When Christian Convictions Clash for No Good Reason — Growing up as a Pastor’s kid in the eighties gave me a front-row pew to the kind of vitriol and anger that can emerge from an otherwise lovely and mild-mannered Christian when you say or do something that challenges their strongly held beliefs. When my country conducted a nationwide plebiscite…

The long wait in the shadows of the operating table — There are moments in a person’s life when everything suddenly pivots on a point, and you know immediately that life will never be the same again. This month, I had one of those moments. In fact, I had more than one of those moments. It all started when my wife…

When American Patriotism Takes the Throne — I want to give a shout-out to the reader who inspired this post. It all started when I wrote an article called “God Bless the American Bible,” which was intended to be a satirical advertisement for the “God Bless the USA” Bible. The “God Bless the USA” Bible combines the…

Let me be the first to apologize — To My Dear Sisters, To those women who have grown up in the church, as well as those who have walked away from it. I am a white, heterosexual, middle-aged man. I know nothing of what it is like to be discriminated against, belittled, and treated as if I am a second-class citizen in…

The day that cancer came to our house — Wednesday 30th August I arrived home from work today to an empty house. “Where are you?” I texted my wife. “I’m at the doctor,” came the curt reply. “What for?” I asked. “I told you already. I’m in pain. Have been for the past few weeks.” She replied. I don’t remember her saying…

Songs to sing to God when life is hard — One of the things that used to irk me about church was feeling like I had to sing worship songs that were entirely at odds with how I was actually feeling inside. Who rocks up to church and wants to sing “O Happy Day” when their dog just died? No…

Why Believers Are Ditching Church for a Deeper Connection — A man stranded by himself on an island was finally discovered. His rescuers asked him about the three huts that they saw there. He pointed to the first hut and said, “This hut is my home.” Then he pointed to the second hut and said, “And this one is my…

The Unexpected Consequences of Overzealous Evangelism — I drove out of the hospital parking lot. I had just finished visiting my wife, leaving her in the intensive care unit. She has a tumor. Across the street from the hospital, there is a church. I turned toward home and passed by the church. …

Unchained Faith: From Pews to Beers — It has been over three years since I last went to church. For a kid who grew up going to church every week, twice a week, for the first 38 years of my life, this feels like a big deal. Occasionally, I feel like I should get out my Sunday…