Our church is in the middle of a pastoral call, and I spent a decent part of this year as a member of our transition team. In that role I got to survey members and aggregate their hopes and fears for the future. I also spoke with people individually about what they wanted to see… Continue reading The Pastor is Just Another Member
Category: Living Our Faith
A Zen Heart on a Christian Path
Between the ages of say 21 and 30 or so, if you had asked me what religion I was I probably would’ve said Buddhist. I didn’t belong to a sangha or sit with a sensei. I was more attracted to it philosophically. After leaving Christianity (turns out I never really left, what I left was… Continue reading A Zen Heart on a Christian Path
On A Recent Reminder of Bonhoeffer’s Costly Grace
Because I draft my blogs about a month before I publish—an author’s convention aimed somewhat unsuccessfully at preventing embarrassment and regret from hastily penned screeds—I am writing this mere days after a failed assassination attempt on Donald Trump. If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you’ll know that I am very progressive. It won’t… Continue reading On A Recent Reminder of Bonhoeffer’s Costly Grace
Only One Who Has Failed Can Find a New Way to Win
2 Corinthians 12:9 but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” So I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. A good while ago a good friend who is also a pastor texted me… Continue reading Only One Who Has Failed Can Find a New Way to Win
Healing Our Separation from God
I am haunted by the creation story. It’s not that I believe in the literal six-day creation or even an actual place called the garden of Eden. What amazes me about the story of the garden and our fall – our original occasion for sin – is that sin is the recognition that we are… Continue reading Healing Our Separation from God
Your Christian Voting Guide
Note: I write my posts about a month prior to publishing. I point this out because this post could be seen as a response to the terrible news of the assassination attempt on Former President Donald Trump. It is not. While I condemn any violence at all, the news really changes nothing about my thoughts… Continue reading Your Christian Voting Guide
A Faintly Glimmering Radio Station
I play MusicLeague with members of my family and their friends. The Cake song, “Frank Sinatra,” made one of the playlists. It hit me hard — Cake wrote a song about how quaint Frank Sinatra records were for them and now almost 30 years later, Cake is quaint to GenZ. The chronological distance that my… Continue reading A Faintly Glimmering Radio Station
“Thou,” Your Enemy
I used to be attracted to process theology, I think because it was the first philosophy that opened my eyes to an alternate theology beyond the basic American fundamentalism you so commonly read about in the socials. I also appreciated its attempts to address theodicy or the problem of suffering and evil. There certainly must… Continue reading “Thou,” Your Enemy
Surprise: Welcoming Statements Make People Feel Welcome
This won’t be a long, theologically opinionated and rambling post like most of my screeds. I just wanted to share some recent research that shows that welcoming statements and welcoming symbols on church websites make people feel more welcome. Isn’t that amazing? Naturally, LGBTQ+ people feel more welcome and affirmed in churches that are welcoming… Continue reading Surprise: Welcoming Statements Make People Feel Welcome
Talking to Other Christians About LGBTQ+ Inclusion
I’ve been a progressive Christian for as long as I’ve been an adult Christian. So, it is surprising to me how many other Christians struggle with LGBTQ+ inclusion. I’m in my own bubble. There are a lot of my beliefs that I understand other Christians might find heretical, such as my ideas on universal salvation,… Continue reading Talking to Other Christians About LGBTQ+ Inclusion