Religion can be healthy or unhealthy. One key factor differentiating the two is the extent to which religion promotes humility or self-righteousness. In other words, does religion help me focus on myself, and how great I am, or does religion help me focus on loving and serving others and God? …
I think my favorite aspect of the Jewish faith has to do with how they deal with theological disagreement and debate. Namely, theological disagreement and debate are preserved in the sacred writings and traditions of the Jewish faith, rather than rejected. There is less pressure to find the “right” view. …
At some point early in graduate school, I had a powerful conversation with my mentor that I still remember today. In what seemed like an odd conversation starter, he asked me to think about the best known cola companies. “Who do you think is #1?” he asked me. “Coca-Cola,” I …
During my freshman year of college, I went to a small faith-based school and ran cross-country. Each afternoon at 3:30, we would meet for our training run. Before we got started, we would stand in a circle, put our arms around each other, and sing a song. One of my favorite …
It’s not easy for me to admit I might be wrong. Usually I’m pretty confident that what I believe is true, and I tend to stick to my guns. But I’m starting to think this isn’t the most effective way to live my life. I was playing Settlers of Catan …