The death penalty is undergoing a welcome decline in the U.S. But the policy that's replacing it isn't much better.
When I told my parents about the altar call, my mother patiently explained that for some of us conversion is an ongoing process.
Most white people now say race relations are bad and getting worse. Black people overwhelmingly agree. Will we stop talking and do something?
I can still smell the wet canvas and sawdust of my father's revivals. He believed that any self-respecting revival was held in a tent.
"Why go to the city?" asked one of Bec Cranford-Smith's seminary professors. "There are enough new churches there."
Return of Han
Augustine said the lesson's content is not as important as the teacher's desire. Passion is what instructs—and I'm teaching my children Star Wars.
We love to look at people and judge them on the basis of what we see. We looked at Lance Armstrong and saw a guy who beat cancer and won Tour de France titles. We saw Bill Cosby as a barrier-breaking comedian and father figure.
In our Gospel text, some of Jesus’ disciples find his teaching hard. Eating his body? Drinking his blood? I didn’t sign up for this. Couldn’t I just pray for you?
One story, three ways
Robert Gregg traces five scriptural stories as they were later understood by commentators—Jewish, Christian, and Muslim.
Saving the Original Sinner, by Karl W. Giberson
Karl Giberson offers a cultural history of the Bible's first human. It's an intriguing and unsettling story.
Biblical Prophecy, by Ellen F. Davis
Ellen Davis is full of surprises. Some are delightful, others raise questions for further study, and still others throw up stumbling blocks.