The way I see it, for the last thirty years, our leaders have focused not on what Christ calls us all to do, but on that which divides us. We’ve focused not on including and welcoming diversity in theology and worldly condition, but on sequestering into our own theological corners and enforcing exclusionary rules.

This week, two Presbyterian groups will be looking for solutions that will comfort conservative Presbyterians who are anxious about the church, and today, I write with a solution that I hope they consider.

Huffington Post: This past weekend, Mount Auburn Presbyterian Church in Cincinnati, Ohio celebrated twenty years of being a More Light Church -- a congregation where "everyone is invited into full membership and ministry regardless of sexual orientation." Mt. Auburn boldly proclaims that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people are part of God's good creation. Continue Reading

Washington Post On Faith: I’ve studied prayer for many years and as I see it, there are at least two kinds of praying. One that we may as well call magical thinking and one that can give us what we need most in a dangerous moment. Continue Reading

A few months ago, President Jimmy Carter took religion to task for contributing to discrimination against women around the world. From my perspective, President Carter’s comments definitely struck home. But it led me to also ask the question: What does religion, and specifically my faith, Christianity, really have to say about gender?

I have had only two encounters with Rev. Joan Gray, Moderator of the 217th General Assembly (2006-2008) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Both of them have been memorable and helpful to me in understanding how to be a Christian and a Presbyterian.

Washington Post On Faith: I’ve studied prayer for many years and as I see it, there are at least two kinds of praying. One that we may as well call magical thinking and one that can give us what we need most in a dangerous moment. Continue Reading

This past Tuesday, the highest ranking court in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission, rendered decisions in cases concerning the long-awaited ordinations of two devout Presbyterians; Scott Anderson who is gay and Lisa Larges who is lesbian.

We all have passages in Scripture that rise to the top for us and become a personal sacred canon within the communal sacred canon of the Bible. Parts of 1 John 3—a chapter in the first of three letters ascribed to the evangelist, John, and directed to Christian communities steeped in the perspective of the Gospel of John—have been in my personal canon since I was a teenager.

Huffington Post: One of the most deeply held aspirations of the American people is to be the shining city upon the hill, an example of the best that human beings can be in the world. And for many this aspiration stems from an understanding of Scripture and more specifically Jesus' words -- what many of us learned as children in Sunday school. Continue Reading