Sociologist and Critical Race Theorist, Nikki Blak & Cultural Anthropologist and Theologian, EbonyJanice have joined forces, once again, to bring to you all the blackity black woman truth and perspective on the divine.

It is commonly assumed that Jesus had 12 male disciples, the number being fashioned after the 12 tribes of Israel. Whether or not there were 12 tribes named after 12 men is a question for next week. The question for today is: did Jesus have women disciples, and who were they?

Responding to the bombing of Syria.

Send in a thousand grandmothers
They will surely volunteer
With their ancient wisdom flowing
They will lend a loving ear

As suggested by the title, the book takes a progressive approach to religion, seeing the critical biblical analysis of the past 200 years and the discoveries of science as friends rather than enemies in the ongoing quest for truth.

Unfortunately, putting non-violent offenders and drug users in jail has become so profitable that we continue to incarcerate more and more people and we keep them in prison for longer and longer sentences.

Rev. Dr. Yvette Flunder and Rev. Deshna Charron Shine discuss what makes a healthy and thriving church community, how to continually feel nourished by the teachings of Jesus, and how our beliefs inform our actions.

Ignorance will never be defeated with judgment.

Oh yes, I meditate. I have genuflected and even made the sign of the cross on occasion.  But, I wonder, do these salutations assure me of clear Divinity or not? I would call these functionary activities some semblance of being one with Spirit!

I’ve been introducing scripture passages this way from the pulpit for decades.  At first I was a bit nervous about speaking my mind in such an unambiguous fashion.  But when I discovered that hardly any parishioners blinked, I lost my trepidation. 

“Those now last will be first, and those now first will be last.”

Let me just be honest and say that this was hard for me to read, if not a bit repugnant as it goes against everything I have come to understand about Jesus as an open and inclusive teacher who frequently transgressed conventional norms that were exclusionary.

After his daughter’s murder, a grieving father confronts God with desperate questions — and finds unexpected answers — in this riveting and deeply moving #1 NYT bestseller.

In “ZeroTheology”, John Tucker argues that not only can one be a Christian without holding any traditional beliefs but that one can only be a Christian by getting out of religious belief altogether.

The Cosmic Christ existed at the beginning of time, billions of years before Jesus of Nazareth was born. Watch as Rev. Salvatore Sapienza, pastor of Douglas Congregational United Church of Christ, talks about the “Universal Christ” and the “Spirit of the Cosmos.”

This week many of us were moved by Brandt Jean, the brother of Botham Jean, when he told his brother’s killer, Amber Guyger, that he forgives her, and then came off the stand and hugged her in the courtroom.

About one in five adults suffer from a diagnosable mental illness but none of us can be held up to the light as an example of mental health. While we all have issues (triggers, quirks, hot buttons, etc.) rather than focusing on psychological problems there is a whole school of study around positive psychology that marries well to a spiritual path in which we hope to grow, become stronger and more insightfully aware of ourselves and others. Our emotions can become a mental prison or, we can take charge of our journey and become increasingly healthy and subsequently, free.

Autumn Peltier already has years of advocacy behind her. She’s met the prime minister, she’s attended the Assembly of First Nations Annual General Assembly and she’s marched on the highway in the name of water protection. At just 13 years old, Peltier is now a nominee for the International Children’s Peace Prize.

Uncertainty is the essence of the human condition, and nothing is more uncertain than God. Yet passions run hot when it comes to God, both among believers and non-believers.