I first saw Sarah McCammon on 60 Minutes on March 24, 2024. She was promoting her book, The Exvangelicals: Loving, Living, and Leaving the White Evangelical Church. I was hoping for some insights into evangelicals. Sarah delivered. My first finding: The Evangelicals are more of a cult than a religion. One of their primary missions … Read more

Annie and I went to see the fiftieth anniversary of the professional stage production of Jesus Christ Superstar on January 20, 2024. The show was outstanding. The whole time I was tapping my foot and singing along with the music, which brought back many warm memories. In 1970, a concert version of this production was … Read more

I have no idea why the book By All Means Available was even on my Kindle. I didn’t know the author or the title, which didn’t attract me. The only aspect that might have interested me was that the author was in the special forces. As a former Marine, I still seem to be intrigued … Read more

Thursday was probably a good day for Jesus until late in the evening. He celebrated Passover dinner with his twelve best friends, and then they went out to the garden of Gethsemane to pray. Good turned to bad when his “friend” Judas, the betrayer, arrived with soldiers, who arrested Jesus on the grounds of sedition … Read more

The church is full of A-theists. The problem is most of them won’t admit it. Let’s start with some definitions. Theist: a person who believes in the existence of a god or gods, specifically of a creator who intervenes in the universe. Atheist: a person who disbelieves in gods. A-theist*: a person who is against … Read more

He is a narcissist, pathological liar, misogynist, racist, cheater (on his wives, taxes, business associates, and employees for starters), vengeful and crude person, opportunist, wannabe dictator, conspiracist, insurrectionist (he even led one against his own country), and phony with ninety-one felony counts. Oh yes, he was the forty-fifth president of the United States and the … Read more

When I was a child, Ash Wednesday was a big deal. It was always preceded by the church’s annual Shrove (meaning “indulge”) Tuesday Pancake Supper. In New Orleans, it’s called Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras with parades and lots of loose lascivious living. Ash Wednesday (February 14, 2024) starts the Lenten season, a penitential time … Read more

Almost on a daily basis I hear someone spout some churchy saying that makes me ask, “What does that even mean?” For example, some folks end a conversation with “Have a blessed day!” or “Have a bless’d day!” What does that mean? Is it better than “Have a good day”? Are they invoking their god … Read more

On December 11, 2023, Annie and I went to the Kennedy Space Center to begin an unforgettable day of exploring space and theology. My deep thinking about my church’s theology and space began in 1958 the day after a very serious accident in which my best friend was killed and I was badly injured. The … Read more

A couple months ago, I ran across a study—not scientific but still revealing—about retired clergy from mainline Christian ministries. There were three groupings: Those who affirm traditional theology and stay within the church. I was surprised that only 19 percent of retired clergy do this. Those who don’t affirm a traditional theology but participate in … Read more