First Words
Is there an antidote to White grievance?
It’s hard to imagine this fear-driven resentment responding to outside counsel.
St. Dymphna and her legacy of care
How the patron saint of mental illness has shown up in my brother’s life
If God is almighty, why do we suffer?
A nine-year-old at my church wants to know.
Reckoning with our messiah complexes
The vulnerability of the newborn Christ challenges our inclination to play God.
The human moments of pastoral care
There’s something uniquely precious about being physically present with people.
End-of-life decisions in the ICU
The Christian tradition has something to say about the ethics of extending life.
The New York Public Library’s act of grace
The end of fines and late fees
American Christians tend to imagine a God who thinks and looks like us
How do you see the face we cannot see?
Who is welcome at the communion table?
Maybe the grace experienced in the sacrament precedes belief.
My history in publishing
The “newspaper” I produced when I was 11 had simpler economics than the Century does.
I walked across Selma’s Edmund Pettus Bridge and saw a synagogue
Visiting Temple Mishkan Israel
When goodness is also lovely
The New Testament has two words for “good.” Knowing the difference between them can help us build a better society.
The power of a swim-in
In 1964, Mimi Ford jumped into a pool—and changed the course of history.
God at the center
A priority is singular. It’s hard to have more than one.
Faith is a gift to relax into
The Greek word for faith, pistis, isn’t about assenting to beliefs. It’s about trust.
The distortions of the God Bless the USA Bible
The conflation of Christianity and American patriotism has never done either one any favors.
Lucilla Goodman and other ordinary saints
Her epitaph, “She hath done what she could,” says a lot.
Limited incentives
Incentivizing good behavior can suffocate morality.
Why do we prize ownership?
Our possessive instinct goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden.
Patient care means listening to the patient
There’s little excuse for doctors skipping over basic compassion.