It is without a doubt that my favorite season of the Christian liturgical calendar is Advent. As someone drawn to the contemplative dimension of life, the four-week opportunity marked by hopeful anticipation touches my spirit deeply. This year, I’m inviting you to join me for a virtual Advent retreat. … Read More »Advent: A Spiritual Journey
Miami Beach, Florida: For about six years it was my home. Living there always meant that no matter how much work I was doing, I could feel like I was on vacation in just a few minutes. That’s because the beach was just a few minutes drive from my home.… Read More »A Larger Perspective on Life
“The Bible says it; I believe it; that settles it!” That sounds like something from a bumper sticker. It’s a claim I find to be shocking whenever an Evangelical or Fundamentalist Christian makes. it. The statement reflects a belief that the Bible is the Word of God: words spoken by… Read More »The Bible: The Word of God? No.
One of my favorite stories which has been told for generations by preachers is about a person who hoped to find the answer to a pressing question by looking in the Bible. After prayerful consideration of the problem, this person was inspired to open the Bible to a random page,… Read More »The Bible and Living Well: It’s not Complicated
Throughout the world at any given time, a natural disaster may occur. Earthquakes, typhoons, wiwildfires, volcanic eruptions, tornados, hurricanes, floods, drought….the list is overwhelming. When natural disasters occur, when people’s lives are overturned, when there is a loss of life and destruction of property, people often ask questions like why… Read More »Hurricanes, Fires, and Floods: Where is God?
The contemporary debate among Christians today is whether or not the Bible should be taken literally. Many Evangelical Christians view the text as being without error and without requiring interpretation. From my perspective, there are problems with this approach. First, it glosses over the obvious contradictions in the Bible, like… Read More »The Bible as Metaphor and Symbol
I am seriously disheartened by the form of Christianity that is most prominent in the United States today. Conservative Evangelical Christianity dominates the public sphere. Evangelical leaders make statements which demonstrate their support the politics of the privileged minority while using their media platforms to raise more money for their… Read More »A Christian Minister Dishearten by Contorted American Christianity
Sometimes, most of us wonder about the quality of our lives. Are we satisfied with life? Are we happy? Is something missing? Could life be better? I suspect that when these questions are asked, like around birthdays or significant changes, we become aware of the ways that the lives we… Read More »The Perfect Life or the Happy Life?
