Earlier this week, President Trump threatened to punish “illegal” campus protests. I posted some thoughts on my Facebook page. I asserted that the potential danger is that the threat will result in the stymieing of free speech. Is this alarmist? Perhaps. Is it wise caution? I want to think so. Examine Everything One of the first problems to arise in any society is the inability to critique our own. NB: this is especially problematic for Christians who know well the... Read more
Trump’s Plan The Palestinians Won’t Trust It Nor Should They In my post last week, I noted that Trump’s plan for Gaza constituted ethnic cleansing and a war crime. I described it as “Absurd, Inhumane, Heartless, and Callous.” Interestingly, his administration realized the absurdity of the proposal and immediately began to walk it back. Trump, however, continued the rhetoric. “I know land deals.” “We are going to buy Gaza.” Some responded to my post by asserting, “This is nonsense.” Others... Read more
In case you didn’t hear, last week, Trump said that he wants to “clean out” Gaza. In case that wasn’t enough, He said yesterday, “The Gaza has not worked. It has never worked. I think they should get a good fresh piece of land. I don’t know how they could want to stay. It’s a demolition site. If we could find the right piece of land or numerous pieces of land and build them some nice places. They could be... Read more
Today, thousands of people are living in fear of deportation. Native Americans, those whose rights to live here transcend all others, are being detained because they have no birth certificates or proof of US citizenship. I recognize that the issue of immigration is not simple. I also realize that there is a role for the Church, and that role is not sitting on the sidelines quietly while those “illegals” are being rounded up. In this post, we begin with the... Read more
Blessed are those who mourn Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness/justice Blessed are the merciful Blessed are the peacemakers (Matt 5:4, 6, 7, 9) We rejoice that a ceasefire has been declared in Gaza. However, our rejoicing must be tempered. It must be tempered by the fact that the conditions that led to the assault on Gaza haven’t been resolved. In many ways, things are worse, much worse, than they were on October 6, 2023. The ceasefire... Read more
Maybe you haven’t heard, but there is a Genocide going on, and in case you didn’t know, it is happening with “our” sanctioning and “our” tax dollars. So, in honor of Martin Luther King Jr., I thought addressing the war on Gaza would be appropriate. I believe that MLK would have been a staunch advocate for ending the Genocide. NB: When I initially wrote this post–earlier last week–there were some initial reports that a ceasefire deal was in the works.... Read more
In my first post in this series, I began with a lunch encounter I recently had with the President of the Seminary where I teach. I mentioned that I wondered if my confession that my wife and I were not currently attending church might cost me my teaching position at the Seminary. My consternation derived partly from the reality that many Christians do not know what to do with those who are not in a local church at the moment—perhaps... Read more
Well, I am sure that Donald Trump’s election will provide plenty of material for this blog. This does not mean that I am excited. Actually, I am quite fearful. Of course, please don’t misunderstand: I pray that I am wrong. In fact, I will try to keep this post handy so that I can repost it 4 years from now in order to report any fears that prove unfounded. I hope that this article, four years from now, will be... Read more
I recently had a conversation with another pastor-friend. At one point, we moved on to a controversial topic. I began to share with him that I had been rethinking the issue. Since he was intrigued and since I knew I could trust him, I shared my thoughts. When I finished, he acknowledged that what I was thinking made sense. Then, I commented, “You realize that you can’t have this conversation with anyone in your Church. You might be able to... Read more
I recently had lunch with the President (who is a good friend) and some of the other faculty members of the seminary where I teach. During the conversation, the President turned to me and asked, “So, Rob, where are you going to church these days?” I immediately wondered if my position at the seminary was in jeopardy. I can’t help but consider whether the Church resembles a burning building today. I am not suggesting that it has simply become corrupted. I wonder if... Read more
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