Latest Articles
A tree grows in Haiti: Harvesting 15 years of mission work
"Haiti is a nation of contrasts,” says Rodney Babe, who meets our church’s team of mission workers at the airport. We soon understand what he means....
Is it worth it? The value of a theological education
Daniel Aleshire has been executive director of the Association of Theological Schools since 1998....
Ten things I didn’t learn in seminary: Politics of the pastorate
1. Church members want pastors to succeed. Yes, there will always be resistance to change, and we pastors tend to fall into thinking that the church and its members are against us....
Foolish prayer: “Pray as you can, not as you can’t”
Six years before he died, American philosopher William James filled out a questionnaire about religious experience....
Two for one? Spousal conpensation: Spousal conpensation
That the spouse of a college or university president almost always acts as a co-professional with the partner (especially when the spouse is a woman) is a situation that has for decades inspired qu...
Altar call: Psalm 51:1-17
Ash Wednesday begins the Lenten journey to Jerusalem. It is best not to journey alone.
Test run (Mark 1:9-15)
In an account in which only Satan, wild animals, and angels are with Jesus, the reader is also present.
If I had $1 billion: Presidents' wish list
What would seminary leaders do if suddenly money were no obstacle—if a generous donor left them, say, $1 billion? ...
What I wish I’d known: Six students on the seminary experience
What have I learned that I wish I knew before I came to seminary?...
Spread too thin
Reading this long book on theological literacy has left me mightily discouraged....
Secrets, by Daniel Ellsberg
The founder of Buddhism, born Prince Gautama Siddharta in India in 563 b.c., began his journey toward becoming a Buddha, an Enlightened One, when he ventured out of his palace and witnessed the suf...
One World, by Peter Singer
Recent events have underlined the need for fresh ethical reflection on international issues. The likelihood that the United States will go to war against Iraq has suddenly and urgently placed U.S....
Family Matters, by Rohinton Mistry
Canadian writer Rohinton Mistry's novel is as straightforward and unpretentious as its title. No pyrotechnics, no metafictional irony, no attempts to draw attention to itself....
The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd
Ten years ago Sue Monk Kidd was a traditionally grounded Christian writer....
Last night out
Spike Lee's desire to explore the nuances of black life is admirable, though the scope of his ambition has often proved to be his artistic undoing....
Your money and your life: Good incarnational theology
No one knows more clearly or more uncomfortably the tensions of life lived between the gospel and economic necessity than a parish clergyperson whose text for the day is “do not worry about your li...
Capital offense: The death-penalty system
George Ryan, until last month the Republican governor of Illinois, has revolutionized the debate over capital punishment....
On not throwing stones: Christian and Muslim conflict in Nigeria
Will Amina Lawal Kurami be stoned to death for having a baby out of wedlock?...
A quilt a day: The widows ofAfghanistan
You don’t have to knock before entering Shkiba’s flat in the southern section of Kabul....