October 27, 2022

Given the amount of time that I have spent in the academy, it isn’t often that I’ve been called on to preach about tithing.  But I did recently, and it occurred to me that laypeople probably find the attitude of clergy toward giving something of a mystery: One: “Apart from making people feel that they should give, do clergy ever preach that message to themselves?” Two: “If they do preach those sermons to themselves, do they think, “Hey, I work... Read more

October 19, 2022

  Student evaluations were based upon what appeared to be a reasonable premise: feedback from students provides a window into the strengths and weaknesses of a professor’s approach to education.  To a certain extent, that premise is sound.  But feedback of that kind is best used by the professor.  And longitudinal feedback, evaluations gathered over a period of time is where helpful patterns surface.  On the whole, those are far more useful and significant than individual evaluations gathered in a... Read more

October 6, 2022

  In times of suffering, it’s natural to want to comfort others.  It’s admirable, in fact.  And it demonstrates a desire to help, to walk alongside of others. It’s also natural to think that drawing comparisons with our own experience is an effective way to do that.  After all, it establishes a common bond.  It lets people know that we know how they feel.  And it says, “You are not alone.”  Doesn’t it? In a word, “No”. If our own... Read more

September 28, 2022

I am not given to conspiracy theories or world-ending fantasies. Between coincidence and widespread mendacity, it is easy to stitch together a series of events and suggest that there is some master design behind it all.  By and large, history suggests that the self-appointed masters of the universe are not that smart, not that powerful, and not that good at hiding their attempts at it. As a student of apocalyptic literature with a degree in the stuff, I am also... Read more

September 26, 2022

I came across an interview with Mark Wahlberg not long ago in which an interviewer asked Wahlberg, “Do your kids think that you are the cool dad?”  Wahlberg responded, “No, not at all.”  He went on to note that if he could introduce his children to someone that they thought was cool, he might be, for a moment.  But, in general, he said, no, if anything, “they might be embarrassed by all of it.” It is not a lengthy video. ... Read more

September 13, 2022

The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners– of whom I am the foremost. But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display the utmost patience, making me an example to those who would come to believe in him for eternal life. (1 Timothy 1:12-17) Living in the south again, Natalie and I are getting back in touch with... Read more

September 7, 2022

  “For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, saying, `This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’” (Luke 14:28-30) Much to the amazement of the men who attend a program that I sponsor, called “Men,... Read more

September 6, 2022

A prayer for those struggling with Alzheimer’s, dementia and other illnesses that rob us of out connection to others: Understand, my love, I found myself on the tattered edges of memory and expression.  They promised our generation endless life, the new forty is fifty, the new fifty is sixty, the future extends endlessly.  They didn’t admit that the frontier ahead was frayed and troubled. Bedeviled by the loss of memory and clarity.  We will download your memory.  Freeze your body... Read more

September 1, 2022

“Whataboutism” is the relatively new and frequently used trope, offered up in public discourse.  It is almost impossible to miss, if you spend any time on social media at all.  There are even Whatabout pages on Facebook (though I don’t have the energy or the time to dip into that water). The difficult thing with “Whataboutism” is that it works both as an opening gambit and as a means of forestalling a larger conversation.  One can use it first in... Read more

August 29, 2022

Recently, author Louise Perry summarized some of the thinking that has shaped her new work on the sexual revolution.  Her article, published by Bari Weiss is entitled, “I’m 30.  The Sexual Revolution Shackled my Generation.”  A committed, radical feminist, she backed both the rhetorical and social changes that changed the way we think about sex and – in particular – the way in which women navigated their own sexuality. But, Perry notes, those changes carried with them a hefty price... Read more


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