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Tag Archives: Cultural Commentary
Life After Prop 8
What can I say? What a bummer it was to wake up to the glory of Barack Obama’s election as President of the United States, and then to know that Proposition 8, banning same-sex marriage, won in California. Talk about … Continue reading
South Side Girls
I’ve always been a newshound, and the election frenzy has only made it worse. But the last few days I have been watching TV for every scrap of news about Jennifer Hudson and the tragic murders that have befallen her … Continue reading
Something’s Coming…
One of the benefits of being on sabbatical from my congregation is that I have a chance to think about all manner of things. I also get a chance to remember things about myself I haven’t thought about for a … Continue reading
Fresh Air
For some time, I have taken it as an article of faith that Barack Obama should be the next President of the United States; I felt that way from the moment I heard him speak at the Democratic National Convention … Continue reading
Posted in Barack Obama, Congregations, God, Ministry, Privilege, Reflections, Spirit
Tagged Barack Obama, Cultural Commentary, Political Commentary, Politics, Racism, Religion, Worship
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In Praise of Keith Olbermann
Once upon a time, I was a talking head at MSNBC. It was a brand-new cable channel then, and I was still more writer and cultural critic than seminarian. But my weekly gig there–courtesy of Newsweek senior editor Jonathan Alter … Continue reading
Posted in Barack Obama, Democracy, Geraldine Ferraro, Hillary Clinton, Privilege, Reflections
Tagged Barack Obama, Cultural Commentary, Political Commentary, Politics, Racism, Women
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Obama Goes Global
It was five a.m. in Amsterdam, and I was groggy from the eight+ hour flight from Nairobi. Feeling disconnected and alien and sleepy, I dragged into Schiphol, looking for the showers at the Mercure Hotel, when I remembered: it might … Continue reading
Three Times the Sadness
Right after P., S., and I arrived at the camp, we met Beatrice, her sister Nekesa, Beatrice’s daughter, and the newest members of their displaced family: triplets, born in the IDP camp one month earlier. In a space smaller than … Continue reading
Posted in IDPs, Kenya, Nairobi, Neighborhoods, Poverty
Tagged Children, Cultural Commentary, Politics, Women
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Waiting to Exhale…
Even in the midst of the joys and surprises we’ve experienced at this conference, there is no one who is not conscious of the tenuous calm in Kenya–and none of us are confusing calm with peace. Don’t misunderstand; in Nairobi … Continue reading
Posted in Unitarian Universalism
Tagged Africa, Cultural Commentary, Politics, Unitarian Universalism
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Deep Questions
This morning’s ICUU Leadership Training session, led by Canadian colleague Brian Kiely, focused on church structure and democratic process, but it quickly became much more than that. What these East African religious leaders brought to the discussion bore witness to … Continue reading
Posted in Democracy, Poverty, Unitarian Universalism
Tagged Africa, Cultural Commentary, Unitarian Universalism
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Thank You, Susan Boyle!
Dear Susan— You don’t know me, and until yesterday afternoon, I didn’t know you. I was tired, cranky, discouraged about a host of burdens weighing on my heart. Between meetings at church, I signed onto Facebook to check on family … Continue reading →
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