People of the Book

I am disappointed at the way Wheaton College, Wheaton, Illinois, one of the leading Evangelical Christian colleges in the country, is dealing with Political Science Professor Larycia Hawkins. Hawkins announced on Facebook that she was wearing a Hijab during Advent to show solidarity with Muslim sisters and brothers. She went on to explain that Muslims […]

One Wild and Precious Life

John Buchanan presented the following lecture at Campbell University, Buies Creek, North Carolina, in January 2015.  People are curious about clergy. Even people who are not particularly church-oriented regard ministers and priests as curiosities. They think we are somehow fundamentally different from everybody else; that we are untouched by the normal matters of life that […]

Peace Among Religions

Jonathon Swift, (1667-1745), Irish poet, essayist and satirist, observed that “We have just enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another”. I have thought about Swift’s maxim on and off over the years in the midst of church conflicts over controversial issues that became hateful. I thought about […]

Downsizing a Library

When I had the privilege of presiding at the wedding of a seminary president and a professor of Homiletics, both dear friends, I told them, in the homily, that I wasn’t nearly as concerned about the long-time viability of their relationship as I was about how in the world they would manage the challenge of […]

Keeping a Good Thanksgiving: Part 1

Greetings to our lovely readers! In these busy weeks – the first of the 2013 holiday season – we are pleased to offer you a series of posts on the subject of Thanksgiving. Delivered by Dr. Buchanan on October 29, 2013 in a speech titled, “Keeping a Good Thanksgiving: Hooray for the Pumpkin Pie,” we […]