A Catholic Shift
The future of the Catholic Church is being debated and discussed at a Synod of Bishops, with a follow up meeting scheduled for this time next year. The gathering includes a cross section of Catholic leaders – not only priests, but lay leaders and women as well. This is the first time a synod like […]
Preposterous
One of the cultural conflicts taking place in multiple school boards across Southern California – and likely in many other places across the country – is a debate about whether school personnel should disclose gender-related conversations initiated by students with parents. Many education leaders – including teachers’ unions – are adamant school personnel must not […]
Perspective: SBC 2023
Almost 30 years as a Southern Baptist denominational executive, preceded by more than a dozen years as a Southern Baptist pastor, has shaped my perspective on navigating the vagaries of working among the vast network known as the Southern Baptist Convention. It can be, alternately, a rewarding, daunting, or at times disappointing task. Several years […]
Declining Religious Affiliation
A recent article declared “religion in the lives of Americans is on the decline.” That’s news? Anyone paying even slight attention to churches, religious institutions, and religious expressions in public life knows this is true. The decline in religious affiliation among American is real—and many Christians are determined to do something about it. The problem […]
Devaluing Marriage
Young American adults are eschewing marriage at alarming rates. A recent report in World included this Census Bureau generated data: only 25% of adults ages 18-34 are married out of more than 126 million people. There are 17 million unmarried adults cohabiting with a significant other—up 6 million from 20 years ago. Few adults ages […]
A Perfect Opportunity
It happened again recently. A concerned Christian approached me after my message at a conference in another region (think grits) and asked, “How do you stand to live in California with all those liberals?” My snarky-side leaked out a bit when I replied, “Oh, you mean among all those lost people?” It seems more and […]
Crystal Clear
In a recent Wall Street Journal article, buried near the end, was a succinct quote which makes the source of the current conflict in the Church of England (CofE) over same-sex marriage crystal clear. Rev. Andrew Foreshew-Cain, a partner in a same-sex marriage, and chaplain of Lady Margaret Hall at the University of Oxford said, […]
Christians Need Not Apply
The Washington Elementary School District, which covers parts of Glendale and Phoenix recently ended its contract with Arizona Christian University. The agreement had facilitated student teacher training, which created a pathway to employment for ACU graduates. Even a regional teacher shortage, mentioned as a problem by the WESD board members who took this action, did […]
Mission Tension
Can you imagine a law passing unanimously in the House of Representatives and with a 97-3 majority in the Senate? It happened in 1996. That law was the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) which legally codified the definition of marriage as one man married to one woman. President Clinton signed the law, settling the issue […]
The Plain Meaning
Just when the theater-of-the-absurd that is American politics seems it cannot get any more bizarre, California Governor Gavin Newsome decides to add theologian-in-chief to his job responsibilities. He has placed billboards in multiple states—with a special message for Bible Belt states of Oklahoma and Mississippi. In those states the billboards ask and answer, “Need an […]