"If enough of us Christians refuse these invitations, religious professionals from other traditions might be invited."

"As a guilt trip, [Louie character Vanessa's] speech is perfect; as a character exploration, it's a little too much of a guilt trip."

"This administration's supposed solution to racial inequity—enforcing higher standards—has historically actually increased inequities."

"One merely flips the 'Hey Guys, Let's Not Be Racist' switch and then the magic happens."

"Is that what made me lose my mind? A faulty blood-pressure cuff?"

"I start by asking them what day it is. Let’s say today is Tuesday. Ok. What makes today Tuesday?"

"Even the air within the plane is apportioned by class. In its first-class cabins, Lufthansa has installed humidifiers that increase the humidity to 25 percent, while in coach, it ranges from 5 to 10 percent."

"Baseball is a multipurpose tool: It can unify the neighborhood, and it pits the diamond against the corner."

"Get that? If you advertise that you don't discriminate, you're persecuting people who want to discriminate."

"I’ve realized that I post those days when I win (because clearly it’s a game) at being a parent because all too often, I just really don’t win at all."

"The act of leaving a book unread after buying it, typically piling it up together with other such unread books."

"'Age of Miss America' correlates with 'Murders by steam, hot vapours and hot objects.'"

"I stood on my hind legs like a man. I told him what I thought of him. And the television would talk to me for 30 minutes or an hour."

"The prayer of Jabez made me sad."

Steve Thorngate

The Century managing editor is also a church musician and songwriter.

All articles »