Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
Of All Your Travels, The Inward Journey is Most Vital
I've lived in our east Asheville, N.C., house longer than I have lived in any house in my entire life, including during my childhood. Before coming to Asheville, I lived in: â— Huntington, W.Va. â— Five...
Christian Leaders Split from Pro-War Political Leaders over Syria
A growing number of Christian leaders are speaking out against military intervention in Syria while an increasing number of U.S. politicians are lining up in support of bombing the country. According to The Hill, 15...
“Just Peacemaking” Proponent Advocates for “Just War” Reflection
Last week saw an ebbing tide in the desire for military intervention in Syria. The British Parliament voted against a proposal to support intervention, a Reuters poll revealed that 53 percent of the U.S. oppose...
Will Progressives, Conservatives Finally Work Together?
A recent report released by the Public Religion Research Institute and the Brookings Institution shows that the religious landscape of the United States is quite diverse and will shift in fundamental ways over the next...
Why Do We Wait Till People Hurt to Offer Compassion?
My cousin, Allyson, is in the midst of an awful fight with ovarian cancer. She's been through five rounds of chemo, undergone multiple surgeries and taken abundant medication. While staring death in the face, she's...
As Obama Lobbies for Syrian Strike, What Are the “Just War” Rules?
"Just War" is a time-honored, moral tool for critiquing government war-making arguments. Rooted in Christian tradition, "Just War" provides understandable moral language that extends beyond the bounds of Christianity....
One less character …
My cousin Rae Stribling died over the weekend, and one of God's most unique people has made the transition from corporality to memory. Rae as a girl, along with my father (top) and my uncle Tom. Rae was my...
Telling the Truth Carries Risks for Prophetic Witness
Offering a prophetic witness is risky – risky to see things accurately and to speak to them rightly. A prophet, Greg Mobley stated in a recent column, "sees through the veil of appearances to glimpse a different...
Remembering Gary Eubanks: Friend, former board chairman
By John Pierce “Before we had Google, we had granddad,” Catherine Eubanks-Carter said she once told her son. Speaking at a memorial service for her father, Gary F. Eubanks, yesterday at First Baptist Church...
A verbal potpourri
A brief hodgepodge of thoughts on this Labor Day weekend ... Food: Homeless folk in Raleigh will be a bit less hungry this weekend. After getting a major earful from concerned citizens at a meeting on Wednesday, the...
Practicing Reconciliation Turns Churches into Peace Communities
I recently added a new subtitle to my blog: "Churches Building Peace Communities By Practicing Reconciliation." While adjusting my blog's title might seem irrelevant to anyone but me, by "unpacking" this phrase one...
Others Still Continue to Resist King’s Dream
It has been 50 years since Baptist pastor and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. made his "I Have a Dream" speech in front of Washington, D.C. Reaching deep into the prophecy of Isaiah, this modern prophet...
Inmate Finds True Redemption Within Prison Walls
What I remember most – what image sticks in my mind still today, weeks after my visit to Topeka Correctional Facility (TCF), is Deborah (the inmate's name has been changed to maintain confidentiality). Her face. Her...
Pre-existing Conditions No Problem for Followers of Jesus
With all the news about health care, most are familiar with the phrase "pre-existing conditions" that might affect the kind of health care coverage one can access. The intention is simple and understandable, at least...
Labor Day and Faith: Rauschenbusch’s Prayers for Workers
Walter Rauschenbusch (1861-1918) affirmed a deep relationship between his Christian faith and ordinary daily work. He was a bright student who quickly realized that seminary training (1883-86) in Bible, theology,...
3 Ways Churches Can Return to Their True Mission
Pastoral leaders are congregational theologians. The issue is not whether one is a theologian, but what kind of theologian. Thousands of local churches have lost their moorings in terms of their basic purpose for...
Racial Equality: A Choice Between Chaos and Community
In his 1967 book, "Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?" Martin Luther King Jr. described the state of the civil rights movement in America and the state of white America's acceptance of African Americans....
The American Dream “ Which One Will We Choose?
Today marks the 50th anniversary of the great "March on Washington" and its vivid demonstration of a public passion for racial justice that had been welling up for 10 years in what we know as the civil rights movement....
Baptist World Alliance Sends Aid to Help Syrian Families
The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) has granted an additional sum of $20,000 for Syrian relief, following on other grants in 2012 and earlier this year. The funds will be used specifically for the humanitarian crisis in...
Do Any Good Moral Options Exist to End Civil War in Syria?
Doctors Without Borders announced on Saturday that its affiliated hospitals in the Damascus area had seen thousands of patients suffering from a chemical weapons attack with several hundred deaths. The group reported...
What a Balance Ball Can Teach You about Work-Life Balance
After doing a little research, I recently replaced my office chair with a balance ball. I had heard many good things about the posture and health benefits they offered, but I wasn't sure what to expect that first day...