Death has seemed very present lately. We are in the season for dying things, as much of nature goes dormant for winter. Annual plants die completely, while perennials die back. Trees go out in a blaze of color before their leaves fall. Animals tuck themselves in to hibernate as the winter months approach. For ancient…
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Reparations
My first house, a 1927 bungalow oozing charm, cost $43,000 in 1990. The mortgage interest rate was 9.5% and I had very little money to put down, but I as a first-time home buyer, I could finance the closing costs through an FHA loan. I sold that house seven year later for $71,000, and the…
When Great Trees Fall
When great trees fall,rocks on distant hills shudder,lions hunker downin tall grasses,and even elephantslumber after safety. When great trees fallin forests,small things recoil into silence,their senseseroded beyond fear. When great souls die,the air around us becomeslight, rare, sterile.We breathe, briefly.Our eyes, briefly,see witha hurtful clarity. Maya Angelou’s poem is a fitting tribute to the great…
And on Earth Peace
Christmas reminds us again just how fractured the Christian community is. While many Christians fall somewhere in the middle, there are opposite factions pulling the church in different directions, and they see and celebrate Christmas differently. The most visible form of Christianity in the US is comfortable with empire and sees American democracy and free-market…
Welcome Readers!
This blog will be a forum for ongoing thoughts about religion and social change. While I expect to address a range of interests, the current focus is division within the United Methodist Church (UMC) as it reflects division within Christianity and society itself…