Small steps toward unity with difference
Christians today should not live in the fantasy that they know more about the faith than those who came before them –..
Latest Posts
Church Realignment and the Search for ‘Greener Grass’ (blog)
This post originally appreared on Juicy Ecumenism, a blog from the Institute on Religion and Democracy. It is reposted here with permission...
Stewards of mystery
A note (if you read my last blog post and are curious): My dog, Cyrus is still alive and well. On the..
Unity with difference: Theologians dig in
Knowing that the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is about to confront once again the question of whether Presbyterian ministers should perform same-gender marriages..
The radio preacher, the atheist blogger, and me
I have two colleagues who constantly irritate me but have taught me volumes about how to speak about faith. I seek them..
Whitworth awarded $1 million from Lilly Endowment: Grant will fund initiatives to connect school, congregations
SPOKANE, WASH (PNS) Whitworth University has been awarded a $1 million grant from the Lilly Endowment to fund a new comprehensive church engagement..
A million for mission: A second $1 million gift will fund the Presbyterian Mission Agency’s domestic ministries
LOUISVILLE (PNS) As the year winds to a close, the Presbyterian Mission Agency has received its second $1 million anonymous gift in..
Membership define: Burgess urges church to recast membership as baptismal covenant
PRINCETON, N.J. (PNS) With the idea of membership meaning less and less in American culture and its churches, the Rev. John Burgess..
How much of Christ can we stand in Christmas? (commentary)
(RNS) Midway through the dash from Thanksgiving Day to Gift-giving Day, it’s time for the annual quandary: “How much of Christ can we..
Moving things around
My congregation may or may not help to create one of the “1001 New Worshiping Communities” the PC(USA) is promoting, but just..
Sleeping through sermons
Anchoring-Tethering: What Neal Presa thinks is coming and becoming in theological education
I welcome and thank Neal D. Presa, Moderator of the 220th General Assembly (2012-2014) as a guest blogger in an Advent series answering the..
Call and response ecclesiology: Joe Small says how we think about Christ is how we think about the church
PRINCETON, N.J. (PNS) God’s Word sounds in the midst of a cacophony of other voices ― cultural, political and religious ― making..
The sacred adventure
Targeted by Assassins: Women, Children, Families of Honduras
21 year old student Lenin Bladimir Dubon; 61 year old Tolupan activist Maria Enriqueta Matute; 23 year old farmer Melvin Amaya; And,..
Pope Francis is not a standard bearer for the right or the left (commentary)
(RNS) It’s one thing to say kind words about gay people and atheists while admonishing those who would bury them in stones. It’s one thing to..
Bookmark – Daily Feast: Meditations from Feasting on the Word; Year A
Kathleen Long Bostrom, Elizabeth Caldwell and Jana K. Reiss, editors Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, Ky. 552 pages. This book truly is..
A tribute to Nelson Mandela: How a seemingly inevitable bloody revolution was avoided
For at least 60 years, the light of Nelson Mandela, the man known to his people as Madiba, has shined over the..
Film in review – “Night Train To Lisbon”
Raimund Gregorius (Jeremy Irons) is an aging schoolteacher living by himself in a small apartment in Bern, Switzerland. He gets up in..
Shaped by Methodists, Mandela paid tribute to the role of religion
(RNS) Nelson Mandela, the former South African president who died Thursday (Dec. 5), had a deep connection with religious institutions. Mandela was..
Book review – Did Jesus Really Rise From The Dead? A Surgeon-Scientist Examines the Evidence
by Thomas A. Miller, MD Crossway, Wheaton, Ill. 176 pages. reviewed by EUGENE BIERLY For most people in the scientific..
Nelson Mandela: dreamer of big dreams – South African leader remembered by Presbyterians as ‘icon of reconciliation’
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ― a modern-day Moses who led his people, his nation and the world out of the racist captivity of apartheid..
What is the Spirit saying to the churches?
In the introduction to the last book of the Bible, the author looks forward to the future of Christian ministry by asking..
Wild Goose uprising: Worshiping community in heart of Appalachia offers bluegrass music, taste of the unexpected
Worshipers are beginning to refer to Wild Goose as their “thin place” (where the veil between heaven and earth is very..
Bridging the gap: Pastors and musicians
I experience God and the world through music. As a child, I can remember days when I would come home after a..
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