In our Methodist tradition, we (wrongly) claim “the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching.”
The research behind this story tells us: That does not appear to be true. We are lying to ourselves about what historical Biblical teaching…
Read moreBotham Jean’s brother, Brandt, offered a remarkable moment of forgiveness toward Amber Guyger today in the courtroom. But his Mother said deeply important things too. We must hear them both.
Brandt offered forgiveness and an embrace to Amber Guyger. As…
Read moreWhat if our opinions on the Amber Guyger trial comes down to a question of “who do you feel empathy toward?”
It may not come down to this. This may be a foolish question to ask. But the question keeps…
Read moreThe murder trial of Amber Guyger is underway here in Dallas. For those of you outside the city, or not paying attention, sufficed to say our city is tense and anxious about the trial and upcoming verdict.
Last Monday, I…
Read moreAs we crossed back to the US yesterday, I snapped this first pic of a sign placed by Border Patrol: “CPB Welcomes Your Comments.”
We had just spent time listening to the stories of migrants camped out on the Mexican…
Read moreAs we cross the border today, I’m struck by the predominance of FEAR.
Fear of “The Other” is fundamentally what drives the kind of policies we see now.
We must understand the real dynamic of the past two years:
1.…
Read moreToday, we cross the border to see the violence/damage that the “metering” policy has wrought.
God calls us to love the neighbor as we love ourselves. To have one law for the migrant and the citizen.
Instead, we created a…
Read moreI spent a good bit of my twenties pissed off at Thomas Merton.
I was pissed off by a very specific thing in his writings. Merton writes beautifully about the need for regular time in prayer, quiet, and contemplation. He…
Read moreSurvivor’s Guilt.
Imposter Syndrome.
Two words for relatively similar experiences that, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized many people have. Including me.
The older you get, you start to look right and left, and sometimes you see folks who used…
Watching this interview between Colbert and Anderson Cooper, I am reminded of the great quote attributed to Charlie Chaplin:
“To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain and play with it.”
Colbert is one of the masters…
Read moreI voted for Ronald Reagan twice to be president.
The next time I could vote, I voted for Jesse Jackson.
If I was to write the story of my spiritual, social, and political transformation in two short sentences, those two…
Read moreDear White Friends,
Can we talk again?
I can’t shake the story of Francisco Erwin Galicia.
He’s the 18-year-old American citizen that was detained for almost a month by Border Patrol and ICE.
I can’t shake the story, because it…
Read moreI thought of a scene from “Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith” as I watched the Trump Political Rally in North Carolina last night.
In the film, Senator Padme Amadala and Bail Organa are watching as Emperor Palpatine engineers an…
Read moreRealism, not cold water.
That is my message to all my friends in Metho-nerd land today.
For the past two weeks, we’ve had the breaking news of General Conference delegate elections from all across the country. It is fair to…
Read moreLet me provide a bit of context for the past few days in the North Texas Conference. It’s just my one perspective on what felt like an extraordinary few days. (So, take it or leave it…)
First, the NTC ordained…
Read moreAn Open Letter to Reverend Robert Jeffress:
This morning, again I preached from one of the many passages where religious leaders try to trick Jesus with his words. (John 10: 22-30…It was the suggested “Lectionary” text for this Sunday, in…
Read moreLet me pause for a brief moment and reflect on this day when 177 of my clergy siblings here in North Texas have signed on to an open letter addressed to the LGBTQ community that appears in today’s Dallas Morning…
Read moreThis week, the New York Times ran a story that proves corruption and cheating among African delegates to the recent General Conference of the United Methodist Church. The story promised follow-up stories to come.
I hope they do follow up…
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