Kamala Harris and politics, plus Sunisa ‘Suni’ Lee and Olympics gymnastics, are shining spotlights on Hmong Americans

July 29, 2024 by Leave a Comment

Click the cover to visit the Hmong book page on Amazon.

Hmong communities illustrate the importance of swing voters in the 2024 presidential race

By JOE GRIMM
Director of the MSU Bias Busters project

Suddenly, after years of invisibility in American culture, Hmong Americans are popping up in news stories all summer long—including this new July 29 profile of Olympic gymnast Sunisa “Suni” Lee in The New York Times that briefly touches on traditions that are common in Hmong families. Now, most Americans have seen media coverage of Suni Lee, because of the massive global interest on the Paris Olympics.

What’s new in this wave of media attention on the Hmong is the appearance of the Kamala Harris presidential campaign in full swing—which means her allies are working to solidify every possible connection the candidate can make with swing voters nationwide. And that includes the potential of electing the first Asian-American president. Among the headlines exploring the Asian roots of Harris’s family is this July 28 New York Times story by Amy Qin, which points out how much Americans still need to learn about her background.

No, Harris is not Hmong, but keep reading because complex cultural connections are popping up every day and there’s more about Harris and Hmong Americans below.

So much to learn! That’s why we’ve published so many books!

This summer, everyone connected with the MSU Bias Busters project is eager to spread the news about our books on American diversity—prepared by Michigan State University School of Journalism students who have been advised by blue-ribbon panels of experts nationwide. Working with those panels of leading figures from these communities to insure accuracy and balance, the students’ nearly two-dozen books now include at least a half dozen volumes that are relevant to these two stories about Lee and Harris that are dominating news cycles as August begins.

And—with each day’s news headlines—the list of the relevant-right-now books in this MSU series quickly expands beyond that half-dozen titles.

Why is that?

These distinct communities are connecting with each other every day!

On July 21, Kamala Harris clinched pledges from the majority of Democratic delegates who will nominate the party’s candidate for president. On July 23, her campaign team and surrogates were working the Hmong Village Shopping Center in St. Paul, Minnesota.

That quick turnaround illustrates how much attention candidates and parties pay to voting blocs, even small ones, in swing states where fewer votes can make a difference.

Harris could become the first Asian-American president. Her mother is Indian and her father is Jamaican.

Hmong voters, who number only about 300,000 nationally, are the largest Asian group in Minnesota, a key battleground state in the 2020 election. Speculation about whom Harris will choose as her running mate has included Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

Additionally, Hmong people have among the highest rates of naturalized citizenship and voting of all Asian Americans. They were airlifted from Southeast Asia during a brief window starting in 1975 by the United States. We developed close ties with their communities because we had recruited them as allies in the fight against the Viet Cong in Southeast Asia.

Mai Xiong, who runs a produce store at the St Paul shopping center, said many people she knows support Harris—not for her gender or ethnicity, but for her experience. Harris “will get a lot of Asian votes,” Xiong told Sahan Journal. The digital news site focuses on Minnesota’s immigrants and communities of color.

Clearly, however, political activists are hoping that an Asian-American ethnic connection may prove persuasive in November. Although Hmong Americans live in all 50 states, their populations are highest in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan—swing states all—and California, where Harris is from.

To illustrate that importance of those cultural connections—a speaker at a St. Paul roundtable was Cincinnati’s Asian American mayor, Aftab Pureval. He grew up in India, and his mother was born in Tibet.

Sahan Journal reported that Pureval said, “You might be wondering, why is the mayor of Cincinnati here in the Twin Cities? It’s because we have an opportunity to elect the first auntie, the first Asian American president in our country’s history.”

100 Questions and Answers About Hmong Americans: Secret No More, was published in July. It addresses the Hmong journey to the United States, their high rates of naturalized citizenship and voting. For an easy overview of the entire series, simply visit MSU Bias Busters project at Amazon.

 

 

The Top 10 Best Overlooked Spiritual Books of the 21st Century so far, a response to The New York Times

July 15, 2024 by

Front Edge Publishing partners Editor David Crumm, Publisher John Hile and Director of Production Dmitri Barvinok.

Millions are looking for inspiration in their reading

EDITOR’S NOTE: I must credit my daughter, the Rev. Megan Walther, with prompting this ReadTheSpirit Cover Story, because she responded to The New York Times’ much-talked-about “100 Best Books of the 21st Century” with her own nomination of 10 books she would have placed on that list. More importantly, she urged everyone to go on social media with their lists of favorite books that were published so far in this new century. Her energy sparked a quest to look back over the 17 years of our online magazine and prepare this list: “10 Best Overlooked Spiritual Books of the 21st Century.”

There is one important qualifier here! Because I am also the founding Editor of Front Edge Publishing, I have excluded all of “our own” books from this list—because I’m so proud of all the FEP books we’ve produced. I could not pick and choose among our community of authors for this list.

But that should not stop you!
Make your own lists and share them just as we are doing here!

If you do compile a list you’d like to share with others, please send that list (or a link to your own online posting of a list) to me at [email protected]

So, looking across the 100s of books we have recommended in 882 weekly issues of ReadTheSpirit, here are …

The 10 Best Overlooked Spiritual Books of the 20th Century (so far)

Frederick Buechner: The Yellow Leaves

Click the book to visit its Amazon page.

Frederick Buechner (1926-2022) has been a major influence in my own life as a journalist, writer and editor—and I continue to mourn his passing. I met him when I was a young man and got to talk with him while he was spending a weekend at the University of Michigan. My mother, who lived into her 90s, was a huge Buechner fan and loved to share daily quotes from his writing right up until the season of her own death. Buechner’s example guided me when I became the Editor of Front Edge Publishing in 2007—and now I am working closely with author Jeffrey Munroe, who wrote the influential Reading Buechner as well as our own jointly produced book, Telling Stories in the Dark—which also is deeply influenced by Buechner. Given this lifelong Buechner influence, there’s no surprise that this is the first book that came to mind when compiling this list.

So, what is Yellow Leaves?

In his late 70s, Buechner was working on what he assumed would become his final book, The Yellow Leaves, (Other works have been published under his name since then but this was the last book he shaped from start to finish.) However, when he finished the manuscript—he ran into a problem. Buechner told me his version of the story in this 2007 interview. After that interview was posted, I learned more about the story because Buechner’s long-time editor at Harper One was a mutual friend. By the time Buechner was working on Yellow Leaves, his once masterful powers of long-form narration already were dimming, resulting in a book that is eclectic. Buechner himself understood that. But the seemingly scattered nature of this book led his Harper One editor to conclude that his team could not successfully market Yellow Leaves. He rejected the manuscript. So, Buechner turned to his last resort—his denominational publishing house, WJK Press, where the editors recognized the gift he was giving them.

To this day, it’s the first book I recommend to other writers about reflections on aging, because of the fascinating patchwork quilt this book represents from the mature mind and heart of a great writer. And, the book haunts me as well because, after several decades of interactions with Buechner, that interview we published to mark the publication of Yellow Leaves was the final conversation the two of us ever had.

Rob Bell: Everything Is Spiritual

I’m glad that Rob Bell keeps the cover of this book visible on the front page of his website, because I know he shares my affection—and the affection of many of his long-time fans—for this truly unique volume.

Around the time this book was published, Rob was migrating from his roots as one of Michigan’s most famous megachurch pastors—and the creator and star of the  NOOMA video series—to becoming an international media star. On one hand, Rob was downsizing his life into much smaller circles for friendship and worship—while, on the other hand, he was giving up the constraining labels of “evangelical” and “pastor” to redefine his vocation in new ways. For example, he became known as one of Oprah’s friends and collaborators.

As Religion Editor of The Detroit Free Press, I had covered Rob’s rise—including the 2006 Everything Is Spiritual tour that reshaped his presence as a uniquely American teacher, theologian and preacher. Because this book reflects that Rob in transition, it also includes examples of the creative fire that illuminates why so many of us around the world continue to follow his work.

In an interview with Rob at the time, we talked about how his tours were distinctively different than the classic evangelical road shows that had been crisscrossing America for centuries. Rob told me that he understood both the opportunities and the dangers of that tradition of American revivals—and, as a result, paid very close attention to the way he was presenting his message to audiences.

“I’m listening to how Jesus taught people. Read it yourself. The images Jesus gives people are organic. He speaks of planting seeds and waiting for them to sprout and grow. He talks about yeast and yeast takes time to rise. He talks about organic processes all the time. I want people to expand and grow, too, but I want them to grow in the right ways. When you’re presenting a tour like this, you can set up the right kind of lighting and play the right music and you can get people into a froth over almost anything and then you can tell them where to walk and what to sign up for. I could do that, but it’s not the way I hear Jesus teaching.”

That kind of Rob Bell is in this book!

I also have to credit my longtime professional friendship with Rob for shaping my decision to lead our publishing house to work with the team from Texas that produced the surprisingly diverse collection of meditations in George A. Mason’s The Word Made Fresh. I knew there was an audience out there for this kind of inclusive, provocative, expansive expression of Christianity because I had seen Rob develop that audience.

Dinah Berland: Fanny Neuda’s Hours of Devotion

I met Dinah Berland in 2008, when I began a series of interviews with her about her work in recovering this Jewish classic from 19th-century Europe—the first Jewish prayer book created by a woman. Those stories Dinah told me about this book continue to haunt me. That includes Dinah’s experience of meeting an elderly Holocaust survivor, a woman who had clutched a copy of Fanny’s prayer book with her even as she was transported to a Nazi concentration camp.

The life of Fanny Neuda was largely unknown until Dinah began her work to recover this book for modern readers. Someday, I hope we will see a new, full-scale biography of this remarkable woman—and perhaps even a feature film made of her life. But, one thing is clear to me from Dinah’s updates over the years: This book has a life of its own that continues to connect powerfully with readers’ lives—and somehow manages to connect readers with each other.

My personal favorites in this volume are the Psalm-like prayers that express both the challenges of living—and the hope of compassionate connection with others and with God. One of my favorites in this collection is “New Moon,” which begins with an acknowledgment of deep suffering but eventually concludes:

Soon the Eternal One will let you shine once more
In the brilliance of divine mercy.
Soon the Eternal One will guide you
Out of darkness and into the light.

And, like Rob Bell’s example prepared me to see the value of George A. Mason’s work, my conversations with Dinah Berland shaped my decision that our publishing house would work with Rabbi Lenore Bohm on her influential book Torah Tutor. The point I am making is: Great books—memorable books—open up new worlds into which we step as we read them. That certainly was true with Buechner, Bell and Berland—and was true of the next Top 10 author on this list, as well.

Phyllis Tickle: The Words of Jesus

Phyllis Tickle (1934-2015) was one of the mentors guiding our team in founding our publishing house and online magazine—and we are amazed to realize that nearly a decade has passed since her death. Among other major influences, Phyllis was a close friend and also a spiritual advisor to Ken Wilson, author of such influential books as A Letter to My Congregation and Solus Jesus (with co-author Emily Swan). In fact, Phyllis felt so strongly about the importance of Ken’s work in promoting Christian inclusion that she wrote the Introduction to Ken’s A Letter.

During her lifetime, Phyllis was a force of nature in the community of journalists, scholars and authors writing about religion. She served as a keynoter, a retreat leader, a friend and advisor so frequently that a whole host of us who worked in this field regarded her as an encouraging friend.

In her own work as a journalist and author, Phyllis devoted years of her life to distilling the Christian message to its essentials. She is perhaps best known today for her series of prayer books, which I have seen in the personal libraries of countless pastors and other readers who share a deep interest in spirituality. Last Christmas, in fact, my wife and I gave new copies of her prayer books to my daughter, who had requested them.

However, I think Phyllis’ greatest book in this new century was The Words of Jesus, which the Newsweek reviewer called: “Harsh. Testy. Uncompromising.” That enthusiastic three-word response—which now appears on the front cover of the current edition of her book—was sparked by the power of these Gospel passages as presented by Phyllis in this new format.

Phyllis also talked with me about the creation of this book in 2008 in a wide-ranging interview in ReadTheSpirit.

Robert L. Short: The Parables of Dr. Seuss

The vast expanse of contemporary spiritual publishing owes a debt to the true innovator in this field: the Rev. Robert L. Short, a Presbyterian pastor with a delightful sense of humor who blew open the gates to the fortresses of religious publishing with his 1965 mega-bestseller The Gospel According to Peanuts.

How popular was that book? It sold more than 10 million copies and made room for countless authors over the past 60 years to explore the whole cosmos of connections between spirituality and popular culture. The Gospel According to Peanuts was among the most influential books on religion in the 20th Century.

Short was influential in my own family, since I shared a love of Short’s Peanuts classic with my father, a pastor, and I eventually had opportunities to meet Short several times throughout our lifetimes. Short died in 2009, but not before he gave us his unique “take” on how Dr. Seuss’s universe could be adapted as Christian parables.

I’m also a life-long lover of Seuss’s work and, as a journalist, have come to admire Seuss’s remarkable evolution as a person and a writer. For example, Seuss transformed himself from a racist, anti-Japanese crusader throughout World War II to a repentant activist for compassionate inclusion—and he did so in a public way so that others might learn from his change of heart.

I will always treasure this little 2008 volume by Short in which two creative giants who were personal influences on my own career—Short and Seuss—came together in a wonderfully creative series of reflections.

Steve Sheinkin: The Adventures of Rabbi Harvey

Even The New York Times editors recognized that graphic novels deserved a little space in their list of “100 Best Books,” because this “genre” has exploded in popularity in this new century. However, there’s still little awareness of the deeply intertwined roots of America’s culture of “comics” and Jewish spirituality. Simply look back at the origins of super heroes in American comic books and then flash forward to the era in the 1970s when “graphic novels” were recognized as a serious genre. Among the classics you will find is Will Eisner’s 1978 A Contract with God—and Other Tenement Stories.

It took two creative minds in Jewish publishing—cartoonist and author Steve Sheinkin and Jewish Lights Publisher Stuart Matlins—to dream up a series of graphic novels that more fully embrace the wisdom of Jewish culture in an American context. In my interviews with Sheinkin, over the years, he described this blend this way: ““Unlike most Westerns I’ve seen, the story here is made up of bits and pieces of Jewish folktales and teachings, Midrash, Talmudic wisdom, and Hassidic legends.”

In our view, with the debut of Rabbi Harvey, Sheinkin instantly became a true innovator in American comics history. That’s why we invited Sheinkin to be part of a project we organized a decade ago—collecting works by leading American comic-strip creators around the theme: Bullying Is No Laughing Matter. 

If you do get a copy of Sheinkin’s original book—you’ll almost certainly want to order copies of his two Rabbi Harvey sequels as well: Rides Again and Wisdom Kid.

James Cone: The Cross and the Lynching Tree

One of the most egregious omissions in The New York Times Top 100 list is theologian James Cone’s The Cross and the Lynching Tree. To start with, it’s hard to think of a book on religion published since 2000 that has received more honors—including the prestigious Grawemeyer Award in Religion. When The Times published its lengthy obituary of Cone in 2018, the obit writer credited this as one of the most important of Cone’s dozen books. To this day, this book has a 4.8-star rating on Amazon, based on 2,682 ratings by readers.

In an interview with Cone that I published in 2011, he said:

“I am trying as hard as I can to interpret what the Christian Gospel means in American society and American history. That has been my focus and concern through these years because I think so many white Christians and African-American Christians need to be challenged. I feel that, unless we engage the contradiction of white supremacy as it impinges on our life and faith, then we cannot understand what the Christian Gospel is all about. … This book was 10 years in the making—seven years of research and three years of writing. It was the most painful and difficult book I’ve ever written and yet it was the most liberating of all the books I have written. After I finished this, I found it easier to relate to both blacks and whites. This whole process was like an exorcism that would keep this from defining me after I shared this message.”

If you care about making a positive contribution to the racial divides in America, this is a book you must read.

And, like so many books on this list, Cone’s powerful call to rethink our patterns of American racism has echoed in the minds and hearts of our publishing house team through the years—leading us to publish books like Annie Reinking’s groundbreaking 2019 book, Not Just Black and White.

Philip Jenkins: The Lost History of Christianity

Of all the books I regularly purchase as gifts for friends and colleagues, many are by the remarkably restless and relentlessly provocative historian Philip Jenkins. At the top of that list of books that I consider essential reading for anyone who claims to be interested in Christianity is Jenkins’ book with the long title: The Lost History of Christianity: The Thousand-Year Golden Age of the Church in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia—and How It Died

In an earlier ReadTheSpirit column recommending this book, I actually wrote about such a gift-giving experience in which I said to a good friend: “Listen, I don’t usually push books on you, but you’ve just got to read the latest by Philip Jenkins. It’ll completely re-frame what you think you know about the shape of Christianity—and the meaning of orthodoxy. Christianity has been a whole lot bigger than most of us assume.”

In one of my interviews with Jenkins over the years, he told me that a driving forces behind this book was the need to correct the popular American Christian myth, today, that America is the epicenter of Christianity in our world. Jenkins called that a “present-ist” myth. Just because American church leaders control vast wealth and power today does not mean that their version of Christianity is the exclusive inheritance of Jesus’s followers 2,000 years ago. In fact, earlier in world history, major centers of Christianity lay in Africa and Asia and thrived there for centuries.

Learning more about religion’s history can be a powerful antidote to the rise of Christian nationalism in this new century.

Barbara Mahany: The Book of Nature

If you have read this far in our list of 10 Overlooked Spiritual Books, I hope that you realize we are recommending books with the potential to change your life—books that have the power to expand your vision, mind and heart.

Since its publication in 2023, a little more than a year ago, Barnbara Mahany’s The Book of Nature—The Astonishing Beauty of God’s First Sacred Text has become my first choice to recommend to other journalists and authors who are looking for fresh examples of writers who powerfully engage readers in a spiritual quest. Even before Barbara’s book was published, I read an advance copy from her publisher, I was mesmerized and I knew that I would be talking about this book for a long time.

In our ReadTheSpirit Cover Story about this book, I wrote: Barbara’s latest book is truly “remarkable,” because her aim is nothing short of “bedazzlement”—trying to summon all of our senses to a fresh appreciation of, quite literally, the natural world in our own back yards from gardens, trees and birds to wind, snow, dawn, dusk and the stars at night.

Down through the millennia, she explains, great writers and spiritual sages have “read” this “book of nature” as a revelatory gift from God. She writes: “Mine is the God of sunrise and nightfall, the breath behind birdsong and breeze in the oaks. Mine is the God of a thousand voices, a thousand lights, and gazillions of colors. Whether I notice or not, mine is the God who never hits pause when it comes to creation: inventing, reinventing, tweaking, editing, starting from scratch all over again, day after day after heavenly day.”

This book has only existed for a year. It’s already a spiritual classic.

Steven Charleston: We Survived the End of the World

And speaking of instant “classics,” Native American theologian, educator and author Steven Charleston already has changed the global discussion of religious—and specifically Christian—responses to the potential of catastrophic dangers in our world today. For example, as we reported recently, bestselling Christian author Brian McLaren devotes a section of his new book, Life After Doom, to the wisdom of Steven Charleston.

In my most recent interview with McLaren, he said he is urging people in his own writing and public talks to listen more closely to Native sages like Charleston. “I think that Native American perspectives absolutely have to be a part of the path ahead for us,” McLaren said in our interview. “At this point, it’s almost too late to keep hoping that any of the systems that brought us to this point will somehow provide solutions. We need to consider value systems that predate colonialism and industrialism and empire.”

My interview with Charleston about End of the World concluded this way:

One thing Steven Charleston is not recommending is that non-Native readers try to convert to indigenous cultures. “There are lots of books and programs and retreats by people who claim to have taken the wisdom from Native people and recast it as their own mix of Native American branded herbs or drumming or visions—or whatever else they are selling. And, to all that stuff you can buy from people who aren’t Native American—I say: ‘Avoid all the Baloney!’ Native people don’t want non-Native people to come and appropriate our rituals as their own.

“In this book, I am sharing a deeper wisdom. I wrote this book so that readers—especially non-Native readers—can see that anyone—and I mean anyone from the vastly different cultures around our world—can learn the truth about our tradition. Even though we went through the end of the world, we survived because of the wisdom of our prophets and the strength of our spiritual vision. …

“We’re living in an age right now when people are deeply fearful. I want to show people one option they could choose based on Native experience to find new strength. If we do, we can make a real difference. We can prevent this feeling of helplessness and feel, instead, both hope and empowerment.”

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Brian McLaren’s ‘Life after Doom’ invites us to think in fresh ways about the world we are giving to our children

June 24, 2024 by

This is my dream, and perhaps it is your dream, and our dream, together: that in this time of turbulence when worlds are falling apart, all of us with willing hearts can come together—together with one another, poor and rich, whatever our race or gender, wherever we live, whatever our religion or education. I dream that some of us, maybe even enough of us, will come together not only in a circle of shared humanity, but in a sphere as big as the whole Earth, to rediscover ourselves as Earth’s multi-colored, multi-cultured children, members of Team Earth.”

From Brian McLaren’s new Life after Doom:
Wisdom and Courage for a World Falling Apart

This rich array of resources includes wisdom from Native Americans—and tips for families with children

Click the cover to visit the book’s Amazon page.

By DAVID CRUMM
Editor of ReadTheSpirit magazine

Why do so many of us keep reading Brian McLaren, year after year and book after book?

Because of the pastoral heart that beats within the pages of nearly all of his volumes—both prophetically preaching the truth of the tragedies we have inflicted on each other in many ways—and always overlaying that with a hopeful vision of the road ahead of us, if we heed his advice. Book after book, his voice echoes these two related themes—first, calling for an honest assessment of our crises and, then, describing a faithful way to continue living each day of our lives with the promise that what we choose to do really does matter in our troubled world.

And, yes, his newest book echoes with familiar McLaren lessons. For example: If you are a McLaren reader, you might recall his eloquent 2015 book, We Make the Road by Walking. Well, because Brian’s continuing series of books read like extended letters to dear friends—in this latest book, he reminds us of that 2015 lesson in the final chapter of this new book, which is titled We Make the Way by Walking.

Buying and reading one of McLaren’s books is an authentic invitation to become a friend in an ongoing journey.

But, wait: Is that just an exaggerated metaphor?

No, this is the way McLaren has engaged countless readers around the world for decades. To get a feel for his good-humored, welcoming relationship with readers, visit Brian’s blog online—which at the time this article was published starts with a note to friends in England about an upcoming visit in August. And, just before that, he posted a video-playlist of music to help readers appreciate his new book featuring musicians he enjoys from Michael Franti to his dear friend, the late Fran McKendree.

At our own publishing house, we’ve been saying since our founding in 2007 that “a book is a community between two covers—entering the world to connect with that real community manifested around the world.” (And for another perspective on that power of authors and their books, read Laura deJong’s column in our Front Edge Publishing website this week. Our entire community of authors tries to live by this idea.)

And—that’s a vision we share with Brian McLaren and that’s why I have been honored to talk with him many times over the years to share his ongoing story with our readers.

‘I’m the kind of Christian who …’

In fact, this is the 20th anniversary of my first conversation with McLaren—in my role, back then, as a journalist covering religious and cultural diversity for The Detroit Free Press.

Click the cover to visit the book’s Amazon page.

How did we meet?

An alert editor at The Free Press plopped a new book on my desk in 2004 and told me: “As our religion editor, you’ve pretty much gotta interview a guy who titles his new book: ‘A Generous Orthodoxy—Why I am a missional + evangelical + post/protestant + liberal/conservative + mystical/poetic + biblical + charismatic/contemplative + fundamentalist/calvinist + anabaptist/anglican + methodist + catholic + green + incarnational + depressed-yet-hopeful + emergent + unfinished CHRISTIAN.’ This Brian McLaren seems to be the hottest new thing from the guys up in Grand Rapids at Zondervan—so the story’s got a Michigan hook to it. So, read the book. Then, call the man.”

I took the assignment, of course.

If you’re not familiar with McLaren’s big breakthrough book on the national publishing circuit—those 32 words, 15 plus signs and six slashes did, indeed, form the title of his book. Then, sitting just above all those words on the cover of his book was Brian’s bespectacled face with a sort of Mona Lisa smile. It was obvious from that book onward that this guy has a hopeful sense of humor. So, first as a journalist for major newspapers—then later as the editor of this online magazine—I have made it a point to check in with him once or twice each year for an interview to highlight whatever his newest book might be.

My last major interview with McLaren was about his 2022 book, exploring the many reasons that organized religion seems toxic to a growing number of Americans. He called that book Do I Stay Christian? A Guide for the Doubters, the Disappointed, and the Disillusioned. 

So, given the trajectory of his writing, in my interview this week about Life after Doom, I asked McLaren a question that caused him to chuckle, at first.

I asked, “So, how do you identify yourself today when people ask you to give your religious affiliation?”

After chuckling at my question, he pondered a while before responding: “I’ve been around long enough that I don’t get asked that question too often anymore. But—I still identify as a committed Christian. Then, if people ask what I mean by that I say, ‘I’m the kind of Christian who believes that the better Christian I am—the more I’ll love my Muslim and atheist and Jewish and Hindu neighbors as myself.’ ”

So, that’s the first thing you need to know about this new book: Yes, it’s written by one of the nation’s most influential Christian authors—and the overall thinking is shaped by McLaren’s deep faith—but this also is a book for “everyone” as he argues in the Introduction:

“Life after Doom is for everyone who has reached a point where not facing their unpeaceful, uneasy, unwanted feelings about the future has become more draining than facing them. It’s for anyone who understands that we’ve entered a dangerous time and we need to prepare ourselves to face that danger with wisdom, courage, character and compassion.”

If that sounds like you—then I can assure you this will be welcome reading!

But, if you’re still undecided about putting this on your reading list, let me share a few things I really like about this book.

Starting with compassion

McLaren models that compassion he’s seeking, as an author, by doing something I can’t recall another author doing in such a timely book. He actually tells readers, before Chapter 1, that if the early portion of the book (in which he explains the nature of the global crises we face) is too depressing to read right away—skip ahead into the middle of his book and start with the more hopeful chapters. He writes, those early chapters “are really important, but for some readers, going to the end and then coming back to the middle may make more sense.”

In our interview, McLaren credited his longtime friend, the late author, scholar and activist Michael Dowd with encouraging this kind of gracious humor. “Starting with Generous Orthodoxy, I remember talking with Michael about the power of humor—and sometimes gallows humor—to pull us through the tough times,” McLaren said. Over many years, his friendship with Dowd—who features prominently in this new book—was grounded in a compassionate approach to the people reading and listening to their messages.

This is a good illustration of how Brian is not alone in this kind of writing. He’s part of a real community in our world. For example, if you are aware of Michael Dowd’s considerable contribution to this movement that Dowd liked to call “post-Doom,” then you also might want to get Ken Whitt’s eloquent book for parents, grandparents and church leaders, God Is Just Love: Building Spiritual Resilience and Sustainable Communities for the Sake of Our Children and Creation. Whitt also is a part of Dowd’s ongoing post-Doom network of writers, educators and religious activists—a fitting legacy to Dowd’s remarkable career.

In our interview, McLaren told me, “Michael was a person who saw the natural world as having deep meaning and depth and sacredness—and he spoke about that so boldly and calmly that I feel he was giving me a great gift in sharing the way he had explored that territory.”

Considering Native American wisdom

McLaren’s community of friends also includes a number of leaders in the emerging wave of Native American voices—especially Steven Charleston (see my October ReadTheSpirit interview with Charleston about his book We Survived the End of the World). The truth is that indigenous people around the world have experienced centuries of near-extinction and yet many of those communities survive and some of them are thriving. McLaren’s humble recommendation to listen to Native voices is a passion I share as well as a journalist.

“I think that Native American perspectives absolutely have to be a part of the path ahead for us,” McLaren said in our interview. “At this point, it’s almost too late to keep hoping that any of the systems that brought us to this point will somehow provide solutions. We need to consider value systems that predate colonialism and industrialism and empire.”

Talking to our children

McLaren and his wife have four adult children and five grandchildren, the oldest of whom is 14. As a grandparent myself, I appreciate the appendix to this book in which Brian suggests ways to talk with young people about the crises we are facing. Those are very challenging conversations, in many cases, even with preschool kids—believe me, I know as a grandparent. McLaren’s suggestions include a model letter from a grandfather to the next generations.

We all should write such letters, shouldn’t we?

When I told McLaren how much I appreciated his resource sections at the end of the book, he said, “It makes me happy to hear that you plan to highlight that—because I worked hard on those sections. I use an image in the beginning of the book about how what’s happening is hitting us like a tornado going through people’s nervous systems. There are a lot of ways to react to such a tornado that are not helpful, so I wanted to pack as many sources of help into this book as I could.”

Acknowledging our biases

If you’re familiar with McLaren’s writing, you know that he’s no arm-twisting salesman trying to convince readers to adopt his plan for meeting these crises. Yes, he does encourage readers to develop their own plans and he does offer a few suggestions. But, this book is not some kind of a sales pitch for Brian McLaren’s 10 Tips for Avoiding the Apocalypse. In fact, at the close of his book are seven pages titled “A Short List of Biases”—and those pages alone are worth the price of this book.

This is a terrific book for small-group discussion and, yes, McLaren includes tips for organizing such groups, including how to divide up the chapters of this book—depending on how many weeks you’re thinking of devoting to this theme.

As we closed our interview, I asked McLaren how he hopes this new book might change readers.

“I hope people will accept the reality that our future is very uncertain,” he said. “I present four scenarios in the book—and we can’t know right now which of those scenarios we’ll end up in. But what we can do is decide how we are going to show up in whatever scenario does unfold.

“Then, in just about every area of my life, I feel children should be so high on our list of priorities that their wellbeing and their future should outweigh our own short-term concerns and profits. So, I’m constantly trying to envision what it’s like to come of age in this kind of world that our children are inheriting. As a Christian who writes and speaks, I’m often asked by parents, ‘What should I teach my children?’ And, what I try to tell them is: I want to give our children something of value, but I don’t want to give them the same thing I was given years ago. I think that together, we need to find fresh ways of thinking about everything—and sharing that with our children.”

For Pride Month 2024, we’ve got a colorful array of books to encourage LGBTQ inclusion

June 9, 2024 by

By DAVID CRUMM
Editor of ReadTheSpirit magazine

For more than a decade, our Front Edge Publishing community of authors has been on the cutting edge of producing books that help communities understand and reconnect with LGBTQ folks—especially welcoming them into the thousands of congregations nationwide who are in the process of opening their doors.

We have reported in ReadTheSpirit weekly magazine—and have published books—about many aspects of this historic transition in American life. For example, in March, we reported on the deeply troubling rise of hate crimes against gay and transgender students—and we highlighted two particularly helpful books published by the Michigan State University School of Journalism Bias Busters project.

In May, we reported on the more than 20,000 United Methodist congregations now opening their doors nationwide after a global gathering of that denomination’s leaders voted overwhelmingly to become more inclusive.

NOW—For Pride Month, this June, Front Edge Publishing’s Susan Stitt produced the following video to showcase our array of helpful books.

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PLEASE, ENJOY THIS 2-MINUTE VIDEO OVERVIEW OF OUR HELPFUL BOOKS …

The books’ direct Amazon links follow this video. And—if you want to contact our authors to inquire about public speaking, a podcast conversation, or a possible Zoom appearance with your small group or congregation—Please, email our Front Edge Publishing director of outreach programs Susan Stitt. [email protected]

Amazon Links

Clicking on this collage of book covers will take you to our Front Edge Publishing Catalog page.

TO JUMP TO AMAZON RIGHT NOW—

Changing Our Mind

Changing Our Mind (Spanish edition)

A Letter to My Congregation

Michigan State University School of Journalism Bias Busters:
100 Questions and Answers about Gender Identity

MSU Bias Busters:
100 Questions and Answers about Sexual Orientation

The Word Made Fresh

Introducing Christian Ethics

Solus Jesus

Embracing Love

Blue Ocean Faith

Sanctuary—Queering a Church in the Heartland—will be coming soon from Amazon. Right now, if you are interested in this upcoming book about the inclusive journey of a small church in Iowa: Email our Front Edge Publishing director of outreach programs Susan Stitt. [email protected]

 

A ‘Shining Brightly’ Milestone: Celebrating more than 100,000 doses of sunshine, inspiration and keys to resilience

May 13, 2024 by

Clicking on this banner will take you to Howard Brown’s “Shining Brightly” website—where you will find links to all 78 episodes.

Are you just discovering this weekly half hour of good news?
Well, here are 6 fan-favorite samples to get you started.

By HOWARD BROWN
Author of Shining Brightly
And host of the Shining Brightly Podcast

This celebration isn’t about me—it’s about the more than 100,000 times people have chosen to listen to these stories of hope and resilience.

Want the whole story? Click on this cover to visit the Shining Brightly book page on Amazon.

ReadTheSpirit magazine Editor David Crumm invited me to write this column because we want to celebrate the lives this podcast has touched—perhaps yours. From what regular listeners tell me, through this podcast, I’m able to meet this growing audience every Wednesday morning with a boost of energy and fresh ideas for making it through our daily challenges together.

This column is all about celebrating you—and inviting others to join us. Let me be clear: If you already have been inspired by one of the 78 episodes I have released so far, then you’re part of a coast-to-coast community of listeners who know how important a ray of sunshine can be in a tough week.

If you’re hearing about my weekly Shining Brightly podcast for the first time—then below are six samples that will welcome you into our nationwide community of listeners.

I’m sure you’ve got more questions for me, including suggestions for my future podcast guests. But, today, I want to get quickly to those fan-favorite examples. (And, of course, if you want podcasting tips—I’ve already shared columns describing the many ways podcasters can build national audiences. For example, I wrote a Front Edge Publishing column headlined, Top 10 Tips for Building a Successful Podcast.)

My purpose today is simple:

I want to thank you for listening and sharing links to my podcasts with others. Together, we’ve blown way past the milestone of 100,000 experiences with our listeners.

And, for folks who are just discovering this podcast, I hope you will enjoy these 6 samples—and become regular listeners.

6 Fan-Favorite Episodes of the Popular Shining Brightly Podcast

After historic May 1, 2024, United Methodist vote for LGBTQ inclusion—millions of members are challenged to ‘widen the circle’

May 6, 2024 by

Our authors join with church leaders in welcoming LGBTQ+ friends nationwide

FIRST—After a historic decision by a global gathering of United Methodist leaders on May 1, millions of members of America’s third-largest are challenged to figure out what it means to openly welcome LGBTQ+ persons to their more than 20,000 congregations across the U.S.

THEN, WE SHARE—HOW OUR AUTHORS CAN HELP. Scroll down, below the news summary, to learn about inspirational and information-packed books—starting with a 2-minute video produced by Susan Stitt.

First the news:

What just happened? United Methodist global leaders move toward LGBTQ+ inclusion across the U.S.

The news made headlines nationwide. Here is a selection of that news coverage, chosen because of the helpful insights in these stories:

The New York Times headline: United Methodist Church Reverses Ban on Practicing Gay Clergy—church leaders also voted to allow LGBTQ weddings.

Excerpt: “We’ve always been a big-tent church where all of God’s beloved were fully welcome,” said Bishop Tracy Smith Malone, the new president of the denomination’s Council of Bishops and the first Black woman to serve in that role. She called the vote “a celebration of God breaking down walls.”

The Associated Press: United Methodists repeal longstanding ban on LGBTQ clergy.

Excerpt: Delegates voted 692-51 at their General Conference—the first such legislative gathering in five years. That overwhelming margin contrasts sharply with the decades of controversy around the issue. Past General Conferences of the United Methodist Church had steadily reinforced the ban and related penalties amid debate and protests, but many of the conservatives who had previously upheld the ban have left the denomination in recent years, and this General Conference has moved in a solidly progressive direction.

CNN: United Methodist Church lifts 40-year ban on LGBTQ clergy

Excerpt: After the vote, retired United Methodist Bishop Hope Morgan Ward prayed the church would be used as “peacemakers and servants” and be “welcoming all people into the embrace of God.”

Michigan United Methodist News: General Conference Delegates Pass Revised Social Principles

Excerpt:  The Social Principles help United Methodists frame, with simpler language, how we’ve always paired faith with action. “This is one of the unique things about The United Methodist Church,” said the Rev. Megan Walther, clergy delegate from Michigan’s Clarkston United Methodist Church, “and our Social Principles outline what we believe, and then congregations are invited to take action. So, if we say we care about creation, that invites us to think about what we are going to do to protect it. … In an election year, it’s especially good for us as United Methodists to practice having difficult conversations on things we disagree with. And if the Social Principles provide an avenue for us to have difficult conversations, that is a blessing.”

Journalist Bill Tammeus: The United Methodists get this issue right—finally

Excerpt: So slowly Christian churches are abandoning the bogus idea that the Bible condemns homosexual orientation.

CNN: ‘A better church is possible:’ Methodists celebrate as the church embraces the LGBTQ

Excerpt: “This change in our church law is so huge because it means that folks can choose to show up as who they really are and still choose to serve God,” said the Rev. Andi Woodworth, a United Methodist minister from Atlanta.

United Methodist News Service:  40-year ban on gay clergy struck down

Excerpt: Mountain Sky Area Bishop Karen Oliveto said, “Today, we celebrate this historic vote,” she said. “Tomorrow, we will continue to work together. To learn from one another. To stand with one another. To continue to widen the circle so that those on the margins of church and society can find a home.”

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Then, here’s the help we can provide:

Please, enjoy this 2-minute video overview …

Amazon links follow this video. And—if you want to contact our authors to inquire about public speaking, a podcast conversation, or a possible Zoom appearance with your small group or congregation—

Please, email our Front Edge Publishing director of outreach programs Susan Stitt.

[email protected]

Amazon Links

Clicking on this collage of book covers will take you to our Front Edge Publishing Catalog page.

To jump to Amazon right now—

Changing Our Mind

Changing Our Mind (Spanish edition)

A Letter to My Congregation

Michigan State University School of Journalism Bias Busters:
100 Questions and Answers about Gender Identity

MSU Bias Busters:
100 Questions and Answers about Sexual Orientation

The Word Made Fresh

Introducing Christian Ethics

Solus Jesus

Embracing Love

Blue Ocean Faith

Sanctuary—Queering a Church in the Heartland—will be coming soon from Amazon. Right now, if you are interested in this upcoming book about the inclusive journey of a small church in Iowa: Email our Front Edge Publishing director of outreach programs Susan Stitt. [email protected]

Andrea Longton emerges as an important new voice in the national conversation encouraging Social Justice Investing

April 29, 2024 by

Click on the cover to visit the book’s Amazon page.

What is the greatest good we can do in this world?

THIS WEEK we are publishing two stories to introduce an important voice in the national conversation about Social Justice Investing: Andrea Longton—a nationally respected expert in this growing field of finance that encourages people to exercise their spiritual and ethical values while investing their money.

This is such an important area of interest for our long-time ReadTheSpirit readers that we providing two perspectives on Andrea’s work:

First, this is a Q-and-A with Andrea, interviewed by David Crumm with links to Andrea’s book and some of her free online resources, as well.

(Then, in this second story, financial expert and author Jonathan Grimm adds his perspective on Andrea’s new book.)

Andrea Longton. (Photo from the author used with permission.)

‘We can go so much farther—together!’

DAVID: Along with this article about your new book, we’re going to make sure to provide readers with links to your resource-rich website—and also specifically to the area where they can find out more about your podcasts. I’m highly recommending your work through our online magazine because you share our publishing house’s value of collegial cooperation in trying to spread valuable news to people in need.

ANDREA: I completely agree about forming collegial relationships. My philosophy is a linked-arm approach to connecting with colleagues to form new friendships as we work in this area. We’re going to go so much farther that way!

Working together, our purpose is figuring out: How can we get resources, opportunities and equity into communities in the U.S. that need them? We also want to do this globally, too, but my focus is mainly domestic right now. I think most of us who are working in this area think like this: Working together, we’re stronger. So, we’re willing to link arms without being threatened by rivalries. That’s a real advantage of working in this way.

DAVID: Those values are bedrock for both of us. The first thing we’re suggesting this week is that reaers order a copy of your book. Then, let’s talk more about what readers can find online through your website right now. If people go to TheSocialJusticeInvestor.com—what do you hope they will notice when they visit?

A Free Online Book Club Starts Soon

ANDREA: We’ve designed the site to address the questions: What are we talking about? What is social justice investing? And what is this new book about?

And another important question for us as we developed this website is: When I arrive, do I feel welcome in this community? We want people to find answers to questions like: How do I get involved? Even if I’m new to the idea of social justice investing, how can I finding information that is helpful to me?

Then: How do I dig deeper? One thing we’re excited about is creating a virtual book club. We’re going to go through the book together online, probably five chapters at a time. Finance can be really overwhelming and intimidating, but if you break it down into parts, it becomes much more accessible.

As we talk about this, I believe in focusing on: What’s the next step? I don’t assume that everyone is trying to understand everything in detail all at once. That’s nearly impossible. But we can talk about: What’s the next step I can take?

DAVID: Tell us more about the book club opportunities.

ANDREA: First, we decided to set this up with start and end dates for the series so we can go through the book live and folks can join with their questions if they’re interested in doing that. We’re doing it as a Zoom experience so people can see that there’s a real community forming around you. So the first start-to-finish series will be live. But then, we’re also going to be recording those sessions so that you can go back to previous sessions, if you want.

And we’re making this available free through the website.

On our calendar right now, Book Club Meeting No. 1 is on May 9 starting at 8 p.m. Eastern Time. Then we will continue on a weekly basis, so the next one would be May 16 and so on. These will be 45 minutes to an hour. The recorded sessions will be available on the website sometime afterward.

DAVID: And this is free, right?

ANDREA: That’s right. There’s no fee. We will welcome people and learn more from them, at the same time, about what areas they want to know more about.

Appearing in person to Washington D.C., California, Virginia and North Carolina

DAVID: Beside this wonderful Zoom opportunity you’re providing, people might want to take note of your schedule-and-events page.

Between now and July, for instance, I can see you’re going to be in Washington D.C.; Oakland, California; Arlington, Virginia; and Union Grove, North Carolina. Those are just some of the places that people could meet you in person if they get the information from that part of your website.

ANDREA: We are trying to keep expanding opportunities for people to get involved. We’re working on adding more locations, so it’s good to check back on that page over time. I’m reaching out to my national network of professional social justice investors and I’m so pleased that people are wanting to invite me to do events near them.

Andrea’s friends give us ‘Energy Boosts’

DAVID: And I’m pleased that your new book models that kind of collegial value. It’s literally a collaborative book. Your name appears on the cover as the author, as it should, but there are a lot of other writers who contributed interesting and inspiring stories about specific ways we can help our world, using these principles.

How many co-authors are in this book?

ANDREA: There are 20 different stories in the book that we call “Energy Boosts” and 19 of them were written by contributing authors. I wrote one of the 20. So there are 19 people who have joined me in this book.

DAVID: I think that whole approach to putting this book together illustrates the breadth of this movement. Readers will discover they’re not alone in these pages. Opening this book introduces readers to a whole community of people living and working today.

I should also explain to readers: This is not a historical book. You don’t really write about the earlier eras when faith-based leaders like Maimonides or John Wesley or early American Quaker writers—the historical list is very long—urged their followers to consider embodying their core values in the way they spent and invested their money. In this book, you are showing us the contemporary depth and diversity of this movement right now.

And you’re introducing readers to the key concepts they’re going to need if they begin stepping into this field. So, let’s talk for a moment about one of the key words readers will find as they explore your book: “sustainable.” There’s a lot of depth behind that term. So, please, talk to us about that one example of a core concept in the book.

‘Sustainability is a huge word …’

ANDREA: Sustainability is a huge word that means a lot of different things to a lot of different folks—even within the impact-investment industry. If you say ‘sustainability’ to one person they’re going to think about something completely different than what another person thinks when they hear the word.

But, mainly, I’m focused on talking to everyday people about their personal investment choices and personal finances. In that context, the word “sustainability” refers to questions like: Will your family have the financial security needed for expected and unexpected life events? And do you as a person or a family have financial earnings that will sustain you through those events? No one has a crystal ball that can show exactly what those events will be, but we can make reasonably informed decisions about what a financial cushion for your life should be.

DAVID: Let’s talk further about that concept, though, because what you just described will mean vastly different things for various people. For some, their basic financial security means an enormous house in an expensive zip code and multiple cars and other amenities. That’s completely different than families who intentionally are living on a more limited budget so they can donate to important causes and can invest some of their funds in ways you are describing.

When you talk to people about this kind of social justice investment, are you suggesting to people that they should down-size their own living situation to be able to participate in helping others?

ANDREA: You’ve just identified the beautiful part of financial planning—and the hardest part of financial planning. Sustainability looks different to everybody and everyone defines what they need in their own way—and I am not trying to pass judgment on people about those choices. It’s up to every person to decide how they want to approach this.

One person may define sustainability as trying to maintain their 3,000-square-foot home; another person may define the goal as living in community with a refugee family they are hosting in a blended household in a much smaller house. And that’s why I refer to the beautiful side of finance—meaning, it’s a set of tools you can use to try to get you where you want to be. The hard part is being real with yourself about where you can be.

I understand that these are big conversations in families. What I’m trying to show readers are practical ways to start those conversations. For a lot of people, the only financial advice they’re getting focuses on the question: Do you have enough money to get by right now?

If you do want to consider social-justice investing, these conversations and decisions are hard. Now, in addition to trying to take care of yourself and your family, you’re adding hard new questions: Do these decisions I’ve been making—and these plans I’d like to make—mesh with what my values are? Does this mesh with who I want to be as a person?

DAVID: You already have an impressive background as a professional in finance. I’m urging readers to find out more about you—by providing those links to your website and also recommending that they people read your book.

But you’re more than just a financial expert. You also live out these values you’re writing about in your own life. How do you balance your work between these big realms of secular finance and spiritual-and-ethical values?

ANDREA: It varies. If I’m going to speak at a meeting of financial professionals, if I begin by introducing myself as a person of faith, they’re going to turn off my message before I get started.

But I’m also going into settings where people already share the values that come from my faith. For example, that event you mentioned in North Carolina is in July and it’s the Wild Goose Festival. At Wild Goose, I’m comfortable introducing myself as a person of faith—and that will make sense in that context, because people at Wild Goose understand what I’m talking about when I say I want my investing to be in line with my values as a Christian.

In that kind of setting, I like to talk more about how this conversation has gone in my own family.

DAVID: I’m going to present this part of our coverage of your book as a Q and A so that readers can get a feeling for your overall style as a writer. The way you’re talking here is very much like your “voice” in the book. In many cases in these chapters, readers will find you describing family conversations and community conversations, too. Right?

ANDREA: Yeah, that’s right and those personal conversations are not quick—and often they’re not easy. Having these conversations—and doing the research involved for this kind of investing—is a multi-year process. And it involves so many questions that are all interrelated to our lives and, in my family’s case, our faith. I’m active in my Presbyterian church, for example.

DAVID: And, while your book is specifically about investing—putting your money to work in various funds and projects—a family involved in a congregation also needs to talk about donations. So, to be clear, the book is about the many issues you need to understand to start making social-justice-informed investments, but you also recommend that people be involved in helping people in other ways, too, right? Like donating to a church.

ANDREA: My family definitely supports our church and I think as Christians we are called to give—so yes, I do believe in giving. But as people with resources living in this country, there are many different ways we can use those resources to support our families—and to make the world a better place at the same time. That’s why these family discussions are a multi-year process.

Each of us has different kinds of resources: We have our time and our talents as well as our “treasures”—our money. In this country, there are a lot of us who have the privilege of enough money so that we can do more than just support ourselves and our families. We can give—that’s one very important way. And many Americans also have some money that they are setting aside for future needs that they are choosing to invest in various ways to try to ensure those resources are there for them later.

If we decide to get involved in this way, then we need to ask: How can I use the tool of my money to reflect the values I live by?

DAVID: That’s a pretty good summary of what people will find in your book. What else would you say about what you hope readers will find in these pages?

‘It takes a series of baby steps.’

ANDREA: I am very fortunate that I learned about social justice investing from some of the pioneering investors who already were doing this. Going back to our conversation a moment ago about the 19 co-authors in this book: I am thankful to that whole community for the wisdom I have learned.

So, what do I hope readers will find in this book?

I hope people will improve how they use their money. If you’re working with a financial advisor, then call your financial advisor and say, “I’d like to move my money toward social justice investing.” If you’re a DIY investor, or you want to get started as a DIY investor, then use the Investor Values Tool to research investments that you want to make. If you’re a 401K investor, then call your HR manager and say “I’d like some investment options that reflect my values. Can we look at social justice investments?”

I hope people will get these conversations started because it truly does take a series of baby steps to make all of this happen.

That’s what I hope people will find in this book—the tools they need to take the first steps in what I hope will become a life-long process.