Suspended in Air, Without a Net

As I watched Rihanna perform her remarkable Halftime show yesterday —pregnant and suspended alone in mid air— my thoughts immediately went to both the new HULU 1619 Documentary, and also a sobering study reported on by the New York Times, out Sunday morning. I hope you saw them both. As I said over the weekend, […]

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Joe Biden Coulda Done That All Night

Congressional Republicans: Decades ago, Joe Biden told you he was a fighter from Scranton.If you paid attention at all, you knew this. McCarthy warned you not to heckle, but you did anyway; and “Sleepy Joe” Jedi mind-tricked you into applauding Social Security protection. People have misunderestimated Joe for forty years.Keep it going if you want. […]

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Cody McMahan

Cody McMahan died Saturday. I had the privilege of knowing Cody for perhaps 15-20 years….I believe I’ve lost count. I believe I first met him when Cody was still a member of Greenland Hills UMC. He later joined Northaven, and still later started dating and eventually married Mike House. One of the high honors of […]

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UMC Update

Kessler Park Friends: It’s been some time since I’ve updated you on the ongoing “split” in the United Methodist Church. I’ve been trying very hard not to “over-share” the play-by-play of almost daily developments, because it seems to me this could get exhausting. Further, as a part of my own spiritual discipline, I’ve been trying […]

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Jan 6: “The Dream Repeats Itself”

It’s time to reclaim January 6th. It’s time to remember that, for 2,000 years, this date had a meaning not at all connected with Donald Trump and the insurrectionist takeover of our nation’s Capitol. I am not suggesting we “forget” the Insurrection and its murderous outcomes. I’m not suggesting we make the mistakes that the […]

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Frightened Little Children

We human creatures are deeply frail and fragile beings, and behind every tough exterior lives a frightened little child. It doesn’t matter whether we are “battle hardened soldiers,” or “bleeding heart artists.” It doesn’t matter if we are “brawny men,” “sensitive women,” or non-binary persons….or all the lovely configurations of all those descriptors with all […]

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Christmas, Star Wars, and Greg Abbott

This week, as I reread the first verses of Luke’s Christmas story, I thought about Rey (from Star Wars), and about my own governor, Greg Abbott. Director JJ Abrams masterfully introduces the character of Rey to us in “The Force Awakens” in a sequence that is worthy of a careful look. As John Williams’ brilliant […]

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Christmas and Shit

It’s Christmas Day, and so it’s the perfect day to talk about shit. I’ve probably already lost some of you, because you don’t think preachers are supposed to use such words. But for those who aren’t already writing my Bishop (feel free) read along…. Artists can get away with such words better than preachers. That’s […]

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