Jason Lief

The last month has been a roller coaster for DACA recipients. First, the Supreme Court upheld DACA, preventing the Trump administration from bringing it to an end. Then, just this week, the Trump administration put forward an executive action that…

A few nights ago I was spending time at a lake cabin in Minnesota, alone, when the lights went out. One minute I was getting a drink of water, listening to NPR, the next I was trying to figure out…

Lately, it seems everything from masks to hugs has become a political statement. With the fourth of July upon us, patriotism and remembering those who fought for our freedom have become the new tug of war. What strikes me about…

Ten years ago this fall I started my PhD program at Luther Seminary in Saint Paul, MN. Because my degree is in Pastoral Care and Practical Theology, I needed to do some clinical hours. As a former high school teacher,…

What have I been doing during the pandemic? Chopping wood. Sure, I've been teaching online like every other college professor, I was even fortunate enough to receive tenure and a promotion to full professor, but social distancing has given me…

Sometime very soon the Supreme Court will decide whether the Trump Administration has the right to terminate the DACA program that began during the Obama administration. DACA (Deferred Action Childhood Arrival - a form of legal status for immigrants brought…

Today is the day when the cheap grace of triumphalism is shown to be a fraud. Today is the day when those who use the gospel to fulfill their selfish ambition are unmasked. Today is the day when the voices…

I write from a position of privilege. I'm at my desk, typing on a computer hooked up to the internet, the lifeline for many who now work at home. I'm able to do my job, teaching students through videos and…

Lately, I've been reading the mystics. You know, Christians from a different time and place who speak of love as the highest knowledge, calling us to the God beyond God—the God who cannot be rationally known, only encountered. I know…

Recently, I had my students read about the spirituality of St. Francis of Assisi. Late in his life, while up on a mountain, he had a vision of Christ as a seraph. When the vision was over, Francis had the…