Podcast: What do Cats Have to do with Interfaith Work?
Accompanying One Another Through the Dark Night
October was not a fun month. After an interfaith peacebuilding trip in Nigeria, I returned with a stomach bug that so kindly kept me company over the next several weeks. The significant portion of my ... Read More
Being Teachable in Polarized Times
Shammai's error was to systematically give up on the teachability of his opponents...Hillel's practice suggests that we should delay as long as possible dismissing someone as a fool or foreclosing con... Read More
“Rabba?” The Orthodox Union Grapples with the Possibility of Female Rabbis
The recent decision by the Orthodox Union (OU) to mandate that female members of the Orthodox community cannot serve as clergy has been making headlines and prompting discussions of the correct roles ... Read More
Dispatch from the Lifejacket Graveyard near Eftalou Beach in Lesvos Greece
There is a “lifejacket graveyard” on the island of Lesvos in Greece, where Syrian and Afghani refugees flee from wars, departing from the Turkish shores 4 kilometers away. This is where ad... Read More
How Ought Christian Ethics Navigate Pluralism?
Religious diversity in America is not just pluralism, but rather, pluralisms within pluralism. Religions and faith traditions should not just be simply understood as singular entities, but as countles... Read More
How to Keep Your Cool When Engaging With Religious Zealots
My fingers hovered over the keyboard, ready to write a fighting response while my mind willed me that violence (even if only verbal) is never the answer. The blood steadily coursed through my veins ... Read More
Reflections on being a proud Jew in uncertain times
Mark Oppenheimer, in his article for the New York Times entitled “Reclaiming ‘Jew,’” states that Jews should be proud to call themselves Jews, rather than only state that they are “Jewish,... Read More
When a Humanist Is Asked to Pray
In Ghana it is customary to start and end every meeting with a prayer. What kind of meeting doesn’t matter: PTA meeting, building project meeting, NGO planning meeting–they all start and end w... Read More
Turning the Ground by Standing Still
State of Formation’s topic for the month of April is “April showers bring May flowers,” how do we prepare, plant, and cultivate inner (and outer) change in our lives whether quickly or deliberat... Read More