I’ve been thinking this week of my Baptist grandmother, who took it upon herself to make us fit for civilization. Fortunately, I didn’t see her often. When my father and […]
Tag: against
Do’s and Don’ts In a Time of Change (1)
My friend Jim Mulholland grew up in Greenville, Illinois, where his father taught philosophy at Greenville College. And his father before him. So Jim was steeped in the deep waters […]
Things We Got Just Right (Universality Over Nationality)
When I was in the fourth grade, one of my best friends was a boy named Joe Bryant, whose family rented a farmhouse southwest of Danville on Mackey Road. He […]
Things We Got Just Right (Community Confirmation)
I was down in southern Indiana a while back, riding motorcycles with my friend Dave, the newest member of the Quaker Oatlaws Motorcycle Club. We stopped for lunch in New […]
What In the World Were We Thinking? (Disownment for Marrying a Non-Quaker)
One of the things Joan and I have always enjoyed is antiquing, so when we renovated her family’s farmhouse, and had to furnish it, we went to Gilley’s Antique Mall […]
What In the World Were We Thinking? (A Dress Code? Seriously?)
The older I get, the more I look forward to summer, and this summer especially. It’s been several years since I’ve been to the state fair, and there’s something I’ve […]
Cultures of Crucifixion – Easter 2024
There’s good news this week. If you’ve been putting off buying a Bible until the right one comes along, you’ll be pleased to know the official God Bless The USA […]
Cooperation, not Competition, as an Aspect of Community
I was being a curmudgeon the other day, talking with someone about how young people today don’t know anything about history, when it occurred to me that until I was […]
Quaker Qualities (Not Simplicity, but Generosity)
When I was 32 years old, I received a phone call from the Friends World Committee for Consultation, asking if I would serve on their Executive Committee. This was a […]
Quaker Qualities (Consistent Compassion)
This past week, I was at the bank and noticed the young woman working as a teller had her preferred pronouns, “she/her,” written on her name tag, just after her […]