Comedian Jon Stewart, original host of the Comedy Central program The Daily Show, may or may not have very many religious sensibilities.  Stewart is capable of some amazing comedy in the skewering of the day’s news—one thinks of the delicious…

Americans love a tragedy and redemption story. To use religious language, many of us might call this narratives of transgression and sanctification. But what is the proper amount of both and should it be thoughtfully calibrated to connect with a…

Hay Creek RanchNemo, South Dakota For all my apprehension and anxiety about this trip, my week in South Dakota has been an experience beyond words. We have one day of riding left, and I have just a few notes and…

My dear Wormwood, Let me start with another reminder that you must take great care that this letter not fall into the wrong hands. As you know, some years ago a number of my letters fell into the hands of…

(This post originally appeared at http://www.iamareconciler.org/dear-church-refuse-to-be-in-denial/ -- thanks to Melissa for her permissino to repost this important piece here at the Twelve.)Dear Church, I write to you to admit that I am a recovering racist, working to overcome the lies…

On Sunday night, June 7, the little St. James Anglican Church in rural Parham, Ontario, burned to the ground. Well, the entrance still stood, with its bright blue door. The cause of the fire was arson, but the reason it…

I never did put a fish sticker on the back of my car. Many years ago, I considered it for a while -- a discreet little fish. Nothing attention-grabbing. Now I'm glad I didn't. What was my intention? Was I…

In 2009-10 we lived in the Netherlands. The Dutch do lots of things better than we do, including bike paths, reclaiming land from the sea, bread, and public transportation. There are things the United States does better than the Netherlands.…

Spontaneity is not one of my gifts. My family might actually think that’s a significant understatement. A few years ago when I chose the word “mindful” as my word of the year, my mother was a little disgusted. She actually…