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 […]
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 […]
I was in conversation with some of my colleagues about the state of The United Methodist Church. We each took a Post-It® Note and wrote what we thought was the most pressing need/critical issue facing the church. Most of the notes were about declining numbers — not enough new members, […]
In all my years, I have yet to meet anyone who is right 100% of the time, or even 100% right at any time. Part of the human condition is that we operate from a partial perspective — we see in a glass darkly, as it were. Yet, we all […]
A young pastor took exception to a recent post of mine that indicated I believe unconditional love should be unconditional. Her question to me confounded and alarmed: “Don’t you think we cheapen the gospel when we love people we shouldn’t love?” I pressed her to identify whom she felt Christians […]
Warning: This is a vent, a rant, a yawp and a tantrum. I received an email today that had me shaking while I read it and has been a distraction all day. I seek the catharsis of putting my thoughts in writing so I can let it go. The gist […]
I never see it coming. I write something I think is compelling or provocative, and no one seems to care. I toss off something I don’t give much thought or energy to, and it gets 3,000 hits. I posted “Crybaby Christians,” and thought I might get some push-back about it […]
Unconditional love. It sounds holy, right and just. It is a concept embraced throughout the millennia, but with conditions. The struggle seems to come when the concept is applied to those with whom we differ, those we judge as unworthy, those we look down upon, and those we have decided […]
United Methodeviations 