Opinion
Look Back | Breaking Down Walls of Power, Privilege
The dominant culture will offer forgiveness but seldom wants to relinquish the hold on power that privileges them. The walls of power and privilege must be torn down before any discussion of forgiveness can take place.
Greenwood, Come Forth! Reparations Now
At some point, the US needs to make reparations to the people groups whose lands were stolen, whose lives were enslaved and whose communities were shattered in order for white citizens to prosper. Greenwood is a perfect example.
Out-of-the-Box Ways COVID-19 Helped Our Congregation
The pandemic has been extremely difficult for clergy. One of the new ideas that became part of our congregational life was organizing Jewish programs on a statewide level in a way that was inconceivable prior to the pandemic.
Hospital Suspends 178 After Forced Vaccination Suit
On Tuesday, the Houston Methodist Hospital suspended without pay 178 of its employees who refused to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Earlier, more than 100 unvaccinated employees had sued the hospital over its vaccine mandate.
Trauma’s Long Reach Echoes for Generations
The remains of 215 children were found last month on the grounds of what was once Canada’s largest residential school for Indigenous people, who have had to experience the trauma passed down from one generation to the next.
Seriously Heirloom Crops
The next time you complain about making your dinner, remember our long-ago ancestors. Canaanite women would spend back-breaking hours rolling a rough milling stone back and forth to make flour. And that’s just the beginning.
How Gov’t Funding Spurs Vaccine Development
The US government has invested billions in vaccine development but doesn’t own any of the generated patents or have a right to the profits. It’s part of a public-private partnership, which has spawned numerous scientific advances.
Social-Media Critics Ignore Faces of Unemployment
Critics on social media – with their slew of posts, memes and gifs – disparage the extra dollars the unemployed receive as the cause of many of society’s ills. They forget that these are people and families struggling to survive.
‘Just 15 Minutes to Mourn’
As we return to normal in these days following more than a year of the pandemic, let us not forget those whose grief and other suffering extend beyond the time we tend to assign for them. Our sensitivity and care must be ongoing.
The Radically Inclusive Life of Rachel Held Evans
Rachel Held Evans would have turned 40 today. She became a prominent Christian blogger, author and speaker, who regularly rejected the biblicism, patriarchalism and homophobic ideas of the conservative Christianity of her youth.
Don’t Live Memories Others Choose for You
We all have memories we prefer not to recall, but it’s better to live the truth than keep up appearances of a lie. Some would ask us to deny our own memories so they don’t have to accept their own. There’s a word for that.
Emerging Voices | Rebuilding Deconstructed Lives
Some people who experience tragedy, trauma and turbulence find their belief systems have not been constructed to uphold the impacts of such occurrences. Here are 3 ways to help them navigate the lonely process to rebuild their lives.
Christian Ethics: The Hard Road of Doing Right
Ethics is not popular among church folks. It involves more than just knowing Scripture; it involves ‘doing’ Scripture, and that’s where so many stumble. Ethics asks the hard questions. And that’s why ethics is not popular.
Making Sense of What Happens to You
With over half a million deaths in the US alone, the pandemic has touched all of us. The unseen lines of connection have been skewed or severed, crippling our once familiar communities. How do we rebuild the bridges connecting us?
Look Back | Where Racism Resides
Where does racism reside? Ultimately, it finds its resting place in human hearts. And many of those hearts huddle under church steeples on Sundays. If we want to move on, it requires confession and restoration, not avoidance.
Why Allies Must Speak Up for Each Other – Every Time
If Jews are being vilified or victimized because of an assumed association, those who support religious freedom and oppose hate crimes must take a stand. Allies need to speak up for each other – and act – without equivocation.