Writing about religion, psychology, politics, and other impolite dinner conversations
Finding the sacred after church hurt Photo by OC Gonzalez on Unsplash When I was 22, at the same age a lot of young people leave their faith altogether, Good Friday and Easter were my favorite holidays. I hated the commercialization of Christmas (still do). It was my first year living in the “real world” after college, in … Continue reading Easter Relationship Status: It’s Complicated
I think the real reason I am writing this post today is because I have been struggling to finish the last chapter of my book: a chapter entitled "Still Christian?" It's not that it's not written - it is.
In non-dualistic ways of being, the distinction between “self” and “other” is a false dichotomy. We are somehow deeply interconnected even with those we consider our enemies. Yes, that means I’m even connected with Trump.
This sounds like a morbid post, but hang in with me here. This book is a memoir of sorts of 6th generation funeral director Caleb Wilde. He shares his thoughts about death, life, love, and heaven – but perhaps not in the way you might think. If you think about it, the descent into fall … Continue reading “Confessions of a Funeral Director” whaaat?
It was one of those mornings when I was thinking about my own “whys” of why I go to church. Besides the obvious that my husband is the pastor and I feel duty-bound to show up at least at some point in the morning, what draws me to a church community? We all have different … Continue reading a beautiful thing happened
Omygourd… SCIENCE!! Recently I heard a brief presentation from a lovely, caring, passionate woman who was speaking about providing Christian religious education to elementary school children. I was on board with what she was talking about (sharing about the love of God to kids whose parents opt in to the program), but then she said … Continue reading omygourd… SCIENCE!! (why Genesis and science are not enemies)
There’s no way around it. I am a pastor’s wife. (I suppose I might also say that I have a pastor husband, but either way, my life is becoming deeply intertwined with the church). We have moved from the big city to a small town, to be an integral part of the life of the … Continue reading and Jesus was moved by her faith
(written early 2015) On Good Friday of 2014, my mom and I are vacationing during my spring break in a tourist town of northern Michigan, a town where spring doesn’t arrive until May or June, thus planting us in the middle of winter during our April visit. We spend Holy Week, the week leading … Continue reading Good Friday Longings
Dave Andrews’ The Jihad of Jesus hooks the reader with a seeming paradox, as he suggests you cannot have neither Jesus without jihad, or jihad without Jesus. If you are open enough to not write him off immediately, you can quickly discover that after Andrews finishes walking us through a very sobering journey of … Continue reading Jihad of Jesus book review
This small congregation of 12, the ones K. tears up for when preaching about them in sermons, the ones who have to close their doors in too few days, too few to allow K. to be ordained in the church building he was raised up in. Where is the line between thriving and surviving? What … Continue reading how we worship
Christine Greenwald 