Over the last month, I’ve made weekly trips beyond the suburbs along a bumpy road far from the busy city. While it’s a drive out of my way, it’s a trip I look forward to. I always find something I didn’t expect – something good to bring home. My destination:… Read More »Gratitude for Being Sustained
It’s a statement I’ve heard in various forms. It goes something like this. “I respect all spiritual paths.” Another version of this same perspective is, “Everyone has a right to her own beliefs.” Or another similar perspective is this: “All paths lead to the same source.” All of these statements… Read More »Respecting All Spiritual Paths: Isn’t that Naïve?
It happened again this morning. As I sat at my computer, I watched gentle breeze make black plastic shopping bag dance across my front lawn. In time, it was snagged by the growth around a cherry tree. In any given week, I’ll pick up plastic bags, water bottles, candy wrappers,… Read More »Spirituality and the Environment: A Spirited Understanding of Sustainability
It was something of a surreal moment. My sister and her family moved from Pennsylvania to South Carolina. I think the year was 1979. My nephew, no more than 8 years old at the time, when visiting my parent’s home for Christmas reported what he learned in school. He said… Read More »Re-Writing History: The Confederate Flag and Southern Culture
Until a few weeks ago, I had no idea who the Duggar family was. To my surprise, it appears that many people in North America have been following this conservative Christian family. Further, the Duggar’s seem to be very influenctial among various Evangelical Christian lobbying groups. It seems that they… Read More »The Duggar’s: Abuse and Conservative Religion
A calendar notification brought it to my attention. My cell phone contract will soon expire. Two years have already passed. I’ll stay will my current carrier. I know that when I sign a new contract, I can get a new phone. I’m used to the one I have. It does… Read More »Community Building in an Era of Individualized Experience
Every few years, the Pew Research Center releases new data on religious affiliation in the United States as part of Religion and Public Life study. In May 2015, the statistics showed the continued increase in the number of people in the United States with no religious affiliation. Since the last… Read More »Institutional Religion: The Old Structures Don’t Work
I often hear it said, “People never change.” This adage is generally repeated in a moment of frustration and at that time, it seems to be true. Is it that people don’t ever change or that people don’t change in the ways we want and when we want? Is personal… Read More »A Lesson in Personal Change: The Life of Oscar Romero
