Ethics Considered

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. In this day and age of #MeToo and #ChurchToo, churches are on the front lines. Assault victims sometimes confide in clergy and other church leaders when they feel there is nowhere else to turn. Churches are also places of violation. Yesterday, yet another report of decades of abuse and … Read more

I’m seeing stars! Thank you to everyone who has taken time to rate and review one of my books on Amazon. Your ratings and reviews make a huge difference. If you’ve read one of my more recent books, please consider taking a few minutes to offer your review—even if you didn’t buy it from Amazon. … Read more

Join me for a conversation about The United Methodist Church, disaffiliation, and shared discipline. The Rev. Dr. Jonette Gay interviewed me in February 2023 on the podcast of Otterbein UMC, Lancaster, “Hey! Hey! Anybody Listening!”

Diakonia of the Americas and Caribbean (DOTAC) is hosting a series of virtual seminars in May on the theme, “Perspectives on the Diakonia of All Believers.” I am honored to be among the presenters (download flyer). Please join us to learn more about ministries of love, justice, word, and service.

COVID, racism, institutional change—trauma is all around us. The project, “Trauma-Informed Classroom Teaching at Lancaster Theological Seminary,” equipped our faculty to improve classroom learning for students with existing and ongoing trauma histories. We became trauma-aware, the first step in becoming trauma-informed. We are still on a journey from classroom to community. Read more in my … Read more

So grateful for the Rev. Dr. Elizabeth Soto Albrecht! She shared a vision and invited me to accompany her in a collaboration. The result was the book, Liberating the Politics of Jesus: Renewing Peace Theology through the Wisdom of Women, now #4 on Amazon’s list: I’m humbled to be among these giants of liberation theology: … Read more

I am excited to announce that the FaithTrust Institute has released a new resource. Responding to Spiritual Leader Misconduct (updated edition) lays out the basic principles of analysis of misconduct in a spiritual or religious community: who, what, when, and where. It offers the principles for trauma-informed responses to complaints and the conceptual framework to … Read more

Dear Tom, There’s more to be said about disaffiliating congregations, to whom you recently wrote words of warning. While your letter conveys the avuncular wisdom I have come to expect of you over many years of mentorship and friendship, I did not recognize myself or my congregation in your depiction. Some of our United Methodist … Read more

Healthy boundaries are essential to healthy ministry. My own book, Professional Sexual Ethics provides case studies and discussions for group study. If you’ve seen the movie Honk for Jesus, you might be interested in The Rev. Dr. Doug Powe’s assessment of the Eddie Long case! (chapter 12) The Faith Trust Institute now offers many of … Read more

Creation justice is the most recent chapter in an evolution of thought in the United Methodist environmental witness. This tradition of beautiful words and actions shows United Methodists thoughtfully and faithfully engaging the most pressing environmental problems of the day—in each and every generation. Read more in my article in the September Newsletter of the … Read more