By: Amy Lythgoe Such a week of public suffering! A mass shooting in an Orlando nightclub left 50 dead and 53 wounded. A two year old was attacked by an alligator and drowned while on vacation at a Florida theme park. A young singer was murdered while signing autographs after her concert. Every death and injury was unexpected, violent, shocking, and tragic. Events like these make it easy to wonder how God allows them to happen, and why God doesn’t... Read more

By: Anonymous As we wrap this class and go about a summer vacation, many important things will happen politically. We will have the official candidate of the Republican and Democratic parties. We will have had a contentious national committee meeting on both sides of the isle. We will see the first few polls of who America believes should be the next president. We will more than likely also hear of a new scandal or two along the way. It is... Read more

By: Asa Holly Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. John 14:27 (NRSV) Do not be afraid… so you know how often this term or variation appears in the Bible? It is a lot, just google “do not be afraid in the Bible” and you will get a results with names like,... Read more

By: Ann Henderson On Sunday, May 15, I returned from Portland, OR.  I had spent the previous five days observing the United Methodist Church’s General Conference legislative sessions.  For those that do not know, this is where nearly 1,000 delegates divide up into sub-committees to discuss particular petitions for the Book of Discipline.  Some are brand new petitions and some are amendments to older paragraphs.  The main focus, however, was the topic of human sexuality and how it relates to the... Read more

By: Anonymous I read the Gospel According to Matthew. Then, I read the Gospel According to Luke. Two perspective on (roughly) the same events, namely, the narrative of Jesus’ life. There are enough similarities to know that the different authors are taking about the same thing, accounting for the same stories and events. The author of Matthew seems to have a particular interest in writing to a Jewish-Christian audience about how to reconcile Jewish law and practices from before Jesus’... Read more

By Kris Denton Like a number of American families, mine is filled with a variety of religio-political ideologies and opinions.  And also like a number of American families, those differences of opinion have become more divisive and toxic in the aftermaths of both the Columbine High School massacre and September 11th.  Families across the country, including mine, have fractured, split, and estrangements occurred over the changing cultural landscape of America. I am having a stimulating e-mail conversation with my best... Read more

By: Penny Seay I have recently started reading Paulo Coelho’s blog where I read an interview with the Financial Times, the London global newspaper. In it, journalist AN Wilson says of Coelho’s second book, The Alchemist, that “the essence of its appeal is the central idea, repeated over and over again in Coelho’s other books, that anyone can change their life. This is a fundamentally false idea. Most people are trapped by circumstance.” The interview is conducted over lunch, and... Read more

By Jason Miller Politics are at the center of Mark’s story of Jesus. His historical life ended with a political execution on a cross by the Romans. The Romans used crucifixion to murder those who had rejected imperial authority. “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news’” (Mark 1:14-15). The first words... Read more

By Kris I. Oh my God! And I mean that quite literally. I was reading the Gospel of Mark and I came across these verses: “Beware the scribes, who walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets! They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation,” (Mark 12:38-40). I... Read more