Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Ellen Painter Dollar

Home
Progressive Christian

Uncategorized

Select a Category disability ethics parenthood Uncategorized

Select a Month September 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011

June 2014

June 17, 2014

Why Church is Important (One Reason, Anyway)

Perhaps part of me thinks that to be worthwhile, prayer and Bible study have to...

June 12, 2014

Revitalizing Churches and Communities the “Slow Church” Way

After years of driving south to visit my husband's family in North Carolina, our family...

June 10, 2014

Why I Don’t Pray or Study the Bible (Much)

While I grew up in the Episcopal Church (the same Episcopal Church I currently attend,...

June 02, 2014

“A Beautiful Disaster”: Marlena Graves on Suffering, God, & a Child-Like Faith

When people get all in a tizzy about how the Internet is ruining real human...

May 2014

May 28, 2014

Evangelizing with Strawberries

Every Memorial Day, families in our suburb of Hartford, Conn., gather in the town center...

May 21, 2014

Abiding with the Living and the Dying: Thoughts on “Holding Silvan”

This assumption—that a life marked by suffering is not worth living—leads us to believe that...

May 19, 2014

“Inspiration Porn” Objectifies People with Disabilities

Admire me for what I do—for writing well or raising decent kids or having a...

May 16, 2014

We Know God Through Scripture…and So Much More

Shortly after we were married, Daniel and I traveled to Boone, North Carolina—home of Daniel's...

May 14, 2014

The God of Laundry and Transformation

It makes sense that God became incarnate as a man. Not because God is one...

May 12, 2014

In Defense of Social Media

To dismiss the online world as a repository for irrelevant banter by narcissistic blowhards who...

May 08, 2014

Why I Stopped Feeling Guilty for Wanting a Beautiful Home

For years, I pored over magazine spreads and home catalogs, made graph-paper renderings of kitchen...

May 07, 2014

A Broken Body, Redeemed

Eight years ago, when my three children were still very young, we traveled to Omaha...

May 06, 2014

Resemblances

“Look at those fingers! And her toes! So long and skinny…just like yours, Ellen.” I...

May 05, 2014

When a Viral Blog Post Doesn’t Change Much of Anything

Being a writer is primarily about writing—not about following some social media guru's five-step system...

May 02, 2014

20 Minutes on Facebook

It occurs to me that nothing is simple—no matter how pithy or clever or heartfelt...

April 2014

April 29, 2014

Troll-Proofing Our Online Writing

At the Festival of Faith and Writing two weeks ago in Grand Rapids, Michigan, my...

April 28, 2014

How My Daughter (“the Mensch”) Taught Me About God’s Love

Saturday night, as we drove south on Route 9 in the rainy twilight, a billboard...

April 02, 2014

Yes, We Can Change Cultural Assumptions About Disabilities. Here’s How.

Last night, I gave a lecture at the University of Hartford to students in a...

April 01, 2014

I Don’t Like God’s Seating Chart

As you know from my last post, I was devastated by World Vision's reversal, under...

March 2014

March 28, 2014

Why I’m Grieving World Vision’s Decision

A colleague expressed frustration yesterday at the accusatory back-and-forth that has resulted from World Vision's...

March 26, 2014

Why I Support the Ordination of Women & LGBTQ People

I support the ordination of women and LGBTQ people because if I didn't, I would...

March 25, 2014

What Happens When We Pray

I don't understand how prayer works. But I believe in a God who is good,...

March 18, 2014

How the Internet is Killing the Book Review

Now that I own a Kindle, my ever-raging thirst for new reading material can be...

March 03, 2014

Writing Letters for Lent

One of the best books I've read over the past couple of years, of any...

February 2014

February 28, 2014

A Christian Response to Genetically Modified Babies

An New York Times op ed by Marcy Darnovsky of the Center for Genetics and Society...

February 26, 2014

The Problem with the Honey-and-Cinnamon (& Every Other) Miracle Cure

A post making the Facebook rounds claims that “a mix of honey and cinnamon cures...

February 25, 2014

Looking for God in a Long Winter

Last Wednesday was the breaking point for me. The last straw. The bottom of the...

February 24, 2014

News Flash: You Are Not Jesus!

Recently, several Christian writers I follow have made the point that we are not Jesus. Probably we...

February 20, 2014

Separate Sex from Procreation….& End Up in Dystopia?

We progressive Christians like to roll our eyes at the Roman Catholics for their official...

February 19, 2014

Does the “Fetal Cell” Problem Justify Religious Exemption for Vaccinations?

Rachel Stone posted yet another excellent article about the importance of childhood vaccination for public...