Life of Faith
God’s maternal love
I wonder if what I felt, feared, and learned as a young mother mirrors what God experiences when she tries to feed us.
The privilege of ministry
Demoralization among clergy is high—and with good reason. But we need another narrative besides burnout.
A dustpan, a desert, and a search for moral order
My theological education began at Deep Springs College, a two-year work school in California.
Learning to see the planet as gift
At Holden Village, a Lutheran retreat center nestled deep in the Cascades, I asked my students to consider their vocation in light of the Anthropocene.
Elie Wiesel’s defiant faith
Journalist Joseph Berger documents the writer’s work, his activism, and the belief in God that he never fully renounced.
Emotional communism
More than ever, we need the common life we can create for each other, a shared life for the benefit of all.
How a boy band star from Boston became the beloved Imam Tay
Taymullah Abdur-Rahman demonstrates that friendship across religious difference can elicit personal and social transformation.
The academy needs better theologies of cooking
The first step is to give voice to those whose work in the kitchen is shaped by necessity, not choice.
Hope as an act of love
Theologian Norman Wirzba’s account of hope is compelling precisely because it is so grounded in harsh reality.
The consolation of studying theology
Theological education is precarious, inconvenient, and uncomfortable. So why do students keep enrolling?
Forerunners like John
Not everyone who makes a difference in the world gets the credit—or seeks it.
Made to be broken
Sometimes the harm caused by breaking a promise is less than the harm caused by keeping it.
The hope-filled worldview of John B. Cobb Jr.
Cobb was a visionary who saw theology as a force for transformation—as much about action as thought.
Jimmy Carter, America’s best ex-president
After his 1980 defeat, Carter devoted himself to the causes of a progressive evangelicalism that has all but disappeared from public view.
My word for 2024 was monasticism
One highlight of the year was a busy week in a cabin with three friends and a dog.
