The parable of the talents is about money. Since the church doesn’t really want anyone to know what people actually believe about money, we have spread the rumor that we shouldn’t talk about money. Well, I am not having any of it this morning. This parable is about money and we are going to talk about money. “Show me the money!” (Movie, “Jerry Mcquire”) Not talking about a subject is a trick that God’s people try to pull on... Read more

We Are the History We Choose to Believe History may be considered boring by some, but it’s a hot topic now that Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House of Representative, is promoting the revisionist history of David Barton. History has always been contestable. There’s a saying that the winners write the history. There’s a truism that “he who has the gold writes the rules.” Deeper than that commonplace, Walter Brueggemann, reflecting on Hebrew scripture as history, argues there is established... Read more

North Dakota State Representative Brandon Prichard set off alarms among lovers of democracy when he declared that the Issue One Vote in Ohio should be ignored. Ohio voters enshrined into the state constitution the right to an abortion with 56.6% voting “yes.” Somehow, Rep. Prichard felt obligated to call the results in Ohio into question. He makes an extremely troubling observation: Conservatives are for direct democracy when they win; opposed to it when they lose. “Direct democracy should not exist.”... Read more

Has Pope Francis Opened a “Crack in the Door” for Gays? Googling the topic, Pope Francis Same-Sex Unions, serves up more than 125 articles. “Pope Francis opens possibility for blessing same-sex unions.” Forty-six articles put the word “open” in their headlines. The Hill and the other cheek highlight the possibility of an “open door. What will this action do to what has been a developing appreciation of Pope Francis among evangelicals. The evangelicals have developed a “Popecrush” with Pope Francis.... Read more

Conservatives can’t wait for House Speaker Mike Johnson to get down to the real business of government – reducing food benefits to the Americans most in need of assistance. The program, formerly known as food stamps, now SNAP, has been identified as a major target by Republicans. SNAP stands for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the country’s largest anti-hunger program that serves 41 million low-income American. Conservatives want to trim the rolls who now receive food benefits. There’s always a roll... Read more

Republicans Have a Magical Mirror on the Wall In the land of the Kingdom of Republicans, there are some representative of the government who own a magical mirror. They look in their magical mirror and see themselves acting in selfish, irrational, outlandish ways. Instead of seeing themselves, they see others acting out. It’s not a miracle; it’s a trick, a magical trick of illusion. Then they hold a press conference to insist that others are guilty of all that immature behavior.... Read more

Mike Johnson: Another David Barton Mouthpiece Mike Johnson, U. S. representative from Louisiana, is the speaker of the House of Representatives. David Barton is a fake historian who makes up stories about the founding fathers and the founding of our nation is a political grunt for the Republican Party. He often makes outlandish claims that are filled with falsehoods and misinformation. Listening to Barton claim that 52 of the original 55 signers of the U. S. Constitution were evangelical Christians... Read more

Who Is Our Neighbor? cottonbro studio: orthodox rabbi Who is my neighbor? This is a Levitical question, a question for an Orthodox rabbi. Old Testament scholar, Ellen Davis provides exegetical wisdom on this issue: Within that book, which probably assumed final form in response to assimilationist pressure on exilic Israel, the obvious answer would seem to be that it is only the Israelite “neighbor” to whom love can safely be shown. Such an intra-Israelite interpretation is supported both by semantics... Read more

A Year in Political Advertising Hell The American public is about to enter “hell” for the next year. The political attack ads are coming. As much as ads for insurance and lawyers grate on my nerves, nothing is as awful as political advertising. The suggestion that the doctrine of hell and political ads are from the same rhetorical genre may seem a bit extreme. I will make the case that is not so. Viewing political ads on television during a... Read more

How “I’m not perfect” became the perfect political defense. Somehow, “I’m not perfect, but” has become the perfect political defense for all kinds of bad behavior and obnoxious statements. Perfection has always been a haunting concept in our culture. Christians are taught to aspire to perfection. The corporate world craves perfection as does the world of sports. The pedagogy of perfection has always contained the same lessons. Nobody is perfect because perfection is impossible. Successful people attempt to attain perfection.... Read more