What if the facts lead to a conclusion that you don’t like?

July 10, 2019 By vancemorgan

People are prone to apply the meaning of other people’s arguments to suit opinions that they have previously determined in their minds. Michel de Montaigne The other day, I found myself involved in a discussion on a progressive Christian Facebook page, a site that frequently shares my blog posts. The article under discussion was directed primarily at evangelical Christians, wondering what they thought about the fact that Jesus in the gospels regularly speaks and acts as if he believes in... Read more

Lessons from the Past About the “Other”

July 9, 2019 By vancemorgan

It is clear that immigration and the southern U.S. border are going to be central issues for the next many months as we move our way toward the next Presidential election, along with income disparity, social inequality, health care, and any dozen other matters you care to focus on. I’ve been thinking over the past few days about a couple of books that I read during Winter Break last late December and early January, both of which—in different ways—shed light... Read more

What Are We Doing When We Pray?

July 7, 2019 By vancemorgan

I am currently in the middle of working through the proofs of my forthcoming book, the last time I have the opportunity to change anything. And, as my editor directly reminded me, my opportunity to change anything significant has passed. This final time through is only for punctuation, misspellings, and a few other minor matters. It’s an exciting time. For a writer, this point in the book process is what I imagine being 8.5 months pregnant is like–minus the discomfort,... Read more

A Thankless and Glorious Assignment: Enter if You are Brave Enough

July 5, 2019 By vancemorgan

In the early hours of a Sunday morning not long ago, I read the final pages of Daša Drndić’s Trieste, the most powerful, unrelenting and unforgiving book related to the Holocaust I have ever read. As a reviewer for Amazon wrote, “Trieste is not a book for the faint-hearted, either in style or subject. . . . Enter if you are brave enough, and if you stay the course you will be changed.” No one—those in authority, the church, those who turned... Read more

Compromise is Patriotic

July 3, 2019 By vancemorgan

I think it’s time for us to get a little bit more uncompromising in our defense of compromise. Jonathan Rauch One of the many benefits of getting up early on Sunday morning in order to make the 8:00 service at church is that I can catch the last fifteen minutes of Krista Tippett’s radio program “On Being” as I drive. I first became aware of Krista several years ago when I was on sabbatical at the ecumenical institute in Minnesota where she... Read more

Superhero Theology

July 2, 2019 By vancemorgan

I think that a lot of people stop taking their birthdays seriously after a certain age—perhaps fifty. Jeanne and I, however, still expect to be the center of attention on our birthdays, and also expect the spouse who is not having the birthday to plan a few surprises or two. For Jeanne’s birthday two summers ago, we celebrated with a twenty-mile bike ride to the Audubon Society’s environmental education center, a surprise dinner with close friends at a restaurant on... Read more

It’s My Life, and I’ll Die When I Want To

June 29, 2019 By vancemorgan

If you got to choose the manner of your death, what would your choice be? In his Essais, Michel de Montaigne encourages his readers to take ownership of the freedom each of us has concerning our demise: Why do you complain of this world? It does not hold you: if you live in pain, your cowardice is the cause; to die all that is needed is the will . . . The most voluntary death is the fairest . .... Read more

What Happens After You Die Isn’t That Important

June 27, 2019 By vancemorgan

A conversation involving a bunch of guys at a sports bar waiting for the big game to begin: “Dude, I’ve got one for you. There are these seven brothers named Aaron, Bill, Carl, Dave, Eric, Fred and George. Aaron’s the oldest one and he marries his high school girlfriend Paula. But he dies and Bill marries Paula because he thinks it’s the right thing to do.” “That’s kind of weird. Is Paula hot?” “What does that matter? “If I was... Read more

Getting Old Is God’s Worst Idea

June 25, 2019 By vancemorgan

I’ve been thinking a lot about end of life issues lately. Really. They seem to be showing up everywhere–on the television show we are currently binge-watching, in my readings in the Psalms, in Montaigne’s Essais that I am reading through this summer, in a lead article in the Atlantic that just came in the mail, in a novel I am rereading that will be the first assignment in my ethics class in the fall. You know who never talks about end of... Read more

Do You Want To Be Free? Face Your Demons

June 23, 2019 By vancemorgan

The lectionary readings for today include two fascinating texts from Scripture: Elijah collapsed under a broom tree in First Kings, and a bunch of demons cast into a herd of pigs in Luke’s gospel. Lucky me: I’m giving the sermon today at the Episcopal church I attend, then leading a monthly discussion group afterwards! Here’s what I’ll be saying: This year is the centenary of the birth of Iris Murdoch. Her life bookended the twentieth century (she died after several... Read more