An anonymous letter arrived in today's mail, mailed by a person in our town who clearly believes the Muslim community in our city ought not be allowed to build a new mosque. The writer feared the mosque was part of what he or she called "a long range plan to destroy Western Civilization as we know it." The letter ended with a postscript asking me to share its content with the congregation.

I've n ...

Let's start with a truth. Much of what passes for debate about health care amounts to nothing more than pundits and people shouting slogans at each other. Their talking points could not pass muster in a high school debate class, where one is required to build a case based on research, genuine engagement with the other person's position, and careful argument.

Am ...

The prospect of Easter 2009 prompts me to think about what resurrection means.

Resurrection means Jesus lives. Christians know and walk with a risen Lord. We encounter Jesus not only as a figure of history but as a present living reality.  Frankly, we're often startled by his presence, even as were the first Christians. Sometimes we fi ...

What matters most?

Recently, I endured a bit of "down time" as I recovered from surgery. My normal routine seldom provides much in the way of down time. I can't say I enjoyed the experience, but it did have an up side: With time on my hands, I began to reflect on what matters most to me.

Like many of us, I've lived in interesting times. F ...

A bit of retrospection and anticipation seems in order on the last day of 2008.

Looking back, 2008 brought blessings, challenges, the expected and the unexpected. The church launched new ministries to special needs children and their families, women interested in missions and ministries, and through various Bible study opportunities. We drastically restructered our approach to youth Sunday School, small ...

Try saying this sentence out loud: "Racism is a sin."

Twenty five years ago I led worship for a local group of pastors in the Nashville area. In my sermon, I described the blatant and subtle ways in which pastors exhibit racism: jokes, stories, standing silent when church members exhibit racism, condoning or supporting racist policies in housing or education or employment. & ...

A strange thing happened while I was standing in line on the first day of "early voting:" civility broke out among us.

I took my place in line. An older white man, a young black woman and an elderly white woman stood just in front of me. Behind me, a middle aged black woman and a twenty-something white man took up station. Before I knew what had happened, conversation broke out.< ...

Once upon a time (say as late as 1948), the terms "liberal" and "conservative" actually held clearly defined meaning. Conservatives generally regarded change or experimentation via government to be dangerous. They, therefore, sought to slow the pace and scope of change. Liberals for the most part believed the challenges of the time required enormous shifts in the role of government and so pushed for bold action. Nea ...

What do you think of when you hear the term church?

As a child, I thought of a specific building, a small sanctuary at the intersection of two roads in the heart of my boyhood village. The building even had it's name written on it in large, black letters. No doubt about it--the building was the church. As such, the very building was considered holy space. Everything within it commande ...

Not too long ago, a friend from another relgious tradition asked me to summarize my "take on Jesus." This is the reply I shared.

Jesus, ideally, is the center of my life. Traditionally, Christians speak of Jesus as "Lord," "Master," "Teacher," "Saviour," and the like. The simplest way I know to capture the essence of all such terms is to picture Jesus as t ...