“…in the ancient Near East the idea of a single community across the traditional boundaries of culture, gender, and ethnic and social groupings was unheard of. Unthinkable, in fact. But there it was. A new kind of ‘family’ had come into existence. Its focus of identity was Jesus; its manner of life was shaped by…
You could easily be forgiven if, from the messages promoted and policies advocated by American Christians, you don’t see demonstrated the biblical truths that God’s creation is good and that we are called to be protectors and stewards of the earth. For at least the last 50 to 60 years many American Christians have not…
Next week, starting on Palm Sunday, we enter Holy Week—the week leading up to Easter Sunday. During this week, we journey with Jesus through the final week of the Gospel story. On Palm Sunday we will commemorate Jesus’s ‘Triumphal Entry’ into Jerusalem, in which he flips the script of what it means to be King…
In seminary Dr. Soong-Chan Rah taught me about the power of lament. If you haven’t already read Prophetic Lament, I highly recommend it. Lament is the proper response of God’s people to our anger and grief at injustice and tragedy in this world. We cry out to the God of justice to make all things…
In Lent, we’re reminded that, again and again, suffering and brokenness find us. We doubt again, we lament again, we mess up again. Again and again, the story of Jesus on the cross repeats—every time lives are taken unjustly, every time the powerful choose corruption and violence, every time individuals forget how to love. With…