Author’s note: This was originally delivered as a talk at Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL on April 1, 2011, as part of a series of…
Loving Accountability or Burdensome Legalism?
Accountability is much in the news these days. Politicians on the campaign trail, for example, claim they will be transparent so as to be…
Hindrances to Communication
Stumbling in conversation Good communication is hard even at the best of times in this badly fragmented world. Have I overstated that? I don’t…
Trust and Safety
“Trust is confidence,” Jim Belcher says, “that the other person’s intentions are good and that we have no reason to be protective or careful…
Offhanded Joy
Community / Faith / Hospitality / Maturity and Flourishing / Ordinary Life / Safe Place / Work and Rest
Dedicated: To my friends who helped the homeless of Louisiana. To those whose ate mangoes on a beach in Hawaii while their water pipes…
Over the Rainbow
Community / Creation / Maturity and Flourishing / Ordinary Life / Work and Rest
Over The Rainbow Something died in the guts of our house. As it ripened and decayed, Denis searched for it in among the cobwebs…
What the Bleep Do I Know?
Community / Movies / Ordinary Life / Safe Place / Spirituality
Sunday Afternoon “Are you from the Unitarian Church?” A small, dark-haired woman drinking a soy latte and holding a copy of Enlightenment magazine smiled…
Discernment Exercise: Loving People
Community / Exercises / Scripture
On relationships, and all that The Bible makes it clear that God’s covenant people are to be characterized by love. He loves us and…
Church centered, not church occupied
Church centered, not church occupied I don’t want to be misunderstood here. I am not saying that church membership is optional for the Christian,…
Postville I: Undocumented Workers, Immigration & Justice.
Community / Faith / Pluralistic World
Everything changed for Postville on a morning in May. At 10 a.m., immigration agents descended en masse upon the tiny Iowa town. They arrived…