It’s an old Eastern European custom. I’m not sure if it’s still practiced in Slavic countries today, but it’s something we did when I was young. On the day after Easter, Bright Monday, men and boys would splash, sprinkle, or squirt water on unsuspecting women while announcing, “Christ is risen!” … Read More »Fifty Days: To Life!
Churches and synagogues are closing. Fewer people attend weekly services than in the past. Is this the end of religion? Or is something else happening? The following is a text version of this blog. What’s happening with religion? Is it falling apart? Is it becoming more conservative? Is it becoming… Read More »Is This the End of Religion?
WWJD? What Would Jesus Do? How about this? What would Jesus want us to do? Anyone who seriously reads the New Testament gospels will be uncomfortable when they realize what Jesus actually wants from his followers. The following is a text version of this posting. Some years ago, there was… Read More »What Would Jesus Want?
Many people were raised in conservative religious contexts and as adults grow beyond the confines of their childhood belief systems. Sometimes, a question comes up for them: what if they were actually right all along? This question could reflect unresolved spiritual abuse. In this video, I am discussing how growing… Read More »The Religious Conservative: What If They Are Right?
It’s a ceremony that seemed very strange to me when I first learned about it. It was so different from anything with which I was familiar that it was difficult to understand. Several decades ago, I was told about a tradition among the Plains Indians called the Sun Dance. The… Read More »The God Who Suffers With Us
To be a Christian, a follower of the teachings of Jesus, is difficult. While living out the attitudes and values of Jesus has never been easy, in our era, there are significant challenges. The most obvious challenge is that the Christian Church today is characterized by egregious actions and statements… Read More »The Difficult Challenge of Being a Christian
The Christian Church in the United States is dying. That should come as no surprise to anyone. It happened in Western Europe and Australia after World War II. It happened in Canada and Ireland as well. Now it’s happening here. Attendance at churches of every kind is declining. Yes, even… Read More »The Christian Church is Dying
There are many things in life I just don’t understand. One of them is how people misrepresent the heart of a religion — any religion. Whether it’s Judaism, Buddhism, Islam, or Christianity, some followers of each path are likely to take minor themes from the religion out of context, blow… Read More »The Politics of Christianity
