The Politics of Preaching
To tell a congregation the truth, to condemn our world while admitting that we cannot see our way clear of it, is a political and prophetic act. By Matthew L. Potts
Featured
Teffi, Rasputin, and the Revolution
Teffi’s writings and the story of Rasputin illuminate the role of belief and rumor in the fall of the Romanovs. By Randy Rosenthal
Word & Image
‘They Needed to be Heard’
Text, quotes, and images from an exhibit that breathes new life into ancient ocarinas, clay instruments which played a significant role in the Mesoamerican world.
‘Every Little Pine Needle’
Thoreau had a deeply religious cast of mind, but he experienced revelation in nature, and trees were his guides. By Richard Higgins
Can the Women Do Something?
An inspiring call to action from the Nobel laureate who brought women together across religious, ethnic, and political differences to restore peace in Liberia. By Leymah Gbowee
Dialogue
All Flesh Must Once Again Become Fire: Origen’s Untamed Thinking
For Origen, our souls and bodies are simply our fiery minds in different states, and our goal is transformation. By Charles M. Stang
The Secular Religion of Plotinus
Plotinus focused on embodied life and envisioned an intricate, complex, interconnected universe. By Margaret R. Miles
Zhu Xi’s Breakthrough
Zhu Xi proposed that each of us must cultivate “reverential attention” so that together we might create more harmonious communities. By Stephen C. Angle
The Advice of Mencius
The central focus of Mencius’s thinking was how to let our goodness blossom and how to prevent ourselves from falling prey to immorality. By Jin Li
in review
Film
Where Silence Lives
The documentary In Pursuit of Silence creates a space for a long overdue conversation about the nuanced subject of silence. By Timothy L. Gallati
Syllabus
Buddhist Ethics
A selected reading list from Charles Hallisey’s course.
Shelf Life
Challenging Binaries, Crossing Boundaries
A review of four books on Islamic reform in contemporary Africa. By Ousmane Kane
In Scripture
Facing the Fierce Land of I
Gandhi’s translation of a verse from the Bhagavad Gita invites and commands us to return to what’s essential before taking action. By Eliza Griswold
Books
‘Restitching’ America under Trumpism
A Q&A with E. J. Dionne, Jr., on the book he co-authored with Norman J. Ornstein and Thomas E. Mann, One Nation After Trump. By Robert Israel
poetry
Modes of Travel
By Callie Siskel
At Prayer
By Yehoshua November
perspective
The Way of the Still, Small Voice
If we spend all of our time ratcheted up about the constant, outrageous insults and threats, we might miss the unjust things being done. The small voice is silenced. By Wendy McDowell
