Growing up in a Southern, progressive Christian church and going to seminary, we often made fun of the Jonathan Edwards’ style ‘fire and brimstone’ preachers throughout West Tennessee. Their vision of the future and the afterlife was dark and ominous. In hindsight, we should have taken their fiery spirit more seriously. We’re facing a future […]
Tag: Jesus
The sin of empathy
Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde, prelate of the Episcopal Church had the audacity to do something truly radical recently: she asked a president for mercy. Mercy is not necessarily entirely foreign to this particular president. He showed “mercy” to 1,500 men and women pardoned on his first day in office, some charged with violent crimes, for […]
The QAnon Cult
In the wake of the Capitol Hill insurrection, it probably comes as no surprise that I’ve devoted a lot of time to trying to understand QAnon, cults, and the rise of white supremacist violence. Being a trained seminarian, this isn’t a new topic to me; if you study religion, you’re bound to spend time studying […]
Complicit Theologies: the Status Quo Church
I’m saddened and appalled by all that has happened at the Capitol, even more so by what I expect in the coming days and weeks will be horrific revelations that it’s much worse than we currently realize as evidence is already mounting to suggest as much. Saddened, appalled, yes–not shocked. Now comes the harder part: […]
You are not Christian.
Throughout my life I was told by “Christian” pastors, children’s ministers, camp leaders, youth directors, Sunday school teachers, and other church workers and parishioners so many heartfelt, dignified, and loving words about what Christianity was through the life and ministry of Jesus. I believed them. Today, I no longer see those same people living the […]
Quarantine, Day 37
Coming out of the Great Depression, one of the Civil Works Administration projects of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal was the construction of a small stretch of road through Bergen County, New Jersey and into lower New York State. It’s maybe one of the most beautiful drives you can take in this part of the […]
The Lie of the ‘Great American Resurrection’
Last week when Trump said he wanted the country “open by Easter,” a Fox News anchor referred to it as the “great American resurrection.” The reference to the Easter tradition, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus, is an obvious attempt to signal to Trump’s evangelical base that this president really is a person of faith, a […]
Transient Paths of All the Creatures of the Field
There’s a family of groundhogs that have been hanging around my house lately. They are joined, strangely enough, by the sudden return of deer who avoided the island like the plague when the summer crowds first arrived on Memorial Day. Some have been brave enough to get within a few feet or so. And driving […]
On Thanksgiving
In one of my English classes this week, I took some time before beginning the lesson to describe Thanksgiving. I talked about the pilgrimage from Europe and the struggle to yield enough food for the winter; I talked about the friendships made with the local natives and how sharing was essentially what kept everyone alive. […]
