off and running, and if history is any guide, most white evangelicals will vote for one of these 11 candidates in the 2024 presidential race, now some 500 days away. So far, polls show Donald Trump far ahead of…
To the mother who complained about Amanda Gorman’s poem
Dear Concerned Mother, You were astute to signal the potential problems the published poem, “The Hill We Climb” by Amanda Gorman, might cause for your own two children and other elementary school readers at Bob Graham Education Center in Miami…
Here’s why Ron DeSantis has gone to war with Disney
On the surface, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ attack on the Walt Disney Co. makes no sense. Why would a Republican governor go after one of the largest businesses and economic drivers in the state? Aren’t Republicans pro-business? Likewise, why would…
Ron DeSantis is dead wrong — again
The irony would be humorous if it weren’t so deadly. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis today signed four bills passed by his Legislature that further discriminate against the LGBTQ community in a state already famous for its “Don’t Say Gay” law….