Mechanical engineer Bill Nye, also known as The Science Guy, has a new popular science program on Netflix called Bill Nye Saves the World. During the first episode, Nye dons a light blue lab coat and demonstrates the mechanics of climate change and the greenhouse effect. “As I hold the bulb of this thermometer,” Nye says, “the liquid […]
Resilience for the marginalized
I’ve been listening to my siblings in the United Methodist community and reconnecting with my siblings from the Adventist community this weekend. On Friday, while I was offline, the UMC’s Judicial Council ruled that the bishops of the Western Jurisdiction (five states from Wyoming down to Colorado) had violated church teachings by electing and consecrating […]
Accounting for everyone
I last mentioned the Outspoken series here in February, when Daneen and Stephen published the first installment. The series features Adventist LGBTQIA people sharing their stories, families, and experience with their congregations. In the most recent installment, about Philip, Alberto, Dahlia, and Nicolás, Philip and Alberto reflect on all the ways that their family’s life in […]
Changing course
Little is more quintessentially American than asserting the right to change course. The Declaration of Independence hinges on this passage from lawyer, advocate, president, and slavery investor Thomas Jefferson: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are Life, […]
Radiation and disclosure
This week my office amplified the story of Pr. Alicia Johnston, who, until very recently, served an Adventist congregation in Arizona. As she studied Christian theology about sexuality, Alicia’s beliefs changed and she came to a deeper understanding of her own orientation and faith. Alicia also moved beyond simple self-awareness, and chose to disclose her […]
A message I didn’t expect
An unexpected message from an unexpected source: Pope Francis tele-presented at this year’s TED conference on the topic of inclusion and social responsibility and used the parable of the Good Samaritan to underscore his points. The more powerful you are, the more your actions will have an impact on people, the more responsible you are to […]
