As I write this post, a loved one is having surgery, and I’m sitting in the waiting room, trying to tune out the sound of “The Price is Right” blasting from the television. I’ve spent a lot of time in hospital waiting rooms over the years, particularly because my son Sean has had quite a…

The answer is not as obvious as it may seem. On the one hand, we can say that, to the extent that both religions identify the God disclosed in the scriptures of Judaism as their God, then, yes, both religions worship the same deity. Both religions share some of Judaism’s scriptural narratives, though in Islam these narratives…

Two thousand years ago, in a small town in a backwater province on the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire, a child was born. His birth was foretold in the prophecy of Isaiah: For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named…

The older I get, the more grateful I am to have truth tellers in my life. These are people who care about me enough to disagree with me, show me my blind spots, and speak honestly, especially when it’s difficult. I don’t always enjoy hearing from truth tellers, and I can’t say that I always…

Domestic violence is a crime that often goes unreported. It thrives in secret. If we as Christians are going to address problems of domestic violence, we need first of all to arm ourselves with information. My friend and colleague Rev. Terry Heck has written an informative piece for the blog sponsored by United’s School for Discipleship…

On October 12, 2014, I asked Cynthia Astle not to republish my work going forward on UM Insight. I didn’t state this publicly because I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. I wasn’t looking for a fight or to criticize UM Insight publicly. I had actually not given this much thought…