By James Copple 1. Impose universal background checks for anyone buying a gun, a measure that four out of five Americans support. 2. Impose a minimum age limit of 21 on gun purchases. This is already the law for handgun purchases in many states, and it mirrors the law for buying alcohol. 3. Enforce a […]

By James E. Copple In 1967, being new in my faith and rather naïve, I arbitrarily sent a letter to all the Nazarene Colleges in the United States (six at the time) that said the first school to offer me $600 in financial-aid would become the school of my choice. Eastern Nazarene College (ENC) was […]

By James E. Copple In a summer of disaster, there’s hope and holy pride in the poignant, modestly magnanimous efforts of African refugee camps to lift our fellow man in need. The summer of 2017 has had more than its share of natural disasters: Hurricanes Harvey and Irma; earthquakes in Mexico; fires in the Western […]

FaithWatch is a publication of Strategic Applications International and Servant Forge. The mission of FaithWatch is to provide information and resources to faith communities on critical issues. It is about putting our faith into ACTION and designed to offer quick and easy interventions, supported by resources, strategies and best practices. Click on the FaithWatch thumbnail […]

By James E. Copple “I met a guy” is right up there with “I know a guy,” a phrase defined by the Urban Dictionary as: “An excuse when you would rather not explain how you acquired something.” I just got off the phone with a community organizer in Chicago, and community organizers in Chicago “know […]

By James E. Copple Donald Trump’s election to the presidency has generated heat, light and for many, perplexing grief. A lifelong Democrat, Trump wasn’t my candidate. Even so, I’m disconcerted by my feelings of grief – emotions more acute than when Reagan was elected or when the Bushes won office. I vacillate between anger and […]

By James E. Copple I have no idea what kind of patriot quarterback Colin Kaepernick might be, but we know he believes this country has taken a wrong turn on race-relations and that justice-for-all is elusive. Remember that mantra from the ‘60s and ‘70s: My country – love it or leave it? It was the […]

By James E. Copple My parents weren’t wealthy and left little personal property. I have the wallet my father was carrying when he died – it had a five-dollar bill in it that I can’t bring myself to spend. Beyond that, there is nothing tangible. But in the precious intangibles, I have inherited a rich […]

By James E. Copple Forget slogans, politics and vitriol – if you really want to “make America great again,” just pull up a folding chair for a Utah elementary school production of “The Lion King.” It was the stereotypical gymnasium, and 11-year-old granddaughter Annicka was cast as both tree-frog and wildebeest for her Eagle Mountain […]