Shoulder to Shoulder: A Black Pastor, a White Pastor, and an Imam’s Journey for Justice

March 20, 2017 By Posted by Editor

Living and Leading Change for Good: Meet the Disruptors The Forum for Theological Exploration series, Living and Leading Change for Good, invites you to meet the disruptors – theological explorers and visionary architects inspired by their Christian faith and fueled by courage. These leaders are actively addressing civil and human rights issues and the anxiety about the rising tide of color in the U.S., along with creating social entrepreneurial ventures that respond to issues our communities face today.... Read more

Trump Bans Big Bird

March 17, 2017 By Dwight Lee Wolter

For the first time ever, a President of the United States has proposed the total slashing of funds for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). This action would also eliminate funds for the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) and National Public Radio (NPR). Thus, the President, in his young administration, has advocated the simultaneous banning of Muslims and Big Bird. The National Endowment for the Arts represents less than 1/100 of 1%... Read more

Politics and the Lies We Tell About Grief

March 9, 2017 By Megan Schmidt

by Brianne Donaldson We grieve our dead because they are gone. They are gone, and there are no words or promises that will bring them back. Yet, this mortal truth does not stop people from offering words and promises to one who mourns, as though to somehow protect themselves as spectators from even a peripheral encounter with the seeming unbearableness of grief. In Donald Trump’s first address to Congress, he offered this veneer of comfort to Carryn Owens, the widow of... Read more

The Preacher Persisted: Finding Courage in the Pulpit

February 28, 2017 By Deborah Arca

Despite the push-back I have received against my sermons that tackle controversial issues, here’s one thing I know: I will not allow my prophetic preaching voice to be silenced. Read more

Three Ways Women With Theology Degrees Are Changing the World

February 27, 2017 By Posted by Editor

Where Teens Do Not Turn in Times of Trouble

February 22, 2017 By Dwight Lee Wolter

“Where would you turn for help if you, or someone you know, was a victim of teen dating violence?” the moderator asked an adult and a teen who were standing on opposite sides of a table, waiting to ring a bell when they had an answer. The teen struck the bell and shouted, “your best friend!” The moderator hit a button that made a buzz signifying a “wrong” answer. “Telling your best friend,” the moderator commented, “might result in gossip.... Read more

Preaching in the Era of Trump

February 21, 2017 By Deborah Arca

I struggle to understand how those who claim to embrace the radical ethic of the Christian faith—the gospel ethic of caring for the disenfranchised, marginalized, and oppressed “others” of society—can claim to have voted for Trump out of Christian values when there were other Republican and Democratic candidates from whom to pick. Voters are used to choosing between “the lesser of evils,” but there is no serious Christian standard by which Trump can be argued to be that choice. Read more

How Donald Trump’s Opponents Missed what was Right in Front of Them

February 14, 2017 By Posted by Editor

Hidden from the Learned, Revealed to the Simple: How Donald Trump’s Opponents Missed what was Right in Front of Them The age of Rule by Amateur is upon us. When the singularly inexperienced Donald Trump defied the commentariat and dethroned the political professionals last year, he did so with resounding support from people without college degrees. Like any coastal snob, I’m discomfited by this triumph of the inexpert over the specialists. But it also occurred to me recently that the... Read more

America’s Addiction to a Drug Called Trump

January 30, 2017 By Dwight Lee Wolter

First you take the drug, and then the drug takes you. This didn’t happen to everyone in America; but it happened to America herself. And it was predictable. At first, our flirtations with the drug called Trump were fun! The drug called Trump was sometimes rude and often crude; but it was entertaining. It made us laugh. It made us cry. It made us sigh. It made us high. Then came the denial. We thought that this drug called Trump... Read more

Leading Differently: Disruptors Needed

January 23, 2017 By Posted by Editor

By Stephen Lewis, President of Forum for Theological Exploration (FTE) In a time of withering certainty about who we are as Americans, Christians and global citizens, we desperately need courageous moral leaders—those willing to disrupt the status quo. These are leaders inspired by faith, fueled by courage and leading in unconventional ways to create a more hopeful future. Over the past year, bold leaders in FTE’s community shared their reflections on how they are Leading Differently through their work in the world, in a series... Read more