The Easter bunny didn’t visit our house yesterday, but we did eat chocolate eggs and drink some champagne. I have a new post at Christianity Today thinking through my responses to “American Easter” and Christian Easter.” It’s called “Caught Between the Easter Bunny and the Empty Grave,” and it begins: For two weeks now, our kids have been singing, “Hosanna!” Penny, our 4-year-old, sings the whole song: “Hosanna to the King of Kings!” William, 20 months old, just repeats this... Read more

It’s a day of waiting. A day between the cross and the resurrection. The place many of us live most of the time. My friend Ellen Painter Dollar has written a beautiful and profound essay exploring the reality of Easter hope in the midst of reasons to despair. I recommend it highly, and hope you’ll read it in full. It is called “Believe the Better Story” and here is an excerpt from the beginning: Leah’s roommate is a young girl... Read more

“…faith comes and goes. It rises and falls like the tides of an invisible ocean. If it is presumptuous to think that faith will stay with you forever, it is just as presumptuous to think that unbelief will…” (Flannery O’Connor, The Habit of Being, 452). Whenever people ask me my denominational affiliation, I answer, “I’m denominationally confused.” I was baptized Episcopalian, confirmed Presbyterian, married Congregational, and now worship in a non-denominational church. Oh, and I worked for a parachurch ministry... Read more

I was asked to participate in another “Theoblogger challenge” on the website Patheos. The question I needed to answer, in 100 words or less, was “Why I Need the Resurrection.” Here’s my answer: Shower, breakfast, kids to school, myself to work, go running, make dinner, kids to bed, check email, sleep. It’s easy to forget. But after the earthquake in Haiti, I need the resurrection. When my friend’s parents die in a plane crash, I need the resurrection. When another... Read more

It’s such a mundane decision. Such a paltry “sacrifice.” Don’t drink alcohol, except on Sundays, for the next seven weeks. What on earth does that have to do with Jesus’ death and resurrection? With sin and salvation? With fullness of life and God’s glory? I remember reading the Exodus account of the Golden Calf when I was in college. It’s a classic story–Moses has led the Israelites out of Egypt and they are in the wilderness and Moses disappears for... Read more

I’m in the home stretch of writing my thesis for Seminary (for those of you who play close attention, I got an extension and it is now due this Saturday. Long story.) on Flannery O’Connor’s Theology of Disability. I’ve learned a lot about theology, disability, and O’Connor, but the unexpected blessing of the past three months of research has been reading O’Connor’s collected letters in The Habit of Being. One example for today: “I never completely forget myself except when... Read more

As readers of this blog already know, Penny attends an inclusive preschool. There are about 14 kids in the class–eight who are “typically-developing” and six with special needs. On Sunday, it was Sarah’s (I’ve changed her name) birthday, and she had a “pony party” with all the kids from her class at school. I knew Penny would be afraid of the pony, and that I wouldn’t be able to coax her into it. So the party fell to Peter. As... Read more

Somewhat related to today’s earlier post, I have a new post on 843 Acres: What do your neighbors think about Christianity? It begins: “They will know we are Christians by our love.” At least in my neck of the woods, Christianity is seen as oppressive, intolerant, anti-intellectual and against science. Not a fair assessment, to be sure, but why is it that many of my neighbors think so badly of Christians, or at least of the religion to which we... Read more

What do a Jewish bisexual woman and a born-again Christian man living on a farm in Alaska have in common? They’re brother and sister. Brother Born Again (available on Netflix) is the documentary film that Julia makes as she tries to understand her brother Marc and his decision to leave his culture and family in his quest to know Jesus. I watched this film expecting to be critical of Marc. As a Christian, I cringed at the sound of a... Read more

About once a month, Penny and I take a special trip to Panera for lunch. Tuesday was the day. “Let’s go out to lunch,” I said. “At a restaurant?” she asked. “I like a restaurant!” We stood in line, and I picked Penny up so she could see over the counter. The woman taking our order beamed. Penny said, “Hi.” After I paid, she said, to Penny, “My sister’s name is Doha. You remind me of her.” Time was short–long... Read more