When I was growing up, a vacation usually meant one thing: family. We did not take many trips in the modern sense. We were not loading up the car to go to resorts or booking rooms months in advance. If we were going somewhere, it was usually to see grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins. Family […]
A few years ago, my mother went on a mission trip to Peru through her church. She came home talking about the beauty of the country, the kindness of the people, and how deeply she enjoyed the experience. Like many mission trips, each person had to pay their own way, and the stated purpose was
The Mission Trip and the Mirror Read More »
One of my first introductions to what would later become modern social justice training happened years ago while I was working as a Child Protective Services investigator in Arizona. At the time, I was also working toward becoming a therapist, and I believed strongly in treating people equally. I believed investigations should rise or fall
When Equality Became Equity (The Same Pants, Part 2) Read More »
My dad taught me something simple that has stayed with me my entire life. He used to say, “Everyone puts their pants on the same way, one leg at a time.” To some people, that may sound like just an old country saying, but to my father, it was a philosophy of life. My dad
The Same Pants (Part 1) Read More »
I keep thinking about this idea that we are all writing a story. None of us fully controls the opening chapters. Some people begin life surrounded by stability, encouragement, safety, and opportunity. Others begin with chaos, neglect, poverty, addiction, abuse, loss, discrimination, instability, or trauma. Life is not fair in how it distributes suffering. Some
You Still Hold the Pen Read More »
There is an old irony buried inside The Ransom of Red Chief that feels strangely modern right now. I found myself thinking about it recently while listening to the news and watching commentators talk about escalation with Iran, retaliation, deterrence, and the language nations always seem to use before they become trapped in something larger
Iran, The Ransom of Red Chief, and the Psychology of Escalation Read More »
This week, I watched James Talarico’s speech after his recent political win in Texas. Something about the way he spoke landed with me. Judging by the reactions online and in conversations with friends, it landed with a lot of other people too, especially Christians who still care deeply about their faith but feel increasingly homeless
When the Church Leaves Before the People Do Read More »
I love genealogy, and when I started digging into my family tree, I was expecting the usual things: farmers, coal miners, preachers, maybe a horse thief or two. What I did not expect was to discover that my ancestry is basically held together by Butts, Dicks, and Belchers. That’s not a metaphor. That’s literal. I
I Come From Butts, Dicks, Belchers… and Almost Fried Chicken Read More »
One of the most overlooked moments in the life of Jesus happens early, before the crowds, before the healings, before the Sermon on the Mount. It happens quietly, in the wilderness. In that story, Jesus is offered something far more seductive than comfort or bread. He is offered power. Real power. Political influence. Control over
The Temptation Jesus Refused (and the One American Christianity Accepted) Read More »
CACREP’s recent memorandum, temporarily suspending the 2024 standards on “underrepresented populations,” attempts to sound procedural and neutral. But behind the careful phrasing is a larger truth our field keeps avoiding: we talk endlessly about diversity, yet we have no coherent definition of who is actually underrepresented. CACREP never tells us. The memo doesn’t either. And
When Diversity Becomes a Box-Checking Game: A Response to CACREP’s New DEI Suspension Read More »