The late Phyllis Tickle noted that about every 500 years or so, the Church holds a sort of a spiritual rummage sale, clearing itself of bad practices and lousy theology. This cycle of revolution began with Jesus, who both perfectly fulfilled the Law and radically upended the old order of just about everything. Five centuries…

What do you remember about your high school years? Football games? Chemistry tests? First dates? This week, I’ve been reflecting on my high school experience with an unshakable sense of sadness. My high school graduating class held their 40th reunion last weekend. The only reunion I’ve ever attended was my 10th. One of my friends…

My brothers and sisters, Twitter has informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Wayne Grudem”; another, “I follow N.T. Wright”; another, “I follow Jim Wallis”; still another, “I follow Christ.” The tendency in the church to engage in intramural battles is nothing new. The writers of the…

Like the rest of you, I watched with horror as events unfolded in Charlottesville, VA on Friday night and all day yesterday. Our nation’s constitution ensures free speech, though that freedom is not without limitations. A generation ago, my own thinking on this was formed by a seminal case that took place in the town…

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) “Don’t smoke! Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit!” “Eat organic!…