Like many of you, my moral outrage is spent after watching the Kavanaugh hearings yesterday. And my feminist outrage has burned out for the moment, leaving me nothing else to say about the proceedings; about the troubling truth that many who believe Dr. Ford’s testimony will confirm the candidate anyway, because their agenda matters more than anything else; or about all the people we know and love who have outed themselves as rape apologists this week. I’m experiencing a rare... Read more
Some people get stress headaches. Or skin rashes, or cold sores. For others, it’s stomach battles, or just a crushing fatigue. And some just find their immune system failing them, picking up every little virus that comes around. For me, it’s usually a flare-up of my TMJ symptoms, which can manifest in crushing neck and shoulder pain. Some mornings I literally can’t move. The point is, our bodies have many ways of letting us know when we are under stress.... Read more
This is the third sermon in a series, Resist: Justice Heroes from the Bible and the Big Screen. The preaching text for this week was John 4:1-42 (give or take). It’s rough out there. Seems like every day brings some new attack on the rights of marginalized groups; some rolling back of the boundaries around what we thought was acceptable adult behavior. It’s hard to know where to focus our energy and attention sometimes. Maybe the biggest threat of all... Read more
We know the statistics. One in five women will be raped in her lifetime. Around 63 percent of cases go unreported to police. Of those reported, only about 2 to 10 percent are ever revealed as “false reporting.” Meanwhile, the number of reported cases that lead to an actual arrest, conviction and sentence? Staggeringly low. Some statistics reveal that as few as six rapists out of every 1,000 will ever face prison time. Of course, these numbers cannot be exact,... Read more
Saturday morning, I was in an urgent care waiting room with a sick kid. It’s that time of year, and you just know the germs are coming for you. While we were waiting, a teenager came out on crutches. While he and his parents were waiting to check out, he started crying. I mean, a big old boy, just standing there sobbing in the doctor’s office. And his dad went over, put an arm around him and was trying to... Read more
This is part of a six-week sermon series “Resistance: Justice Heroes From the Bible and the Big Screen.” The preaching text is 1 Corinthians 12:12-31. Remember a few weeks ago, we talked about “bad words” and “good words?” Well, there is a new “d-word” that is off-limits in some circles. It’s “diversity.” All of a sudden that has become a trigger word, indicating some extreme leftist agenda. Media personality Tucker Carlson went on a tirade about it just this week.... Read more
In my sermon on Sunday, I talked about the power of fear in our current political climate. And I referenced a particular representative who, in the last election cycle, produced a particularly disgusting and anti-Islam mailer. On the front, it featured this image of a shadowy, sinister-looking figure in Jihad gear. Note the angry eyes, the font that could be the title screen of a horror movie, and the weapon that, in the hands of a white guy, would be... Read more
This is the first sermon in a series, “Resist: Justice Heroes from the Bible and the Big Screen.” Text: Matthew 10:26-39 From superhero sagas to epic sci-fi adventures, our favorite fictional heroes aren’t just “super.” They are focused on larger issues. They lead the resistance against corrupt leaders and systems. They fight against the powers of darkness, working for justice and the greater good. We may see movies as an escape; but deep down, we want to see this kind... Read more
For starters, that New York Times op-ed—the one that’s breaking the internet?—it isn’t at all surprising. It simply confirms what many of us already believe about the level of chaos in this White House. But the lack of a byline means that Trump and supporters can still call “fake news” and nobody can call them to account. It almost reads like a confession, but I don’t think that’s at all what the author was going for. In fact, it seems... Read more
Have you ever noticed that most big blockbuster movie hits are stories of social change? From superhero sagas to epic sci-fi adventures, our favorite fictional heroes aren’t just “super.” They are focused on larger issues. They lead the resistance against corrupt leaders and systems. They fight against the powers of darkness. They mobilize communities to work for justice and the greater good. We may see movies as an escape, but deep down, I think we love these movies—to the tune... Read more
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