Sometime this morning, maybe even as I write this, the “Leaning Tower of Dallas” will finally come down.
(Note: Obviously, the timeline is much longer now…EF)
I’ve been captivated by our fascination with this wreck of a wreck ever since…
Read moreSometime this morning, maybe even as I write this, the “Leaning Tower of Dallas” will finally come down.
(Note: Obviously, the timeline is much longer now…EF)
I’ve been captivated by our fascination with this wreck of a wreck ever since…
Read more“Jesus is Lord, and Caesar is not…”
This phrase is one of the key insights I’ve ever learned from Dr. John Dominic Crossan. And, honestly, one of the key insights I’ve ever learned in life. Crossan suggests that when the…
Read moreOne of the most important life lessons Dennise and I have ever learned, we learned from our dog.
The lesson is: “Be the Dog On a Walk.”
We learned this lesson observing our dog, Daisy. And I should describe it…
Read moreI’ve got my Apple Watch set so that when I don’t have a calendar event, the phrase “Be Here Now” pops up on the calendar app.
There aren’t many days when “Be Here Now” is the only thing on my…
Read moreHeads up, Methodist friends.
Pay attention to this news about SMU.
What does this mean?
Plain and simple, this is not a WCA plot.
This IS an attempt by SMU to “protect its assets.”
Pure and simple, that’s what…
Exciting news, friends!
I’ve been given an advance copy of a new Bible translation, hitting the market soon. The translation is called the “American Government Standard Version.” (AGSV for short…)
The AGSV is a new and carefully sourced translation from…
Read more“If Jesus came back, and saw what’s going on in his name, he’d never stop throwing up.”
— Woody Allen
What am I supposed to do with the fact that, apparently, Robert Jeffress and Woody Allen agree with one another?…
In our Methodist tradition, we (wrongly) claim “the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching.”
The research behind this story tells us: That does not appear to be true. We are lying to ourselves about what historical Biblical teaching…
Read moreBotham Jean’s brother, Brandt, offered a remarkable moment of forgiveness toward Amber Guyger today in the courtroom. But his Mother said deeply important things too. We must hear them both.
Brandt offered forgiveness and an embrace to Amber Guyger. As…
Read moreWhat if our opinions on the Amber Guyger trial comes down to a question of “who do you feel empathy toward?”
It may not come down to this. This may be a foolish question to ask. But the question keeps…
Read moreThe murder trial of Amber Guyger is underway here in Dallas. For those of you outside the city, or not paying attention, sufficed to say our city is tense and anxious about the trial and upcoming verdict.
Last Monday, I…
Read moreAs we crossed back to the US yesterday, I snapped this first pic of a sign placed by Border Patrol: “CPB Welcomes Your Comments.”
We had just spent time listening to the stories of migrants camped out on the Mexican…
Read moreAs we cross the border today, I’m struck by the predominance of FEAR.
Fear of “The Other” is fundamentally what drives the kind of policies we see now.
We must understand the real dynamic of the past two years:
1.…
Read moreToday, we cross the border to see the violence/damage that the “metering” policy has wrought.
God calls us to love the neighbor as we love ourselves. To have one law for the migrant and the citizen.
Instead, we created a…
Read moreI spent a good bit of my twenties pissed off at Thomas Merton.
I was pissed off by a very specific thing in his writings. Merton writes beautifully about the need for regular time in prayer, quiet, and contemplation. He…
Read moreSurvivor’s Guilt.
Imposter Syndrome.
Two words for relatively similar experiences that, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized many people have. Including me.
The older you get, you start to look right and left, and sometimes you see folks who used…
Watching this interview between Colbert and Anderson Cooper, I am reminded of the great quote attributed to Charlie Chaplin:
“To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain and play with it.”
Colbert is one of the masters…
Read moreI voted for Ronald Reagan twice to be president.
The next time I could vote, I voted for Jesse Jackson.
If I was to write the story of my spiritual, social, and political transformation in two short sentences, those two…
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