When I became a Christian, following Jesus seemed like the most revolutionary thing I could do. The teachings of Jesus are radical. The way the early church lived out the gospel inspires me to go deeper, give more of myself, and nurture a grander vision for what human community could be like. The more I read …
I recently read a blog post by a US Army chaplain, who talks about his struggle with Jesus’ call to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. In a military context, he regularly finds himself asked some version of the question: “If ISIS killed your child, would you pray for them?” His …
Racism. Xenophobia. Misogyny. Calls for violence and bullying behavior. A rejection of the international rule of law and of the most basic protections for those who fall outside the bounds of white America. None of this is new. This has been the undercurrent of American culture and government since colonial times. We’ve been taught to …
Read more “What Does it Mean to Follow Jesus in the Age of Trump?”
We’re living in a time when it feels like everything is ready to fly apart. Our political process is bursting at the seams. There’s violence in our streets, and fear in our living rooms. As if all this weren’t enough, we are faced with an ecological crisis beyond any human experience. The challenges of our …
I was shocked, along with the rest of the country, when I witnessed the video of white police officers gunning down a prone and defenseless black man – Alton Sterling – in Baton Rouge. It’s one thing to be aware of police brutality, it’s quite another to witness a police officer pull out his pistol …
The Fourth of July brings up a lot of conflicting emotions for me. As a follower of Jesus, who was crucified by the nations, I’m skeptical of nationalism in all its forms. The rise of the nation-state has led to some of the bloodiest wars in human history. And for those of us who are …
There is only one way to describe my feelings when I learned that the United Kingdom would be leaving the European Union: Astonishment. Disorientation. Shock. Could this really be happening? I didn’t expect to feel so emotionally invested in the outcome of the Brexit referendum. I had barely paid attention to it in the months leading …