The only way I can get through the tedium of working out on an aerobic machine is to read—yesterday, I read the opening pages of Anne Lamott’s newest book, Almost Everything: Notes on Hope. I love Anne Lamott’s work—her honesty, fearlessness, humor, and insight always resonate deeply. The best comment anyone ever made about my writing was that it reminded him of Anne Lamott’ work. From his mouth to God’s ears. Hope is a scarce and costly commodity these days, so... Read more
The other day somebody wrote on Twitter that “President Trump is the best president in my lifetime.” I responded that “You must be three years old.” That’s my dominant attitude in the middle of, as the lead into every 24/7 wall-to-wall news coverage segment reminds us, “The Impeachment Trial of Donald John Trump” (my oldest son is annoyed that he shares his middle name with this president). It’s a good thing for my sanity that my work schedule on campus... Read more
Last November, I used a Michael Gerson essay as a jumping off point for a reflection on why so many young people are turning their backs on evangelical Christianity. In less than two months, this essay become the second-most-viewed-and-commented on post of 2019. Enjoy! Noah and his Children: Bad News for White Evangelical Christians Read more
Today, the Senate impeachment trial of President Donald J. Trump begins in earnest. As we all continue to hope that the persons who are charged with listening carefully to evidence, then with voting on that evidence after clearly weighing the evidence free from bias and tribal commitments, will actually do so, I am reminded of just how hard it is to think clearly–especially when the stakes are high. And that reminds me of something I wrote about a year ago... Read more
On this Martin Luther King Jr. Day, I am reminded of a few days I spent in the nation’s capital last August while Jeanne worked at a large veterinary conference. While she worked, I walked many miles, including past the MLK memorial and the Lincoln Memorial, where he delivered his famous “I have a dream” speech. While we were in D.C., two mass shootings occurred, one in Texas and one in Ohio. I wrote about the whole experience a few... Read more
Perhaps a novel whose main character is the squadron leader for World War II bombing raids over Germany was not the best reading material while flying from Charleston, SC to Philadelphia on the way back home to Providence a few days ago. But that’s what I found myself doing sitting in first class (the $70 for the upgrade was more than worth it). It got me to thinking about war, fate, and both the worst and best that human beings... Read more
Last June, I used essays by Michael Gerson and Marilynne Robinson to explore what happens when fear, rather than love and grace, becomes the dominant energy behind one’s faith commitments. This essay was my third-most-viewed post in 2019. Enjoy! Read more
I have a good friend and colleague in the philosophy department who has twin daughters. Several years ago, during the summer between his daughters’ junior and senior years in high school, my friend and his family visited seventeen different college campuses. The young ladies in question, although twins, could not be more different in appearance or personality. Daughter #1, whose interests were predominantly focused on science, favored Dartmouth College but was also very interested in the University of Virginia and... Read more
The season of Epiphany, squeezed in between the Christmas season and Lent, is the annual liturgical celebration of Jesus’ coming out party. The gospel texts over the next few weeks will follow Jesus as he calls disciples, performs miracles, gets thrown out of his hometown synagogue for claiming to be the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy of the Messiah, and delivers the Sermon on the Mount. Today is the first Sunday of Epiphany: on tap in today’s gospel is Matthew’s account... Read more
Last May, I wrote about the often-made claim from evangelical Christians that they are the most discriminated against group of people in the country. That essay was my fourth-most-viewed blog post of 2019–Enjoy! Are Evangelical Christians Discriminated Against? The Dangers of Tribal Christianity Read more
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