Journey to understanding
"Christ does not call us to an unchanging state of safety and comfort, but to ask, seek, knock. To look beyond our first impressions for meaning within."
Latest Posts
Spiritual Bypassing: When Spirituality Disconnects Us from What Really Matters
College chaplain Catherine Knott reflects on the role Robert Augustus Masters' book has played in her ministry.
Amy Grant, ‘queen of Christian pop,’ feted at Kennedy Center Honors
‘There was only one person who could really fulfill that requirement, and that was Amy,’ Kennedy Center's board chair, in an interview, said of ‘long overdue’ recognition.
Some churches leave UMC through formal process; others are suing
Legal action — or the threat of legal action — represents a new strategy on behalf of churches that want to leave the 6.4 million-member United Methodist Church.
Over the weekend, fusions of faith and extremism at drag show protests across country
Nazi sympathizers waved Christian flags at multiple drag story hour events.
Books briefly noted: Devotional reading
Outlook Book Review Editor Amy Pagliarella compiles a list of devotionals to consider as we prepare for a new year.
Can anything good come out of Utica?
Larry Beasley, stated clerk of the Presbytery of Utica in central New York, reflects on why a small, shrinking judicatory decided to invest heavily in the Center for Jubilee Practice.
Let’s not skip Advent
When life gets hectic, Advent invites us to slow down. We all need that, writes Maggie Alsup.
The PC(USA)’s Christmas Joy Offering helps Menaul School students to overcome boundaries and realize their potential
One graduate describes walls being broken down throughout his time at the school in Albuquerque.
An Advent word from the Stated Clerk
In this season of Advent, the Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) encourages the church to pause, reflect, meditate, and pray. The Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, II, offers words of encouragement in this week’s devotional.
Presbyterian churches in Louisville, Kentucky take the plowshares approach toward halting gun violence
Sunday’s Guns to Gardens event results in the disabling of 28 weapons.
The Church after Innovation: Questioning our Obsession with Work, Creativity, and Entrepreneurship
Philip J. Reed reviews Andrew Root's latest book.
Our two Christmas mothers
Looking at Mary and Elizabeth, Eliza Jaremko ponders the gift of companionship.
Theological schools report continued drop in master of divinity degrees
Enrollment at theological schools has remained stable, but the two-year M.A. degree is appealing to more students.
‘Everyone gets their love story’: How Christmas rom-coms have taken over the season
Move over, Hallmark. Other channels and streaming services are premiering holiday originals, too, hoping to capture the magic of the Christmas rom-com for their audiences.
Who’s giving Americans spiritual care? As congregational attendance shrinks, it’s often chaplains
Brandeis University Professor Wendy Cadge has researched chaplains for years. She shares some of her findings.
The third Sunday in Advent — Weekly Christian ed lesson
On the third Sunday of Advent, children will explore Mary’s song, the Magnificat, discovering the multi-layered joy that Jesus brings to the world.
Order of worship — December 11, 2022
You are welcome to use this liturgy in your online worship services and distribute it to your congregation.
Third Sunday of Advent — December 11, 2022
For the third Sunday of Advent, Teri McDowell Ott explores joy as the antidote to despair.
“Wakanda Forever” offers a beautiful and unsatisfying story
The new “Black Panther” movie tells the stories of grief and White supremacy without offering easy answers. The result was a story that was real and sometimes unsettling, writes Brooke Scott.
Report: Giving to larger churches dropped last year, even as charitable donations rose
Churches with budgets under $2 million saw giving go down by 8%, while those with budgets of more than $20 million saw giving go down by 2.5%.
80 years ago, Nazi Germany occupied Tunisia – but North Africans’ experiences of World War II often go unheard
"When most Americans think of the nightmares of the war or the Holocaust, they think strictly of Europe. Hate has a shifting color wheel, however – and we learn something new when we watch its spin in wartime North Africa."
Advent and the repair of a liberating love
Amy Kim Kyremes-Parks reflects on the celebration of Advent, with its proximity to Thanksgiving, and the nation’s troubling past of erasing non-White voices and cultures.
What Kind of Christianity: A History of Slavery and Anti-Black Racism in the Presbyterian Church
"Yoo persistently debunks the myth that White Presbyterians would not have known the brutal details of slavery, arguing the practices were common knowledge. Ignorance was no excuse, because ignorance was implausible."
The National Christmas Tree turns 100 this year. Here are five faith facts to know.
Though the tree has not been lit every single year across the century, it is the second-oldest White House tradition after the Easter egg roll.
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