And so. Let’s not downplay the importance of words, of dialogue, of argument. The ancient Hebrews believed that it was through words that the world was created, through the breath of the Spirit that the soil—including you and me—came to be. Words are vital, life-giving, soul transforming agents of change in our lives and our … Continue reading Navigating the Divide: Part 9–Prophets of Light
Sometimes you get the sense that someone else is simply trying to pin you down. They ask what news agency you follow, what authors you read, who you voted for in the last election. Their intent is to label you, jam you in a box, usually with the intent of writing you off. Conversations around … Continue reading Navigating the Divide: Part 8–What We Must Pin Down When Everyone Else Is Trying To Pin Us Down
So. This is new. It is hard for me to compare this Coronavirus to anything else in my lifetime. Schools being closed. Professional sports leagues being shuttered. People fighting over toilet paper. My word. What is truly astounding to me is the global nature of the thing. It is involving countries and systems and economies … Continue reading Coronavirus Isn’t the Only Thing that’s Viral
One of the most remarkable things people believed about Jesus very early on was that he was the purest reflection of what God is really like. Believe it or not, thousands of years ago, people had divergent and conflicting ideas of what God was like. Even among the Jewish people, from whom Jesus came. For … Continue reading Navigating the Divide: Part 4–The Ancient Art of Truthing
We all have our prejudices. To think that we don’t is to be willfully blind, prone to believe that the way we perceive the world actually is the world. To deny our prejudices leads to an unwillingness to listen to others. It leads to an unwillingness to open up to the possibility that we might … Continue reading I Pledge Allegiance: Part 8–And Now…The Apocalypse
In the early 1970s, in an effort to quell the unrest in Argentina, General and President Rafael Videla took matters into his own hands. First, he labeled his enemies in this way, “A terrorist isn’t just someone with a gun or a bomb. (A subversive is) anyone who opposes the Argentine way of life.” And … Continue reading I Pledge Allegiance: Part 7–They Wore Diapers On Their Heads
Whoever claimed that the Hebrew Scriptures were without internal conflicts never truly read the Hebrew Scriptures. For thousands of years, the Hebrew people knew quite well that their Scriptures were full of competing narratives. It wasn’t just that Ruth seemed to be challenging the narrative of Joshua. It was that Jonah and Isaiah did, too. … Continue reading I Pledge Allegiance: Part 5–Jesus and Genocide
In the really old stories, pledging allegiance was shaped by your understanding of beginnings. Many people know of the Genesis creation story, the one that Jews and Christians look to to shape their understanding of who the Divine is, who we are, and what we should be giving our lives to. But before the Hebrew … Continue reading I Pledge Allegiance: Part 3–The Divine Rule
I don’t know if you’ve noticed lately, but it seems that a lot of powerful white men seem pretty fragile lately. Whether they be in political institutions, or religious ones, they sure are presenting a lot of insecurity. And we all know what that looks like: defensiveness, anger, subterfuge, control, big cars and bigger armies. … Continue reading The White Man’s Fear
It is hard to miss the enormous Tesla factory situated on I-880, between Oakland and San Jose. Not only is the facility mammoth, the signage is matched to its facade: T-E-S-L-A. But before Model 3s were being rolled out there, the plant belonged to GM and Toyota, in a joint venture known as NUMMI. The … Continue reading Spirit and Soil: Part 3–Before the Tesla 3…was the Chevy Nova