Faith & Practice

“Christianity is founded on the mystery of the cross of Christ.” – Pope Leo the Great My friend Judith Couchman is a luminary, in so many ways. We met eons ago in Colorado when I was part of the civilian advisory board for a Christian women’s magazine launch. I was impressed then, as I always have been, as I am today. Judith is a delightful person. She is also an award-winning author, who delves deeply into subjects women care about, and she is a scholar who teaches art history. She writes Bible studies and books that I still pull off my shelves and peruse, using them...

Matthew 6: 1-4, The Message translation says: “Be especially careful when you are trying to be good so that you don’t make a performance out of it. It might be good theater, but the God who made you won’t be applauding. When you do something for someone else, don’t call attention to yourself. You’ve seen them in action, I’m sure – ‘playactors’ I call them – treating prayer meeting and street corner alike as a stage, acting compassionate as long as someone is watching, playing to the crowds. They get applause, true, but that’s all they get. When you help s...

Okay, so this will piss some people off. But, I just think that there are too freakin' many Christian conferences, camps, seminars, and whatnot. I get so many notices on my FB Newsfeed that I cannot believe it. . . . Even if you are working at these things, it's a bit much. If you spend more than a few weeks a year at Christian conferences, I think you are no longer "in the world" so much as trying to live in one big Christian gated community. I think "in the world" means something!! It doesn't make sense to spend that much time isolating yourself from those who ...

To "go against the mainstream" is a lost concept in American Cultural Christianity for the most part. It's easy to rail against "the world", while being a part of the business-of-Christianity which is prevalent in American faith circles. I suppose that is why so many people do it - all the while missing that the very people Jesus worked hardest to expose were the religious leaders of the day. We fit in where we fit in - we have natural affinities to certain types of people and culture – and many people are much more comfortable living a radical faith without all the tr...

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So, Sarah Palin has accepted David Letterman’s apology, “on behalf of all young women, like my daughters, who hope men who ‘joke’ about public displays of sexual exploitation of girls will soon evolve.” This is her latest handsmacking of the apparently Cro-Magnon comic, Letterman. Really? She wants Letterman to evolve? She believes in evolution? She is eroding her base, methinks! It’s all politics. Palin coulda come out against jokes against her fam on any number of occasions over the last year. Conan O’Brien, Craig Ferguson, Jon Stewart, Jay Leno, and SNL have all ...

I was thinking a lot this weekend about something I have heard various and sundry friends say recently against the “emergent church.” Now, I know a little about the emergent church, and from what I’ve seen, there is quite a range of beliefs going on there. From not believing the inerrancy of the Bible, to not being sure if there are miracles anymore – or if there ever were – to believing all of those things, but maybe wondering about evolution.  . . . It’s all over the map. Frankly, not unlike in the traditional church. What I have discerned in my readings on this over the...

Just back from the Christian Comedy Association Conference, where we regularly talk about all sorts of issues, including business, road loneliness, performance tips, and what to stay away from at the hotel breakfast bar. The thing we always seem to come back to, and it’s a great truth, is that it is not about US. Or, to be more specific, it is not about ME. Sometimes I wish it were. I’m a comic, so I admit to an ego. But I’m a follower of Christ, so it’s a bizarre concept to spend time promoting – yourself. I struggled with this from the beginning. I was always taught the “...

I was accused on Facebook last night of supporting the subjugation and murder of “women, Native Americans, gays, blacks, Mexicans, Asians” and anyone else who doesn’t share my faith. I thought it was weird that he thought all those groups automatically don’t share my faith, but thought that was a bunny trail. Weirder still, I AM a woman, and a little bit Cherokee . . . soooooo . . . where does that leave him? I was blamed for heinous crimes against humanity . . . all on a thread because I called a guy on his prejudice against Christians. I chuckled, but then I thought how sad i...

Okay, that is a belabored title, but it reflects the sitch in today’s world, no? We are very very scared, a lot of us. Finances are unreliable, people are getting laid off. My husband and I are calmer than you would think. Because we are artists (he’s an actor and director), and we have lived most of our adult lives with no guarantee of work month-to-month much less year-to-year. So, we wondering if, now, a lot of other people know what artists go through every single day of our lives. It takes a lot of guts and perseverance to be an artist in our society, a freelancer, a comic, an a...