Bishop Richard Wilke

I realize that the entire Christian world is waking up this morning to say something about Pope Francis. And I’ll ask you to trust that I will indeed get to my grief over this death, and what it means to the world. But deeper than that, for we United Methodists, was the death of Bishop […]

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The Theology of the Smirk

If you find yourself recognizing JD Vance’s smirk, or even agreeing with it, right now you are doing great harm to our world. I know you’ve been taught otherwise. I know you’ve been taught the toxic lessons that White men are supposed to “lead,” and everyone else supposed to follow.

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The Candle of Peace

“In meditation we catch ourselves waging violence on parts of ourselves. This is the seedbed of War. All violence is the act of acting out our own violence toward our own heart.”— Jim Finley I’m doubling-up this week, to catch up with some Advent meditations for you. This one is about PEACE, typically our second […]

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The Path To Hope in a World of Cynics

This Fall, I found a social scientist whose new book has been deeply helpful to me, as I try to unpack Hope this Advent season. The book is “Hope for Cynics: The Surprising Science of Human Goodness,” by Jamil Zaki.

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Reminders On Thanksgiving and Worry

The angels were holding a washcloth over my mouth, and I was struggling against them.My arms and legs were thrashing.I was suddenly afraid that I could not breathe. I had awakened to find them basically on top of me, and I didn’t know what was happening. The angels were using a spray bottle to pour […]

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Christian Nationalism: Disregarding Bodily Autonomy

The MAGA-GOP really IS saying “my choice” to the autonomy of actual women.
But theologically they also say “my choice” to “the Body of Christ.”
The two are, horrifically, interconnected.

One is the actions of actual human men toward human women, demanding an ownership of actual women’s bodily autonomy.
The other is a prior “theological ownership” over Jesus….demanding the control of the Body of Christ.

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Donald Trump’s Christian Mirror

Donald Trump holds up various mirrors to American society. If you don’t understand this, you’ve probably misunderstood why he’s so popular. Trump’s outrageous political statements are a kind of Political Mirror for many Americans. Personally? I believe Trump does not share the core values of many of those who see their reflection in his Political […]

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Thoughts on Breath, And Dad

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about breath. Those of you who know what’s been going on with my Dad will know why. For those of you who haven’t heard, my Father has pulmonary fibrosis, an incurable disease that slowly robs you of the ability to breathe. I posted on FB about it a few […]

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My Remarks at Faith Advocacy Day

Today, I am in Austin for Faith Advocacy Day. I’m honored to be the emcee of an interfaith event at the State Capitol, supporting equality for the LGBT community. If you’re a person of faith who supports the just and equal treatment of LGBT persons under the law, join us by signing up at “Texas […]

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