Some people never change. The rich man still thinks he’s the boss in the life to come. He thinks Lazarus will take the role of his lackey and see after his needs when he never cared for Lazarus’ needs in his entire life. Am I the only one who is a little gratified that Abraham does not grant the rich man’s request to send Lazarus as a messenger to his brothers? Just a little. Read more

If you pushed me I would begrudgingly admit to my Christian faith. In recent months I have found myself to be on a bit of Church break. The communities and energies that have for so long sustained me now seem – tired, run out and out of ideas. While I value deeply the worshipping communities that sustained me for the last few years, I find myself in need of something more. Read more

My wife and I have been experimenting with hiking as part of our Sabbath practice: to get out of our heads and into our bodies, and to get outside into nature.  I use the words “experiment” and “practice” intentionally because praising the ideal of Sabbath as a weekly, twenty-four hour “sanctuary in time” is much easier than the messy reality of actually practicing Sabbath. On a Sabbath hike a few weeks ago, we arrived at a beach that was supposed... Read more

Daniel Schultz, a United Church of Christ pastor and co-founder of the blog Street Prophets, has published a provocative new book called: Changing The Script: An Authentically Faithful and Authentically Progressive Political Theology for the 21st Century. Pastor Dan is hosting a Q&A on the book and it's themes tomorrow at his Facebook page here and is inviting comments, questions, even "polite critiques." Read more

With the recent release of the movie Eat, Pray, Love, we've been thinking about the ways each of us seeks renewal, specifically in times of crisis. And while author Elizabeth Gilbert's journey led her on an extended pilgrimage far from her home in NYC, we couldn't help but wonder: How do you seek spiritual renewal when you can't leave your family, your job, your mortgage payment? Some of our favorite bloggers respond... Read more

"When the dust clears on the Qur’an burning controversy, neither the threat, nor the response, will have had as much effect on God’s people as those who have quietly preached and lived love without ever turning on their televisions." Guest blogger Robert Hunt on the dangerous - and ultimately useless - power of the media to shape public religious dialogue. Read more