SMITCHing

In the Synoptic Gospels there's a poignant scene where Judas greets Jesus with a kiss. To be more precise, he betrays Jesus with a kiss. The narrative spawned the term Judas Kiss, an act of betrayal disguised as a gesture of friendship. There's a lesson there for those in ministry. The kiss of betrayal probably wasn't their first. In the culture of the ancient Near East, it would not have been uncommon for two compatriots who shared affection and life to kiss thus. Jesus embraced Judas as a trusted disciple. He ate with him, traveled with him, and empowered him for ministry ( Matthew 10:1-4 ). And in the end, he died for him ( 1 John 2:2) . So the question for those who follow Christ into ministry becomes: Are you willing to kiss Judas? In other words, are you willing to take a chance on another flawed human being? To trust them and partner with them in ministry knowing that it's possible you're kissing Judas? It's not an easy question to answer. We trus...

I love God. God loves me. How did we get here? When it comes to believing the truth claims of Christianity, there are at least a couple of possibilities. One: God sent me an analytic presentation that was apologetically solid, backed by an equally unassailable exegesis of key Scriptural passages. He presented it to me and gave me a choice. Assent to this truth and we'll love one another through all eternity. If you do not agree, I'll torture you forever. Or, He could send a trusted messenger to speak of His love for me in the sweetest soul-poetry ever composed. He could patiently wait with arms wide open until such time as I respond to his love. I'm betting it's the latter.

According to this article by Dr. Robin DiAngelo, the answer is, "Yes." Why? Because of my skin color and my cultural heritage. My racism has nothing to do with either my character or my intentions. My racism is a function of societal structures tilted in my favor. That's called privilege and it's related to my supposed racism. Full disclosure: I am a 50-something white male who grew up in a solidly middle-class home. I am college-educated. My parents paid for my undergrad degree. I paid for my Masters. I make more money than a lot of people (according to TurboTax). I am healthy, in love with my wife of 35 years, and proud of my children. Yeah, as I typed that paragraph, I'd have to admit I'm pretty privileged. And I'd be naive to think that I bootstrapped all of that. That I didn't benefit from the advantages of the blessed life I've outlined above. I'd also be mistaken if I denied that at least some of those advantages stemmed from...