I am writing and will publish this post Super Bowl Eve (which also happens to be Souper Bowl Eve). Interestingly after writing at least 8 blog posts related to this event in the first five years of So What Faith, I've not made mention of it for a decade. Super Bowl LVIII Tomorrow evening, more people will tune in to watch American football than on any other day of the year as the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs meet in Super Bowl LVIII. And, as in years gone by, there will Read More …
Trends
Best of the Best – 2023 (#2099)
This is the 75th and final post of the year on So What Faith. It joins 2,024 posted between 2009 and 2022. At the end of the calendar year for the last three years, I shared the most viewed posts of all time based on page views according to Google Analytics. Then, this year, on July 1, Google stopped processing new data and all customers lost access to the Universal Analytics interface and API. So, I'm unable to provide a similar update this year. Year in Review Instead, I've Read More …
Worshippers Are Aging Too Fast (#2097)
Have you ever looked around a sacred space during worship and observed that those gathered look quite a bit older than the general population? If so, your anecdotal observation is linked to a broader reality: The average American in worship is significantly older than the average American across the entire population. And, it is also correct to assert that while the both the worshipping folks and Americans in general are aging populations, the average age among the worshipping group has risen Read More …
2023 in Exactly 100 Words (#2095)
As a way of seeking to update the Christmas letters that for decades were slipped inside of Christmas cards and delivered by postal mail, I started writing 100 word "year in review" notes in 2016. Recognizing that one must be concise in the current social media era, I've limited contents to a few highlights. This year's edition follows. 2023 in Review In my third year at White Rock Center of Hope (Dallas) my title changed from Executive Director to Chief Executive Officer. I returned Read More …
5 Star Books Published in 2023 (#2094)
Welcome to the fifth annual edition of So What Faith’s 5 Star Books of the Year! This list is comprised of books rated 5 or 5+ on a scale of 1 to 5. To be eligible the book must have been published in 2023 and I must have read it during the year. This year, just 15.5% 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%). Past Years Be sure to check out prior lists Best of the Best Stay tuned! So Read More …
Ecclesial Innovator: Best Job Ever or Unfortunate Job Title? (#2091)
A month ago Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University posted a job that has received more attention than any I've encountered this year. The job title is novel. My own research yielded 0 exact matches to the job of Ecclesial Innovator and even lacked any near matches. Broader Lived Context In my attempts to process this possibility, I was reminded of a few other occasions when I was called upon to expand my thinking about ministry opportunities, including the times Read More …
Top 10 Plates of Food (#2090)
Thanksgiving week has arrived. I'm looking forward to spending time with my family, but also to enjoying great food. Top Plates Last year I tried something new when I wrote Top 10 Plates. In that post I reflected on the most popular plates of food I'd ever shared online through a Google review (ranked by number of views). The process of creating the list was an exercise in remembering not simply the food on the plates but the people I was with and the experience of each meal. Top 10 Read More …
Lacking Close Friends (#2085)
Earlier this week Pew Research Center published the results of a survey they conducted in July that found around 1 in 12 American adults (8%) have no close friends outside of their family. You read that right, 1 out of every 12 American adults self-reported that they didn't have any close friends outside of their family. Among those who responded the breakdown by number of close friends follows 0 - 8%1 - 7%2 - 14%3 - 18%4 - 13%5 - 13%6 - 6%7 - 2%8 - 2%9 - 1%10 or more - 13%Did not answer Read More …
Mainline Protestant Clergy: 3 Intriguing Stats (#2081)
Earlier this month, Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) published Clergy and Congregations in a Time of Transformation: Findings from the 2022-2023 Mainline Protestant Clergy Survey. This wide-ranging study "considers the perspectives of mainline Protestant clergy from the seven largest mainline Protestant denominations on the cultural and political divides facing the nation, and how such divides may be impacting their own congregations." And, it is filled with statistics that warrant Read More …
Saying Goodbye to Hodges University (#2078)
I never imagined saying a permanent goodbye to a University that deeply impacted me. Today, I take this action for the second time in as many years. Last year, I said Goodbye to Hardin-Simmons University after that University choose a new path marked by dishonesty and that exclude all people who do not wholeheartedly endorse a new and troublingly specific statement of faith. Today, I say Goodbye to Hodges University upon the recent news that it has stopped admitting new students and will Read More …