I am the lead pastor at People's United Methodist Church in the Wisconsin Conference of The United Methodist Church, husband of my beautiful wife, Barbara, dad to my fantastic son, Josh and his wife Caroline, step-dad to my phenomenal son, Greg, his wife Hannah and our fabulous/glorious/perfect granddaughter Evie, author of seventeed books on spirituality, stewardship, congregational development, research, and spiritual gifts discovery, and an advocate for a more loving, inclusive church for the 21st century and beyond.
Having bogged down in a rather embarrassing debate over what rules to adopt to conduct our business, we are ready on Day Two to move forward. Or are we? What was depressing about our engagement was the nitpicking, posturing, petulant, occasionally disrespectful and unnecessarily contentious nature of the proceedings. If […]
I was asked an interesting question this morning at GC — one I am probably not qualified to answer, but one which I have an opinion, nonetheless. “Assess the systemic constraint that is holding the church locked in its current deadlock on issues of scriptural authority, moral values, and institutional racism.” […]
Through the decades, when Methodists/United Methodists gather together — especially in clergy gatherings — it is traditional to sing, And Are We Yet Alive? It is not a moot point or a forgone conclusion. The second verse is a challenge to this year’s General Conference: Preserved by power divine to […]
I am preparing for Portland and ten days of “reporting” from General Conference. I have intentionally not weighed in on so many of the topics generating dialogue, discussion and debate. I made a commitment to listen and observe in preparation. This gives me lots to talk about in the next […]
At what point should The United Methodist Church admit its failures and simply split over the issues of human sexuality raised by LGBTQI people and those in the church unwilling or unable to accept them? For me, the answer is simple — at the point that we admit that we […]
I don’t often share dreams, but this is one that has haunted me for almost 30 years. It is a good dream, and a vivid dream, and one that comes to mind almost weekly. I don’t think it is too obscure or metaphoric. It hit me when I dreamed it […]
Someone stopped me in the hallway today and asked me, “Do you think God wants you to be a bishop?” The question took me by surprise. I have been endorsed by the delegation of my conference (Wisconsin) as a candidate for the Episcopacy. It is both humbling and an honor […]
Although taste in music varies widely, I want to put out a list of ten of my favorite Christmas albums, that, when I share them with people, the response I usually get is, “I’ve never heard of that before.” Christmas by Bruce Cockburn — simple acoustic treatment of songs familiar […]
Television, especially the commercials, makes me sick this time of year. And not just now, but from Halloween on, when marketers nationwide begin the barrage of unrelenting crass consumeristic addiction-baiting, all in the name of Christmas. The cultural values of image, power, prestige, greed, consumption, acquisition, ownership, luxury, glamor, gluttony […]
Come on, people, is this any way for Christians to act? Do we live in a dangerous world? Yes. Are there people out there — of many faiths, colors, races, ethnicities, creeds, etc. — who are committed to doing harm? Yes. Are there overwhelming needs locally as well as globally? […]
