This review originally appeared at the Hillhurst Review on April 8, 2013. Lee, Justin. (2012). Torn: Rescuing the Gospel from the Gays-vs.-Christians Debate New York: Jericho Books. It all started with the kid in high school who called me “God Boy.” Justin Lee, co-founder, director, and public face of the Gay Christian Network, has been […]
We Remember Differently
We Remember Differently In November 2012, Chimamanda Adichie reflected on Chinua Achebe’s literary legacy, his gifts to her as a new writer, and his contributions to Nigeria’s rendering of its complex and traumatic recent history. Our forerunners cast a long shadow and their stories have such power. Achebe died today in Boston aged 82. Nigeria’s […]
Elie Wiesel: I Still Believe in Man
Living With an Open Heart I belong to a generation that has often felt abandoned by God and betrayed by mankind. And yet I believe that we must not give up on either… We must choose between the violence of adults and the smiles of children, between the ugliness of hate and the will to […]
Habibi by Craig Thompson (Review)
(Warning: Spoilers) This week, I finished reading Habibi, the epic-length graphic novel by writer and artist Craig Thompson. [1] From the Divine Pen fell the first drop of ink. And from the drop, a river… When the land dried up with drought, my parents sold me into marriage. As the lead narrator Dodola explains, the Arabic word habibi […]
Reading scriptures with a little humility
If you’re in a church service with me (or a non-religious lecture otherwise), you might see me tapping on my phone. It’s not because I’m not paying attention, but because I am: I use a bible app, take digital notes, and if something’s well said, I’ll tweet it immediately. This is a few steps ahead […]
When the Pilgrims Met the Borg (Stueart)
My friend Jerome Stueart recently shared his 2010 story “When the Pilgrims Met the Borg: Faith, Perfection, and the Assimilated Pilgrim.” It’s a fantastic mash-up of colonial America and the Star Trek universe, written in the voice and style of Plymouth colony’s William Bradford. My faith, it scares me. Its efficient, courageous march across the […]