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November 2021

November 20, 2021

Mansplaining in the Bible, and a Woman Who Overcame It

At a recent department meeting, our department chair wondered whether it might be good for...

November 16, 2021

Facts and Faith–Do They Go Together?

I am always encouraged when I find that various topics and issues that I obsess...

November 02, 2021

The Tweet of God

As is the case with many of the things in my life, my knowledge of...

December 2020

December 22, 2020

That Mary Thing

I have a colleague and friend with whom I share a lot in common. Eric...

December 19, 2020

We Are the Hands and Feet of God

I begin with a couple of stories. Story #1: There has been vigorous debate on...

December 17, 2020

What to Say when Any Word is the Wrong Word

After a number of years of engaging with social media, primarily Facebook and Twitter, I...

December 12, 2020

Beauty for Ashes: Accepting the Call of Advent

Two weeks ago, I gave the First Sunday of Advent sermon at Trinity Episcopal Church...

December 10, 2020

Advent 101–Finding a Retreat Within Yourself

We seek retreats for ourselves in country places, on beaches and mountains . . ....

December 08, 2020

It Isn’t True Just Because You Believe It. There Is No Immaculate Perception

I have taught philosophy in Catholic higher education for thirty years as a non-Catholic. Although...

December 05, 2020

Are You the One Who Is to Come?

The great but incredibly difficult German philosopher Immanuel Kant, in a rare moment of clarity,...

November 2020

November 28, 2020

The Message of Advent: Stay Awake!

I have the privilege of giving the sermon for the First Sunday of Advent, at...

November 24, 2020

Christianity Does Not Solve the Problem of Evil

In the eight-plus years that I’ve been writing this blog, I’ve occasionally been asked what...

November 14, 2020

Don’t Make Me Come Down There

As is the case with many of the things in my life, my knowledge of...

October 2020

October 25, 2020

“If people are just going to keep doing that, I wish I’d never been born.”

We’ve all done this, we bang and bang on the door of hope, and don’t...

August 2020

August 06, 2020

Silence is Not Always Golden: Class Participation in a Pandemic

Classes start on my college campus three weeks from this coming Monday. Let’s just say...

December 2019

December 23, 2019

Why the Details of Jesus’ Birth Don’t Matter

A couple of years ago, I was asked to take on a temporary administrative position...

December 21, 2019

A Really Awesome Stepfather with a Questionable Pedigree

In my religious tradition, we didn’t do saints. But we did do Christmas pageants—big time....

December 19, 2019

I Will Bring You Home

Baptist preacher’s kids get to do some very odd things. I memorized large portions of...

December 17, 2019

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph in Cages: Why Faith is Always Political

When Claremont (California) United Methodist Church unveiled its annual outdoor Nativity last week, it caused...

December 15, 2019

What May We Hope For?

Advent is the liturgical season that is most meaningful to me. I first encountered the...

December 12, 2019

“It has been done in your name”: A Dickensian Tale of “Good Christians” Doing Harm

One of my teaching teammates this past semester in the interdisciplinary course I regularly participate...

December 10, 2019

Living in a Minor Key

At some point early in their musical training, all serious musicians are introduced to the...

December 08, 2019

There Is No Immaculate Perception

I have taught philosophy in Catholic higher education for twenty-eight years as a non-Catholic. Although...

December 05, 2019

How to tell the difference between elitism and knowing WTF you are talking about

I haven’t posted anything political here in a while; it’s Advent, and I’m trying to...

December 05, 2019

Preserving Hope when Things Turn Dark

For the past several years, I have had the privilege of giving a sermon at...

December 03, 2019

The Incarnation in a Post-Truth World

Almost three years ago, the Oxford Dictionary named “post-truth” as its 2016 word of the year,...

December 01, 2019

Living in the Advent Zone

In Philosophical Fragments, 19th-century Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard tells a lovely story about a powerful king...

November 2019

November 27, 2019

My Advent Wish: Peace Be To You

Advent begins this coming Sunday. I was raised in a version of Christianity that had...

November 19, 2019

Don’t Worry, Be Hopeful . . . and Get to Work

In the liturgical cycle, we are headed toward a new year that begins on the...

December 2018

December 24, 2018

Christus Natus Est

Christmas movies are a big deal at my house. Jeanne goes for the classics, such...

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