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Confronting Your Own Pain This Mother’s Day

If you are determined not to subject yourself to all those insensitive jerks at church this Mother’s day, who show no regard for your loss, infertility, pre-mother status, or some special case relationship that you have that you think qualifies you to stand for Motherly recognition, but fear...
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My Ethics of Ethics

It is a complex world with complex problems. The desire for sure answers and ethical certainty in my own religious community has not, however, historically, driven them to examine issues, nor to contemplate the methods and principles by which one might do so. It has, rather, driven them...
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Stumbling Stones Among Us

Some Scriptures cause me pain, especially when held in tension with others… seemingly conflicting ideas pulling at the soul, demanding wisdom… and let’s face it, wisdom can be exhausting. It’s so much easier to either throw caution to the wind or to develop a strict moral code in...
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Weasel Words & the Domination of Public Narrative

Words have a lot more than just a definition. Words have associations. Words have rich emotional content. That emotional content is a powerful tool in communication. Choosing the right word at the right time can take a sentence from blah to TADAH!!!! And just to prove that I...
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Should a Christian Get a Tattoo?

Angel, from Pune India, asked: Is getting a tattoo on the body against Scripture? Good question. There are health concerns and there are social concerns… but are there major religious concerns? Let us forget for a moment that health concerns and social concerns ARE ALWAYS religious concerns as...
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All Things Being Equal, Nothing is Equal

Let’s make one basic point. Equality is both an essential truth and a complete fallacy. “Now, wait a minute, Bub. Equality is the bedrock of our nation… the most noble pursuit in the history of man. Equality is the morality of our new age. It’s right up there...
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Should Christians be Patriotic?

Should Christians be patriotic? Great question, I’m glad you asked. The best answer I can give up front is, “What do you mean by patriotic?” Definition is always the best place to begin. Without definition of key terms each person in a discussion fills in those terms with...
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That Not So Elusive Poverty

In a recent post, “Worst Nelson Mandela Quote Ever,” I proposed that one of Mandela’s most famous quotes about poverty exemplifies a disastrous understanding of reality,[1] particularly for a political figure with the power to establish policy. It sounds good on the surface, especially in regard to the...
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Reinventing the Family Wheel

The great audacity of the western worldview is the idea that progress and independence are virtues to be cultivated at almost any cost. Each generation tends to regard “the world that is” as a trap from which to escape… into more progress, more independence.[1]  Many think they can fix the...
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