That the love of God means the freedom for people to make their unimpeded choices for good or evil permeates The Shack. [Note: The Shack, based on the book by William P Young, is about to be released. The book caused enormous controversy among many Christians when it first came out. An editor, Chris Fenoglio, from UMC.com recently asked me and several other clergy some questions about the movie/book. You may find the article here. I am posting my full answers... Read more
Option: Confront your parents and insist they change their behavior so you feel better. Dictate precisely what you need. This has a success rate of something approaching zero. Dear Thoughtful Pastor: My parents are complicated and volatile. They have been that way since I was a child and have a very dysfunctional marriage. I love them both but I don’t feel 100% secure with them. My daughter was exposed to them being awful to each other on Sunday and it really... Read more
As messy as these multiple forms of beliefs have become, a theocracy would insist upon one, and only one, of those as the “correct” belief system. Dear Thoughtful Pastor: What is a Theocracy? Does our Constitution allow for a Christian Theocracy? Democracy means “rule by the people” as “demos”=“the people.” Theocracy means “rule by God” where “theos”=”God.” God is supreme ruler in a theocracy. God’s laws are the laws of the state, Officials, elected or self-appointed, serve as chosen by... Read more
We have truth here: the White Supremacist movement found their dupe in the soulless body of 45*, a man whose only goal is life is to be unfetteringly rich and endlessly adored by an impenetrable ring of loyalists. Sure I’m caught up in the political news. Thanks to a lingering bout with the flu, I have just enough energy to keep up, kind of, with the news, but not enough energy to write. But a quote from a Karl Rove... Read more
Evil is often disguised in a subtle call to comfort, to security, to safety. It will involve only the smallest of compromises. Dear Thoughtful Pastor: There is evil in the world, at many levels, from government and business, down to communities and ourselves. On encountering evil, what is our Christian responsibility, either as a church or individual? Ignore it, avoid it, confront it or something else? It seems like we should be taking some action, but often it seems like... Read more
Here’s the thing: we humans, similar to small-brained chickens, have this need to know our place in the pecking order. Most want to peck our way to the top, uncaring of the damage we do to others in the process. Dear Thoughtful Pastor: Is White Nationalism in any way compatible with Jesus’ Commandments? No. I suppose I should expand on that answer. Adherents and apologists for White Nationalism suggest that there should be a nation set aside where “whites,” however... Read more
For this white girl, with my solid if somewhat boring and protected middle-class past, Moonlight was a troubling immersion into a foreign land. I didn’t understand 90% of the dialogue. The black, inner-city rapid-fire patois left me puzzled about the details. Nonetheless, the story itself, encapsulated by the excellent actors, captivated me. (Actors: Trevante Rhodes, André Holland, Janelle Monáe, Ashton Sanders, Jharrel Jerome, Naomie Harris and Mahershala Ali.) For this white girl, with my solid if somewhat boring and protected middle-class past,... Read more
She exchanged the perfection of control for the perfection of never-ending vulnerability. The only end of this is utter exhaustion and inability to function. I put down Comfort Detox by Erin M. Straza (IVP Books, 2017) with a sense of relief. I had finished the book. With never ending energy, Straza exhorted the reader to leave behind the worship of comfort. The primacy of comfort leaves us shielded and padded and insulated from the raw needs of a broken world. We become... Read more
But . . . divorce does happen. Always has, always will. Sometimes relationships become so evil that the best solution for all is to dissolve it. From the earliest times, there has been a legitimate out when a spouse proves unfaithful. Remember that unfaithfulness comes in many different forms. Dear Thoughtful Pastor: I am a born again Christian. I love the Lord with all of my heart and mind and soul and strength. I am divorced. Can I ever, without... Read more
Once we have spent time in a particular belief system, especially in a “church” environment that demands massive contributions, unquestioned loyalty, absorbs all spare time and which forms the entire social network for people, most don’t have enough mental energy to figure out that something is terribly wrong. A year and a half ago, I did a “mystery worship” at a nearby prosperity, “come-here-and-get-rich” church, lead by an apparent Joel Osteen wannabe, Keith Craft. You can read a full description of what... Read more
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In