Five months ago, my wife and I moved. Ever since, we have been engaged in the work of making the new house into our home. We've hired a variety of professionals to assist along the way with plumbing, flooring, HVAC, painting, and more. This weekend, I finally got around to finding places for or deciding to get rid of the pieces of furniture that had remained in our garage. And, I engaged in similar work with items that had temporarily been stored in boxes or bins in several closets. Read More …
PC(USA) Membership – 30 Years of Decline (#2026)
Mainline Protestantism has been in decline my entire lifetime. Since it is the tradition I know best and the one that has shaped and continues to shape my religious identity, I strive to understand these changes. The Presbyterian Church (USA) was created by a merger of the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. and the Presbyterian Church in the United States in June 1983. In one of my more popular blog posts - Presbyterian Decline: PCUSA -The First 35 Read More …
Star Word for 2023 (#2025)
I've resisted engaging in the growing practice of "star words" for long enough. For the first time ever, I've received a star word for 2023: clarity. Clarity Clarity is a word that resonates deeply with me. I trust that my life will be better because of the time I'll devote to achieving greater clarity in 2023. Transition The years 2021 and 2022 were marked by transitions, including new professional roles for my partner (2022) and myself (2021)new home (2022) and renewed Read More …
Top 20 Posts – All Time (#2024)
I've written more than 2,000 posts here at So What Faith over the last 13 years. The Top 1% of these form the Top 20 Posts of All Time (based on total page views). The list below includes the title of each post, year of publication, and change in popularity when compared to last year's list of top all time posts. Prayers of the People – Youth Sunday (2009) [+1]Pastoral Prayer – Love (2014) [-1]Are 10,000 Churches Closing Every Year? (2019) [unchanged]Review of Not a Read More …
The Only Major Denomination That Keeps Growing (#2023)
Decline is the one word summary we all know summarizes the state of American Christianity, especially when focusing on membership numbers. It is true that the decline came earlier for Mainline Protestants, but also true they've been joined by Evangelicals. According to sociologist Ryan Burge, only one major Protestant denomination, "has seen consistently positive year over year growth over the last four decades." That denomination is the Assemblies of God. AoG on SWF The Assemblies of Read More …
Top 10 Plates (#2022)
This is the time of year when food is more central than usual. From Thanksgiving through Christmas there are many reasons family and friends gather at table to share food and life with one another. Given this emphasis, I've curated a top ten list related to food. Shown below are the top ten plates I've posted on Google, based on view count. For fairness to all restaurants, I've limited each establishment to a single picture (whichever plate had the highest view count). #10 - Calamari from Read More …
The Thirsty (#2021)
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 …