In the Vigelandsparken in Oslo, there are many different sculptures of human beings, caught in a variety of poses that suggest different relationships.  In the middle of the main sculpture area, there is a tall tower of human figures.  All of the sculptures are very suggestive and provocative.Seeing them reminded me of the latest poem…… Continue reading "Footprints on your chest"

“Should we be having kids in an age of climate change?”  Since hearing this report on NPR a few days ago, I have been thinking a lot about the question posed in the story, which basically argues that one of the easiest, and most effective ways we can positively reverse the negative impact of climate…… Continue reading Is Having Children a Right? Procreation and Climate Change

It has been a couple week since I last posted something–I’ve been travelling, other things have been happening, and, most importantly, the Olympics kicked off in Rio!  Now, I love the Olympics, especially the Summer Olympics–I always have, and this year there are some great stories.  [Of course, there are great stories every year–that’s a…… Continue reading Theology and the Olympics

I am not a Trump supporter.  If you know me at all, or read anything that I have written, you will know that I am, by contrast, a very strong Hillary supporter.  So, you may simply stop reading now, and assume that everything I say about Trump in what follows will be biased and untrue.…… Continue reading A Rational, Reasoned Argument against Donald Trump

I love “Runner’s World.”  Even though I’m not as serious as many of the runners they talk about and write for, it always inspires me and reminds me that any running–any distance, any pace–is good running; and there always are ways to improve and things to learn, whether you are a beginner or an elite…… Continue reading Lessons for Running, Lessons for Life (#RunnersWorld)

Like most of us, my thoughts have been consumed this past week by racism, violence, grief and frustration.  It has been a terrible week of tragedy–Sterling, Castile, and the police officers in Dallas–terrible not because fatal shootings are so rare in this country (they most certainly are not), but terrible because of the shocking nature and scale of them. As…… Continue reading Seeing the "Strangeness" of Others, and taking off the Binoculars

I am here at the Association of Theological School Biennial, and we are in the middle of a great panel on “Theological Education after Ferguson.”  (Did you know Ferguson is basically a suburb of St. Louis?  I didn’t.)  The moderator is NPR host Michel Martin, and the panelists are: Leah Gunning Francis, dean at Christian…… Continue reading Insights from an ATS Panel on "Theological Education after Ferguson"

Do you recognize this skater?  Her name is Surya Bonaly and she was an elite figure skater during the late 1990s.  And, as you might have noticed, she also was black.  I hadn’t thought about her in awhile, but then I heard this interesting RadioLab podcast:  “On the Edge” [it is #5, released April 22, 2016].…… Continue reading What’s Wrong with Being Powerful?

Like everyone else this week, I was saddened and discouraged by the tragic death of Harambe, a silverback Western lowland gorilla, who was shot and killed at the Cincinnati Zoo.  Even without making a judgement about the actions of the zoo officials, the parents or the child, it is impossible not to wish there had…… Continue reading Tigers, Gorillas and Humans