I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. . . . I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a…
In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in…
The part of the Epiphany story I have always found most haunting is Matthew 2:3: “When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him.” This one line speaks to an insecure and immature political leader who the people understand will do damage if he feels threatened. It foreshadows the slaughter of…
Dear Ones, I am struggling to hold so many truths in the aftermath of yesterday’s elections. I hold the truth that no matter who has won and will win, we are still living together in this country and most of us will continue on with our lives in much the same way we have been…
Imagine: A black man and his son grab guns, hop in their car, and chase down a white jogger. The young black man gets out of the car, confronts the unarmed jogger and, after a brief altercation, shoots him. Imagine: Hundreds of black people—most openly carrying firearms—swarm a state capital, yelling in the faces of…
This is the public comment that I gave to the Douglas County Commission on February 20, 2019, regarding their proposal to hire a construction manager for the jail expansion project: The Douglas County jail population has grown 15 times faster than our general population since 2011. And I have not heard any good explanations as to…
This is an excerpt from a sermon preached on October 7, 2018. Job 1-2:1-10 While the question of why people suffer is at the heart of Job, there is another question I’ve been thinking about as I read the first two chapters of Job this week. I’ve been thinking about this question because our…
I am inclined to believe the allegations of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez against Brett Kavanaugh. Ultimately, though, I do not know what happened between Kavanaugh and these women, so I can’t speak about him or these incidents with any authority. What I do know for certain is that much of the rhetoric…
Dear Congressional Representatives who Keep Saying that the “Real Problem” is Mental Illness, Mental illness is, indeed, a real problem. Please, by all means, address the issue of mental health in our country. We need more and better mental health clinics, more and better training for teachers, police, medical personnel, and others who interact with…
At the Poor People’s Campaign rally in Topeka, KS, this past Monday night, Rev. William Barber told us about a map of the United States. A map that shows what states have the highest rates of poverty, poorest health care access, highest number of racist incidents, highest rates of violence against LGBTQ people, and highest…
Spacious Faith 