What I Wrote This Week @UrbanFaith: September 19-23

Mari White Presents the Newsboys: Entertainer Mari White hopes her new reality show about the popular Christian rock band The Newsboys is fresh, family-friendly television. Christians Speak Out on Davis Execution: Death row inmate Troy Davis may be innocent, but… Read More

9/11 Lessons in Civil Religion @NJShorePatch

Inter-faith messages remind Monmouth County residents who they are. In Jean-Jacque Rousseau’s model of civil religion, the state is unified and strengthened by public displays of faith that refer to deity, point to the afterlife, draw attention to the… Read More

What I Wrote This Week @UrbanFaith: September 5-9

How Did 9/11 Change Urban Ministry? With the tenth anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in mind, Christian leaders Jeremy Del Rio, DeForest Soaries, and Shane Claiborne reflect on how 9/11 changed urban ministry in America. Clergy… Read More

Jersey Shore Faithful to Commemorate 9/11 Anniversary @NJShorePatch

Sacred remembrances dominate the weekend calendar. Mayor Michael Bloomberg may have excluded clergy from the 9/11 10th anniversary ceremony at the memorial site in New York City, but there are plenty of opportunities here at the Jersey Shore for sacred remembrances. Here are… Read More

Serving God in the Family “Business”: A Candid Interview with William Franklin Graham IV @TheHighCalling

At The High Calling, we don’t often address the unique vocational, relational, and spiritual challenges of working for a Christian non-profit organization. So we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to interview William Franklin Graham IV, the grandson of evangelist… Read More

Who’s at Fault in the Debt Ceiling Debate @NJShorePatch

Former New Jersey Secretary of State DeForest Soaries says the vitriolic debate is a reflection of a new, negative era of Republican leadership. “Compared to the Tea Party, Gov. Whitman was a Democrat,” said the Rev. Dr. DeForest… Read More

Hugs & Hospitality at Wright Memorial Church @BarnegatPatch

Congregation that meets in former opera house welcomes visitors with music and warmth. “Life is desperate; we need all the hugs we can get,” said Rev. Bob Lewis after Sunday morning worship at Wright Memorial Presbyterian Church. He was standing… Read More

Exuberant Hospitality at First Baptist Church @NJShorePatch

Exuberant hospitality. That’s how I’d describe Sunday morning worship at First Baptist Church of Manasquan. The worship band was playing before the service began July 17 and soon after I sat down Rev. Joseph Gratzel came over and gave… Read More

What I Wrote This Week @UrbanFaith: July 11-15

Foreclosures Hit Churches Hard: A troubling increase in church foreclosures, especially among African American congregations, has us wondering whether too many churches have jeopardized their witness for the sake of an extravagant new building. Was Slavery Better for Black… Read More

Celebrating the King James Bible @NJShorePatch

Museum of Biblical Art in New York hosts exhibit celebrating translation’s 400th anniversary. While there are plenty of places to celebrate a special anniversary right here at the Jersey Shore, for one as monumental as the 400th anniversary… Read More

A Pilgrim Message for a Patriotic Weekend at First Presbyterian Church @ManasquanPatch

Rev. Steve Davis takes congregation on a journey from Abraham to America at July 3 worship service, and talks about The Samaritan Center afterward. “‘The thing that struck me when I first moved here is that there is… Read More

What I Wrote This Week @UrbanFaith: 6/27-7/1

New Laws, Shifting Demographics: Whether the issue is gay marriage, the ‘war on drugs,’ African American marriage prospects, or the plight of undocumented immigrants, Americans are confronting the issues. Michael Tait: ‘Living Integration’: The dc Talk veteran and current Newsboys… Read More