Image of the U.S. Constitution from http://wvconstitutionaladvocates.com/u-s-constitution/

As an inquisitive person I am constantly trying to understand what is happening in the world around me and how to describe and faithfully impact it. I try to pay attention to not only the religious tradition I am a part of but also the broader trends in society. In October of this year I was having a conversation with one of my colleagues about the political landscape nationally and locally and what that meant for the church. As a person who generally approaches the world in a positive way I was seeing the challenge as also an opportunity for the church to be a place where we can address some of the issues that have arisen within our society, particularly highlighted in the political elections of 2017. I would later write Wisdom of Story 4: Daring to Imagine a Bigger Story at the conclusion of my working through Brené Brown and Glennon Melton Doyle’s class on The Wisdom of Story and I Pray that I am Wrong… the day after the election of Donald Trump to serve as the President of the United States.

For me this blog is a kind of chalkboard or whiteboard for my mind, it is a place where I can wonder about things both secular and sacred. Over the past week I’ve been writing down things I want to reflect upon on pieces of paper but I’m, at least for now, going to put up some of the ideas here so that I can begin to work on them. A lot of these have emerged out of conversations I have either heard or been a part of in the past week and the list will probably grow. Some may be self-explanatory others are little more than reminders so I don’t forget.

Beyond a Politics of Disgust

Masculinity and Femininity: What Does it Mean to Be a Man or Woman Today and How Has That Changed (and why might it be different across generations)

A Fractured Republic: What are Democrats and Republicans Nostalgic For and Why has their vision diverged so drastically

Living With the Things One Can Change: The Wisdom of Ecclesiastes in an Unsettled Time

Gifts of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence and Why Knowing these Documents is so Important: Published as

Understanding the Constitution of the United States: Article 1 The Legislative Branch, Sections 1-6
Understanding the Constitution of the United States: Article 1 The Legislative Branch, Section 7: The Process of Making Laws
Understanding the Constitution of the United States: Article 1 The Legislative Branch, Section 8: The Powers of Congress
Understanding the Constitution of the United States: Article 1 The Legislative Branch, Section 9-10: Limiting the Powers of Congress and the Independent States

Expanding the Tribe we hear from: How do we hear the voices of another who differs from us? Perhaps exploring the book of Ruth compared to books like Ezra and Nehemiah

Political Correctness and Common Decency: Political Correctness has often been labeled as a bad thing, but what is it and did we ever have common decency?

What are the civil religions of the United States and is there still a civil religion in a secular, postmodern age

What do Postmodernity, Secularism, Pluralism, etc. have to speak to our current context

Does Digital pluralism necessarily lead to a Post-Truth era

From Nostalgia to Casting a New Dream

The 24 hour digital news cycle, the loss of review, the flood of data and the skewed perception of reality (Or is our addiction to news causing our anxiety on purpose) Coming on December 2, 2016 as Technology, News and the Distorted View of Reality

Shame and Anti-Racism Training

The Fall of Anakin Skywalker and the Rise of the Dark Side in American Culture and Politics