Those who want to espouse security can go right ahead, but they can’t say that goal is a biblical one. Remember all..
One recent morning I drove my youngest to school, talk radio on as usual in the background. There were two stories that..
I have been re-reading a book by Alister McGrath on the history of Protestantism. McGrath’s “Christianity’s Dangerous Idea” has given me some..
In honor of our college guide issue, here is a list of 10 things I want the young adults in my life..
There are times when biblical images become all too real as they did in South Carolina in early October. “The basement is..
There were not infrequent times in ministry when I found myself overwhelmed with a kind of cosmic grief. It wasn’t depression —..
Our schools, like our churches and our ministers, have no clear conceptions of what they are doing but are carrying on traditional..
I have now been on the other side of the pulpit for six months. My overwhelming response to this new vantage point is..
It is that most wonderful time of the church year: stewardship season! If your congregation is like most, fall is the time..
John, the parish associate at my first call, was a person I admired greatly and from whom I learned a lot. He..
My persistent worry with every Vacation Bible School service project, every Thanksgiving spent serving at the soup kitchen, every Habitat build and mission..
Colored sand. Doves. Unity candles. Swords. Flower petals. Satin pillows. Screaming young children. Bagpipes. String quartets. CD players. Complicated seating charts. Converse..
As the 2016 presidential election cranks up the issue of mass incarceration is taking center stage. There is surprising bipartisan support for..
In 1959, shortly after his election, Pope John XXIII called the church council that became Vatican II. Pope John called for an..
I don’t know what you think of The New York Times columnist David Brooks, but I am betting you may have read..
I am paddling my way through a long book. “Far From the Tree” by Andrew Solomon explores identity by studying families where..
A commencement is a beginning, and like all beginnings, it is combined with an ending. This season of gowns and tassels brings with..
It was late. The prophets, both major and minor, were running together. Elisha, Elijah. Zephaniah, Zechariah. Amos, Hosea, Habakkuk. Index cards littered..
“ … and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in..
I have been a pastor in National Capital Presbytery for 39 years. Of all the things I have observed during that time,..
When I started in the ministry way, way back in 1974, I don’t think I ever heard of an interim pastor. Over..
Over the past 40 years, I have preached controversial sermons on race, sexuality, war and justice. But no sermon caused me so..
I simply do not know enough about the diversion of PC(USA) money to the Presbyterian Centers for New Church Development, Inc. to..
Trying to control security leaks during World War II, the U.S. government made posters warning, “Loose Lips Sink Ships.” I think we..
When I talk with younger clergy, they frequently ask me: “Is your generation ever going to retire?” The frustration in the questioners..
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