Apologetics-based faith isn’t enough; we need to be radical Jesus followers
Back in my evangelical days, I used to listen to Ravi Zacharias’ radio show, “Let My People Think.” I used to think I was so intellectual. I loved apologetics. And, of course, Ravi’s Indian accent. But, I was the person who wanted to think my way into faith.
Apologetics
As a teenager, I did Evangelism Explosion (a course that taught us to explain our faith to other people using simple arguments) so I could explain to someone exactly how they could get saved right that minute. It was all extremely logical. And once you did the deed and prayed the prayer…
How to love our transgender neighbors by properly using their names and pronouns
I wish you could meet my oldest child, Lydia. They are a fascinating person. Lydia’s current hobby is bookbinding. They print out fan-fiction and bind it in home-made hardcover books. It’s just amazing what they can do! They are also a huge Dungeons and Dragons fan. They play in a group but also are passionately into “Critical Role,” a YouTube series about a group of people playing Dungeons and Dragons. And, of course, like their mother, they are a reader.
Lydia is non-binary or genderqueer and uses the pronouns they/them. Lydia is biologically female but doesn’t identify as either male…
Another tool in the migraineur's arsenal?
My Story
It was December 28, 2016. I walked downstairs into the kitchen to see my husband, Patrick, in the pantry with a box at his feet. He was taking out everything in the pantry that had sugar in it or was mostly carbohydrates and putting it in a box at his feet.
“So, we’re doing it,” I said.
“Yes, we’re doing it,” he answered, dropping another bag of pasta into the box. “I’m almost done here. I’ll clean out the stuff in the fridge and freezer and take it over to my mom’s.”
I went over to the fridge to find…
Tap dance for fun and fitness
Learning the time step
“OK, Mom. Here’s how the combination goes. We start with the right foot and when we’ve finished we’ll be ready to do the combination again starting with the left foot. Start with a stomp with your right foot,” and Lydia stomped their right tap shoe on the ground.
“Then lift and drop your left heel. Step with your right foot so you’re transferring your weight to that foot, flap (pronounced fa-lap) forward with the left, then step back with the right and you’re ready to repeat the combination with the other side. How about we try it together slowly?”
Lydia…
What is it and why you should have it during the pandemic
My story
In 2005, I was a family physician with chronic migraine. One weekend I had a migraine so bad that one of my partners put me in the hospital on a pain-relieving medication. At the time, we didn’t know that I was very sensitive to that medication and that I had obstructive sleep apnea which caused me to stop breathing when I slept. I was in a regular hospital room which meant that I didn’t have a heart monitor or a pulse oximeter to show the oxygen saturation level in my blood.
At about 2 am, a nurse came to check…
How our Founders gave us a tradition for a peaceful transfer of power
Sometime in 2016, my then high school senior son, Christopher, introduced me to the musical Hamilton. I was hooked, despite my general ambivalence toward rap music. Here was history brought to life! I loved it, although I recognized that Lin-Manuel Miranda and his co-authors had taken some artistic liberties.
One of my favorite songs is Hamilton and Washington’s piece, “One Last Time”. In it, Washington asks Hamilton to help him write his resignation letter to the nation. Hamilton protests that Washington could continue to serve as president; indeed, he must continue to serve.
Washington argues that stepping down is for…
We have to learn to trust each other again
On Wednesday, President-elect Biden reminded us that Democracy is fragile. We saw that writ large as groups of White Nationalists, Christian Nationalists, and probably just some general troublemakers stormed the US Capitol on Wednesday afternoon as the Senate and House were certifying the Electoral College vote for president and vice president.
What happened? How could we let this happen? Could it happen again? How can we prevent it from happening again? So many questions, but the answers aren’t clear. I’m not a historian or a political scientist. …
No group of Christians is spiritually superior to another.
This Sunday, Dr. Robert Jeffress, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas is going to preach a message entitled “How Should Christians Respond to President Biden?” Really? The title of this sermon seems to presume that President-elect Biden is not a Christian. In fact, it presumes that the President-elect may actually be hostile to Christianity. Maybe Christians should expect persecution. If that is the case and this country is going to be led by a brazen unbeliever, then such guidance would be welcome.
But, Joe Biden is a Christian. He was raised in Catholic schools, attends Mass faithfully…
My Bible Reading Plan for 2021
When I was a good Evangelical, the first of the year was when I started my new Bible reading/study plan. Sometimes I would read the whole Bible through in a year, sometimes I would just study a book or two during the year. Whatever it was, though, I was studying the Bible because that’s what Evangelicals do!
I’m no longer an Evangelical, but it wasn’t the bibliocentricity that turned me away from that strain of Christianity. In fact, I still enjoy reading and studying the Bible. For the last three years, I’ve been doing daily reading from the Revised Common…
How We Can Be Happy Where We Are While Still Moving Forward
2020 was a dumpster fire of a year. In many ways, I want to look forward and not look back at all. Ever. Yet, there were some good things about 2020 and some lessons that I learned. 2020 taught me more about contentment than any other single year.
Until 15 years ago, I was a working family physician. I loved my work, challenging as it was. I had trained for 12 years after high school to become board-certified and to get a job with a good practice. I was married to a great man with two wonderful children. I believed…
Catherine C. C. Martin
I am a 50-something woman who is retired from the practice of medicine because of chronic migraine. I write about chronic illness, faith, and their intersection
