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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

January 2016

January 16, 2016

The Limits of Gratitude

Gratitude is having a moment in our culture. Lifestyle gurus, including Oprah, tout the positive...

December 2015

December 24, 2015

My Christmas Pageant Moment

This post was originally published on the Episcopal Café web site on January 21, 2010, and has...

December 04, 2015

Hope is the Hard and Necessary Work of Advent

Practicing Advent hope in the face of hopelessness is the fundamental—sometimes hardest—work God has given...

November 2015

November 13, 2015

Spotlight: A Film About Devotion to Truth, the Church, and a God Who Shows Up in Unexpected Places

Of the many remarkable things about the new film Spotlight, the most remarkable is that...

September 2015

September 25, 2015

A Cancer Memoir that (Mostly) Gets It Right

I have rarely read a book that inspired so many different reactions, in such quick...

August 2015

August 03, 2015

Big Gifts of a Small Life: Meeting God in Sticky Floors, Carpools, & the Needy People I Call My Own

We must believe that it's necessary to go on with small acts of daily care...

July 2015

July 22, 2015

Who Exactly Are “the Least of These”?

Which interpretation of Matthew 25 is more likely to inspire us to love our neighbor,...

October 2014

October 24, 2014

It’s Still a No Brainer for Christians to Support Gun Law Reform

When it comes to many controversial sociopolitical issues facing Christians (and everyone else) today, I...

October 21, 2014

A Christian Response to Brittany Maynard’s Decision to Die

The face on this week’s People magazine cover is Brittany Maynard, a 29-year-old, recently married woman who went...

October 20, 2014

Does the Bible Leave You Disquieted? Read This Book (Even Better, Win a Free Copy!)

The Bible is an invitation. An invitation to contemplate who we are, as individuals, communities,...

August 2014

August 13, 2014

How Robin Williams’s Suicide is Changing How I Love My Kids

We spend a lot of time and effort in our culture to encourage our kids...

August 05, 2014

On Episcopalian Rules (or, Why Episcopalians Rule)

Last weekend, my husband and I drove to Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, to pick our daughter Leah up from...

July 2014

July 17, 2014

Why Talking Evangelical is Good for Your Blog Stats

A few months ago, I tweeted this: “Reason #437 I love being an Episcopalian: No...

July 07, 2014

WWJD About Independence Day?

The important question isn't whether we should or shouldn't acknowledge Independence Day in church. The...

July 02, 2014

How Having an (Insurance-Covered) IUD is Saving My Life

If I were to become pregnant again, there is enormous potential for another harrowing birth...

June 2014

June 25, 2014

The God Who Wants to Be Noticed

I believe the universe, or more precisely, its creator, wants to be noticed. In noticing...

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,...

May 2014

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...

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,...

February 2014

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 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...

February 10, 2014

Ode to a Minivan

I love my minivan for lots of reasons having to do with convenience, but also...

February 04, 2014

God Does Not Make Me Happy (or Three Things I Learned About My Relationship with God)

Last weekend, I went on a one-night retreat with my church's vestry. (In an Episcopal...

January 2014

January 20, 2014

MLK’s “Single Garment of Destiny” & Slavery’s Legacy

My friend Kate was featured on NPR's "Race Card" project last week, talking about her family's history...

January 08, 2014

Painfully Aware of the Abyss: A Review of Holly Burkhalter’s “Good God, Lousy World, & Me”

I once read a novel in which the protagonist divided humankind into two categories: those...

January 07, 2014

Deep in a Place of Exile, Waiting for the Return

I don't much like when people I care about are deep in the "exile" part...