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Mercy Not Sacrifice

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November 2018

November 24, 2018

Can ICE and Immigrants Worship Together?

Yesterday my friend and mentor Brian Zahnd got a lot of flak for tweeting about...

October 2018

October 01, 2018

The World of the Crucified vs. The World of the #Blessed

Most of the people who read this blog post live in what we could call...

August 2018

August 19, 2018

Methodist Coloring Book

At my Thursday men's group last week, somebody brought up a song from the punk...

June 2018

June 29, 2018

Civility Is The Opposite of Taking Up Your Cross

It's an ancient image from July 2016, in a different age before Donald Trump was...

June 12, 2018

Accepting Carolyn Moore’s Invitation to Higher Conversation

Carolyn Moore is probably my favorite conservative United Methodist leader. What I see in her...

May 2018

May 10, 2018

Bringing Many Children to Glory (Hebrews 2:10)

There are a number of verses in the Bible that summarize Christian salvation. Each of...

May 03, 2018

No, The Bible Does Not Condemn Domestic Violence

For those of you who have been following the drama around fundamentalist seminary president Paige...

May 02, 2018

Is Jesus on the Psych Ward?

I have the pleasure of sharing a great conversation I had with my good friend...

April 2018

April 17, 2018

Why Evangelicals Need #ChurchClarity

When I was a first year student at the University of Virginia in the late...

April 13, 2018

Control: The Greatest Temptation of Satan

One of my favorite songs by the dark industrial synthpop band VNV Nation is "Control"...

April 03, 2018

When Martyrs’ Legacies Are Whitewashed and Coopted

Fifty years ago, when Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, he had...

April 01, 2018

Easter Is For People Who Aren’t Winning

Why does it matter that Jesus was raised from the dead? Perhaps it doesn't if...

March 2018

March 30, 2018

Four Essential Both/Ands of Jesus’ Cross

Jesus' cross is hard to talk about. It's an impossibly awkward, illogical mystery. It's very...

January 2018

January 12, 2018

How Can We Talk Forgiveness in the Age of #MeToo?

This Sunday I will preach the kickoff sermon of the spring semester at my campus...

December 2017

December 28, 2017

Lee Wyatt’s Gospel for People Who Aren’t Guilt-Ridden

My Facebook friend Lee Wyatt has written a book called The Incredible Shrinking Gospel about the...

December 22, 2017

The Force Belongs to Stable Boys and Scavengers (A Star Wars Advent Mashup)

As I wrote in a previous post, watching Star Wars VIII was a very spiritual...

December 15, 2017

What I Learned About Freedom From Star Wars Episode 8 (Without Spoilers!)

Watching Star Wars Episode 8 last night was an incredibly spiritual experience for me. I...

December 14, 2017

Grace, Truth, and Eucharist in an Age of Disposable People

I was originally going to write something about Roy Moore and the 81% of white...

November 2017

November 14, 2017

Roy Moore, Jerry Falwell, Jr, and the Evangelical Authority Crisis

In an interview with the Religion News Service about alleged pedophile and Alabama Senate candidate...

October 2017

October 19, 2017

Why you need to read Henri Nouwen

Every other summer, my family goes to visit my wife's cousin on his ranch in...

October 12, 2017

Empathy vs. scorn

The more connected Christians become with Jesus, the more their hearts will burn with empathy...

October 11, 2017

What religion does this meme represent?

So apparently this meme has been circulating some circles on the internet: stand for the...

September 2017

September 13, 2017

“Woe to you who are filled” (Luke 6:25)

Today is the feast day of St. John Chrysostom in the Roman Catholic Church. At...

September 06, 2017

#DACA and the Failure of Atonement in the American Church

Once again, I feel demoralized by the cynicism and intransigence in our nation's immigration policy.

August 2017

August 26, 2017

The Theology That Pardons White Supremacy

Last night I witnessed a white United Methodist pastor seeking to justify Donald Trump's pardon...

August 13, 2017

What If This Is the New Church?

I've been thinking about what I would preach today if I were preaching. And I...

August 08, 2017

Is it un-Christ-like to drag a famous theologian online?

I got in trouble this weekend for a Facebook post in which I expressed regret...

July 2017

July 23, 2017

When Jesus’ garden becomes a monoculture

I have been a gardener for many years. And I hate weeds. In Louisiana, the...

July 19, 2017

7 Ways I’m Not Entirely Progressive

I just got back from the Wild Goose Festival. It's a great experience every year,...

July 17, 2017

If Jesus Had Been Eugene Peterson

Members of the Sanhedrin, I understand that the charges against me are quite serious. So...