Jesus Was a Failure

“Who do people say that I am?” Listen to the news. Listen to the talking heads. Listen to the preachers. Watch the Jesus documentaries on the Discovery Channel.
Fine. “But who do you say that I am?”
“You are the Christ.” The Messiah. The anointed king who’ll save us. You’ll make everything better. You’ll supply us with money, power, and prestige. You’ll lighten our burdens, cure our diseases, and bring our dead back to life. Continue Reading →

A Believer’s Reflections on a Faithless Nation

Immigrant Children in Cages

It’s the Fourth of July holiday and there’ll be fireworks and public celebrations all across this country. Don’t get me wrong: there is a lot to celebrate here. In theory, the American democracy is a bold and exciting experiment. We enjoy a fairly educated population and, for many people, a high standard of living, and even unimaginable wealth. Politicians are fond of proclaiming loudly (and to vigorous applause) that we live in the “greatest country on earth.” Whether that’s true or not — whether it was ever true — is open for discussion. I would suspect that not a few Continue Reading →

A Liberal Christian Manifesto

Here’s a question that came to my Facebook news feed: “Why is everyone on my page that whines, bitches, complains or simply are outright obnoxious about our president a Democrat? I haven’t seen 1 single Republican say or share the things you guys do.” I gave him a brief answer, but then allowed myself a few days to formulate a reply. What I came up with has some interesting and, I think significant, elements to it. First of all, I want to answer the question with a question: Who posts anything  (beyond pictures of their last meal or kittens) on Facebook? It has to be people who are motivated Continue Reading →

The Week That Collapses Time

Today is Palm Sunday in Liturgical Christian circles. It begins the week known by many as “Holy Week” and it focuses on the Last Supper, arrest, trial, crucifixion, death and resurrection of Jesus, the Christ. Many devout Christians — let alone those for whom Christianity is only a set of moral principles– have not had the opportunity to go deeper into the meaning of this week and the liturgical celebrations that the Christian Community participates in. The meaning of these rites goes far beyond what is seen on the surface, and, in many cases, even beyond the words and gestures used in Continue Reading →