By James E Copple Guns have become a public health issue like tobacco and alcohol, and our families are the chief victims. But where is the leadership of our churches, denominations and faith communities on the issue of gun-violence? We must challenge the American gun narrative; support good policy and cultural shifts necessary for common-sense, […]

By James E. Copple There are at least 2.3 million compelling stories to be told in the self-perpetuating vicious cycle of institutional incarceration, narratives that attempt to answer: “Why? What happened?” But maybe the better question would ask: “What didn’t happen? What’s missing?” John and Cecelia have a story, and it’s one that traces the […]

by James E. Copple In February of 1966, my father announced to the family that we were moving from Kansas City to Seattle. I was sixteen-years-old and a Junior in High School. This was devastating news in so many ways. I was new in the faith, a football player in the local high school and […]

We will never change cultural norms around bias or prejudice until we change them in the faith communities that shape our values. This is particularly true when it comes to our views or attitudes about women. All the monotheistic religions have a horrible history when it comes to women. This is why in the 21st […]

We preach the body of Christ and talk about the global church and the global community as if we are all connected and part of a universal, tightly knitted community with a single purpose and goal…Unfortunately, as with many things in the Church – it is a myth of convenience.

I often go to slums and work in urban environments that are horrific in poverty, disease and crime. But this morning was different. I walked the narrow walkways between corrugated huts interviewing the youth leaders. The smells were so bad that three times I had to fight the gag reflex…

I had the good fortune of working for and studying with the late Timothy L. Smith, Professor of Religious History at The Johns Hopkins University. I was his Associate Pastor when he was Pastor of the Wollaston Church of the Nazarene in Boston and I was his doctoral student in American Religious History at Hopkins. […]