A blessed Christmastide to you and Happy New Year. This time of year always brings on a taking stock frame of mind. Recently mine has revolved around pondering the dual aspect of reality – seen and unseen. How does
The (Local) Church, More Important Than Ever
We are hearing from a number of quarters that American society is in trouble like we haven’t seen in a long time. I share this worry. We feel it locally, among our neighborhoods and acquaintances. The blight of hatred spreads
The Transformation of Congregational Culture
In Hosea 2, we find a beautiful promise of restoration immediately after God’s judgment against Israel’s infamous infidelity. The language in the promise is that of the New Creation. “On that day” God will reclaim the adulteress Israel. The Lord
Fixing Jesus
It now appears that an interpretation of Jesus’ being cured of racism in his response to the Syro-phoenician woman in Mark 7 has some real staying power among a slice of United Methodists. You can read the story at Mark
Guest Blog: The Purpose of Youth Ministry
(The following essay comes from the Rev. Wendy Mohler Seib, a PhD candidate in practical theology and Director of Faith Formation for Youth and Young Adults at the Institute for Discipleship at Southwestern College. The American church needs to re-think