An Op Ed Loaded with Oversimplifications about Abortion & Adoption

Last updated on: January 22, 2014 at 7:52 pm By Ellen Painter Dollar

I’ve avoided writing about abortion for a while. It’s an issue tangential to my core concerns around disability, reproductive technology, and faith. The topic brings out the worst in some commenters. But this op ed on abortion, published by USA Today, was so chock full of poor word choices, faulty reasoning, and wrong assumptions that I had to write something so I wouldn’t scare my children by ranting under my breath in the kitchen, occasionally shouting things like “INCONVENIENT?!” and “HISTORY, PEOPLE!!” while smacking the... Read more

MLK’s “Single Garment of Destiny” & Slavery’s Legacy

Last updated on: January 19, 2014 at 10:16 pm By Ellen Painter Dollar

My friend Kate was featured on NPR’s “Race Card” project last week, talking about her family’s history as slaveowners. Her grandmother upheld the “idea of the benevolent slave owner,” telling Kate proudly that their family’s slaves had been “trusted house servants,” rather than plantation laborers. Kate eventually realized, however, that such pride is sorely misplaced. Reading Kate’s story reminded me of the documentary Traces of the Trade. Filmmaker Katrina Brown and her family members explored their Rhode Island ancestors’ deep involvement in the slave... Read more

Painfully Aware of the Abyss: A Review of Holly Burkhalter’s “Good God, Lousy World, & Me”

Last updated on: January 8, 2014 at 11:14 am By Ellen Painter Dollar

I once read a novel in which the protagonist divided humankind into two categories: those who are always aware of the “abyss,” and those who are not. “The abyss” referred to the darkness and suffering that pervade human life, the agony that screams from newspaper headlines and whimpers in lonely corners. I immediately recognized myself as one who is painfully aware of the abyss. Holly Burkhalter, author of Good God, Lousy World & Me, is also one of us. For many... Read more

Deep in a Place of Exile, Waiting for the Return

Last updated on: January 6, 2014 at 9:37 am By Ellen Painter Dollar

I don't much like when people I care about are deep in the "exile" part and waiting for the return. But I have to believe that God will bring all of us who have times of exile to that promised place of abundance, community, and hope. Read more

Christmas Lasts for Twelve Days, Not One

Last updated on: January 6, 2014 at 9:06 am By Ellen Painter Dollar

As I wrote last year, I mourn the commercialization and hype of Christmas less than I mourn its lopsided timeframe. Our culture treats December 25th as a culmination and grand finale, rather than as the beginning of a 12-day holiday. My heart breaks on the 26th when I see Christmas trees on the curb, can no longer find Christmas music on the radio, and malls and roadways and Starbucks are once again full of distracted, rushing people focused on to-do... Read more

My (Unmeasurable) New Year’s Resolutions

Last updated on: January 1, 2014 at 12:24 pm By Ellen Painter Dollar

The time seems right for me to make some resolutions for 2014. Because I broke a few bones on December 1, the last month of 2013 was more about getting necessary things (wrapping Christmas presents, etc.) done at the last minute than about proactively ordering my household and life. Now that I’m feeling better and the holiday whirlwind is wrapping up, I’m ready to make some changes to improve my health and habits in 2014. Conventional wisdom says that, when... Read more

My Most Popular Posts of 2013

Last updated on: December 31, 2013 at 4:49 pm By Ellen Painter Dollar

Here's a round-up of my most popular blog posts of 2013. Perhaps there's something here that you missed the first time around. Read more

This is What Angels Do

Last updated on: December 30, 2013 at 10:50 am By Ellen Painter Dollar

I pray that I will always be willing and able to respond to God’s call, whether it comes to me via shaky intuition or a life-changing encounter with something like an angel, as Mary did: Let it be to me according to your word. Read more

God with Us, Even When Christmas Stinks

Last updated on: December 23, 2013 at 11:06 am By Ellen Painter Dollar

Many things can get in the way of the happy, sparkling Christmas celebrations to which we aspire. The Dollar family has perfected one such thing—the Christmas stomach bug that tears its way through the family, leading to days of extra laundry, interrupted nights, and general nastiness. (Three years in a row, people—2010, 2011, and 2012. Prayers for a puke-free Christmas would be most welcome, to supplement the strategically placed Purell pumps all over our house.) My fall on the ice... Read more

A Busy Advent Doesn’t Make You a Bad Christian

Last updated on: December 18, 2013 at 11:14 am By Ellen Painter Dollar

When she was only two days old, my firstborn was the subject of an Advent sermon at our Episcopal church. Our rector, Bill, told about visiting me the day before Leah was born. He recalled the physical cues in our apartment indicating that a beloved baby was expected—the quilt handmade by my mom draped over a rocking chair, the cradle under a sunny window, a stocking bearing Leah’s name hanging from the stair banister. He contemplated how well our household’s... Read more