As an undergraduate, I was first exposed to the idea that Paul was a raging misogynist. Feminist writers, mostly on the political and theological left, were happy to denounce a version of Paul that was presented as cold, hard-hearted, harsh, and hateful. Reading our way through such books, it was easy to lose track of the Paul who […]
Deacons cannot absolve, bless, or consecrate. These “ABCs” of the diaconate are often the first and most consistent way that people describe the order today, inadvertently defining the most foundational of the Holy Orders by what deacons cannot do. I have attempted to add parochial reports to the list, but it neither follows the alphabetic scheme nor works out consistently […]
I grew up around deacons. In my Southern Baptist upbringing, deacons were most commonly observed at the doors of the church offering handshakes and smiles. Otherwise, they were found in their other natural habitat: at the end of a pew passing or taking a metal plate. Often, this was an offertory plate, but on special occasions, those […]
