Passage for Reflection: Psalm 42:1-2 I’ve spoken with many people who were raised in the church, but in traditions that didn’t include Advent. One of these folks told me that starting to embrace Advent later in life has been meaningful, but that each year the season of waiting and preparation seems longer and more difficult to navigate. There are times in life when each of us longs for God’s presence with greater intensity than we might have planned or even imagined possible. Read More …
Top 10 Posts of 2022 (#2020)
2022 has been a year of transition and change - planned and unplanned. My wife and I relocated to a new home and said goodbye to a congregation, I survived a brutal assault, and I parted ways with the academic institution that awarded my M.Div. The top ten posts published on So What Faith during 2022 (based on page views in 2022 to date) reflect these life happenings and also feature posts about the two Mainline Protestant denominations I know best: Ten Reasons for Concern About HSU's Read More …
Top 10 Books of 2022 (#2019)
Welcome to the 13th annual So What Faith's Top 10 Books of the Year. Books are listed in alphabetical order by author’s last name Jennifer Garcia Bashaw. Scapegoats: The Gospel through the Eyes of Victims.Molly Phinney Baskette. How to Begin When Your World is Ending: A Spiritual Field Guide to Joy Despite Everything.Katelyn Beaty. Celebrities for Jesus: How Personas, Platforms, and Profits Are Hurting the Church.Ryan P. Burge. 20 Myths About Religion and Politics in America.Gregg Read More …
5 Star Books Published in 2022 (#2018)
Welcome to the fourth annual edition of So What Faith's 5 Star Books of the Year! This year, 17% of all books rated received a rating of 5 or 5+ to earn this honor (in prior years the percentage has ranged from 15% to 17%). Anthony M. Annett. Cathonomics: How Catholic Tradition Can Create a More Just Economy.Jennifer Garcia Bashaw. Scapegoats: The Gospel through the Eyes of Victims.Molly Phinney Baskette. How to Begin When Your World is Ending: A Spiritual Field Guide to Joy Despite Read More …
Great New Books – December 2022 (#2017)
The best new books I’ve read in the last month are (5.0) How to Begin When Your World is Ending: A Spiritual Field Guide to Joy Despite Everything by Molly Phinney Baskette (Broadleaf Books, 2022)(4.5) The Magi: Who They Were, How They've Been Remembered, and Why They Still Fascinate by Eric Vanden Eykel (Fortress Press, 2022)(4.5) The Persuaders: At the Front Lines of the Fight for Hearts, Minds, and Democracy by Anand Giridharadas (Alfred A. Knopf, 2022)(4.5) Care: How People of Read More …
101 Days of Waiting (#2016)
101 days after we moved in to our current home, it is fully furnished. Heading East I'd like to think my wife and I know a few things about buying houses, and about moving in to them. Over the course of the last twenty-four years, we've owned nine houses that we lived in as our primary residence. In July, I wrote, "Heading East," to share the news that we were selling our home in downtown Fort Worth and moving East. A few weeks later we closed on a home in North Arlington. On August Read More …
Giving Thanks – 10 Experiences in 2022 (#2015)
I am thankful for all of the life experiences I've had since last Thanksgiving. Today, I highlight 10 that are particularly memorable and when possible provide links to additional writing related to those experiences: Surviving a brutal assault (Surviving an Attack & Living a Hope-Filled Recovery)Celebrating my partner's promotion to Dean, enjoying our life together, and relocating to my hometown of Arlington, Texas (Heading East)Completing my first year as Executive Director of the Read More …
Great New Books – November 2022 (#2014)
The best new books I’ve read in the last month are (4.5) Christianity's American Fate: How Religion Became More Conservative and Society More Secular by David A. Hollinger (Princeton University Press, 2022)(4.5) The First Advent in Palestine: Reversals Resistance, and the Ongoing Complexity of Hope by Kelley Nikondeha (Broadleaf Books, 2022)(4.5) When McKinsey Comes to Town: The Hidden Influence of the World's Most Powerful Consulting Firm by Walt Bogdanich and Michael Forsythe Read More …
Surviving an Attack & Living a Hope-Filled Recovery (#2013)
I believe all people are created by love for love and possess unique giftedness that should be contributed to the work of co-creating a just world for all people and for all of creation. As a follower of the Way of Jesus, I've dedicated my life to making God's realm more real on earth. Over the course of my journey these efforts have taken many forms, including serving local churches, providing healthcare to underserved populations, and leading faith-based non-profit organizations to care Read More …
Great New Books – October 2022 (#2012)
The best new books I’ve read in the last month are (5+) Reorganized Religion: The Reshaping of the American Church and Why It Matters by Bob Smietana (Worthy, 2022)(5.0) Becoming Kin: An Indigenous Call to Unforgetting the Past and Reimagining Our Future by Patty Krawec (Broadleaf Books, 2022)(5.0) Fresh Expressions of the Rural Church by Michael Adam Beck and Tyler Kleeberger (Abingdon Press, 2022)(4.5) Hope: A User's Manual by MaryAnn McKibben Dana (William B. Eerdmans, 2022)(4.5) Read More …