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I just wrote about similar topics three months ago so it kind of pains me to do it again so soon. But that dullard Mike Johnson has made yet another attack against the Bible, against Christian faith and against our trans sisters and brothers. While making a victory lap after passing a bill banning transgender… Continue reading Does Mike Johnson Read the Bible?

I describe myself as a universalist. What do I mean by that? First, I don’t mean Unitarian Universalist, although I tried that once and hold them all in high regard. I’m a Jesus freak schooled in primarily UCC theology, a mystic at heart and I currently attend a very loving Lutheran church. I happen to… Continue reading Support for Universalism in Scripture, Logic and Love

As we enter a new year, I don’t think I’m alone as I obsessively scrutinize the widening gulf between the views of the right wing in the U.S. and the teachings of Jesus. On the one hand, I’m pretty sure it will provide a lot of blog fodder for me this year and beyond. On… Continue reading Responding with Love and Compassion

“Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes-Benz?” These words by Janis Joplin in her 1970 song are a terrific critique of materialism, culture and the white protestant focus on privilege and prosperity. It’s ironic, it’s tongue-in-cheek and it does a better job at calling out hypocrisy than many sermons. So when Mercedes-Benz licensed the… Continue reading Literalism is Disrespect

Imagine this: you are born into the Roman Empire in the year zero. Oppression is everywhere. You smell it in the marketplace. You see it on the tired expressions of the friends around you. You hear it in the clamor of armor on the soldiers marching through your streets. Every day, the threat of violence… Continue reading The Humble Birth of God

The birth story in the Gospel of John is barely a story at all. You don’t get singing angels, shepherds in the field or gift-bearing magi. What you do get is one of the most profound statements of Christian theology ever written. And you get a little bit of John the Baptist. It’s not sentimental.… Continue reading The Word Became Flesh

So many of my favorite things about Christmas come from church tradition and not strictly speaking from the Bible. I think that should tell us something about our wider faith. Your Christian faith didn’t stop with the canonization of the Bible, it continued to evolve over centuries of thought, debate and tradition and it should… Continue reading A Very Unbiblical Christmas

I love Christmas and the Christmas story. Singing angels, gifting Magi, the image of God as humbled as possible as a helpless baby in a manger. But it’s not important to me whether these are literal historical facts about Jesus. If that kind of thing matters to you, stop reading here because my intention is… Continue reading Christmas is More Than a Story

I sense we are all weary of Christians who embrace political power and not Christ. I offer you three great reads this week to contemplate why we need to protect Christianity from the unexamined atheism on the left and the barbaric Nietzscheanism of the right. Sheluyang Peng: Nietzsche’s Eternal Return in America “Thus, in the… Continue reading Worthy Discoveries and Hidden Gems: 241129

”I just hugged the man who murdered my son.” — Mary Johnson In 1993, Mary Johnson’s 16-year-old son, Larami, was shot and killed by Oshea Israel during a robbery. The tragedy devastated Mary and left her grappling with immense grief and anger. Years later, after Oshea had served time in prison, Mary made the courageous… Continue reading Playing God Instead of Imitating God