Other Opinions

How to contend with diversity is one of the great questions of our day for political leaders, religious leaders and the American people. Too many influential people believe and tell the story that either a diverse America is a threat to Christianity, or that Christianity is a threat to a diverse America.

The response to the Mar. 3 tornado has been enormous. But as people's electricity is restored and the disaster recedes into memory, we need to keep asking where the bulk of the help and money is going.

Tuesday (March 10) is an important Jewish holiday. Purim, which began at sunset Monday, celebrates the fifth century B.C.E. victory of the Jewish people in Persia thanks to the boldness of Queen Esther. Purim has been celebrated by Jews around the world from that time until the present. 

More than 40 years of research on the psychology of surviving disasters has found that religion can be a valuable resource in fostering resilience. Studies of people’s reactions to the Ebola outbreak and Syrian refugee crisis show that some forms of religiosity may be less healthy and less helpful. 

The Missouri House has approved a bill exempting private and religious schools from raising the minimum wage for their workers, as state law now requires. It was the wrong decision.

In an inversion of Teddy Roosevelt's dictum, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom speaks loudly and carries no stick at all. And not surprisingly, over the years its words had little effect beyond annoying the objects of the criticism.

Jean Vanier, who died last year at the age of 90, has been credibly accused of an abusive sexual relationship with six non-disabled adult women to whom he was giving spiritual direction. At the same time, I ask myself, why am I surprised?

When I came to pastor here more than a decade ago, I wanted to see younger people join the church. But now more than ever, I’m thankful for those wheelchairs.

One hundred years ago on January 17, 1920, the Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution went into effect. That amendment established the prohibition of “intoxicating liquors” in the nation—and initiated thirteen years of national turmoil.

For many preachers, it can be a challenge to preach each Sunday from the Common Lectionary rather than simply use their favorite passages of the Bible. I had to wonder what conservative preachers did with last Sunday’s reading from the Prophet Isaiah.