bad marriage

Church to Abused Wife: “Stay With Him”

Apr
06
2010

hand

Due to a series of posts I once wrote and then collected into a longer piece, entitled Seven Reasons Women Stay in Abusive Relationships, and How to Defeat Each One of Them (which in ten months has been visited some 19,000 times), I get a fair number of emails from women relating the terrible story [...]

Read More →

True Love: The Cruise Ship That Can’t Stay Afloat?

Sep
06
2009

loveboat

In the past, and particularly recently (with You Want Me To Emote About My Wife? Fine! Here It Is!), I’ve written about how in love I am with my wife Cat, and what a wonderful relationship we have and all that. But just to be clear:  I fully comprehend that while love can be a [...]

Read More →

Should She Return to Her Abusive Ex-Husband, Who Found Christ?

Apr
01
2009

(Update: All the posts of this series have been collected into one piece, Seven Reasons Women Stay in Abusive Relationships, and How to Defeat Each One of Them.) To those following it, I’m sorry it’s taken me so long to get back to my series, 7 Reasons Women Stay in Bad Relationships. I’ve been under [...]

Read More →

Christian Leaders: For God’s Sake, Stop Empowering Wife Abusers

Mar
16
2009

692910_sorrow_and_worry

Pastors, church, and ministry leaders: Please refrain from ever using the Bible as a means of keeping women in physically or emotionally abusive relationships. If you believe in hell—that working in direct opposition to the will of God means spending eternity roasting alive—then, on behalf of the abused women who’ve written me in response to [...]

Read More →

Women Nearly Killed by Abusive Husband Tells Us Her Story

Mar
01
2009

(Update: All the posts of this series have been collected into one piece, Seven Reasons Women Stay in Abusive Relationships, and How to Defeat Each One of Them.) Here’s an email I got that’ll just about tear your heart out. The author hopes it helps any woman now living in the sort of abusive relationship [...]

Read More →

From a Christian Woman Whose Marriage to a Non-Christian Failed

Jan
29
2009

I thought worth sharing was this reader’s response to my post, Christian Marrying a Non-Christian? Marriage: FAIL : I am a Christian who was married to an atheist; after twenty-two years, we are now divorced. I understand and agree with a lot of the dissenting comments made to John’s post. However, ultimately I agree with [...]

Read More →

Posts by Theme

Christian Issues

Evangelicals and Muslims: Both Love Jesus

Aug
18
2010

muslims_believe_in_jesus

Today at lunch I asked Pastor Bob, “If you could say any one thing about Islam or Muslims to American Christians, or to Americans generally, what would it be?” As he started talking, I started taking notes. This is what he said.

Read More →

Relationships

When Your Heart Leaves Home

Aug
27
2011

panddaughter

The reflections of a good man upon the occasion of his daughter leaving home for college.

Read More →

Christian Spirituality

What Jesus Left Out of The Great Commandment

Oct
31
2011

1343788_radio_antenna

“Why would Jesus leave something important out of the Great Commandment? I believe it was so that we could discover that thing for ourselves.”

Read More →

Humor

Why Aren’t Fundamentalists Telepathic Comedians?

Feb
28
2011

mindboy

I knew I’d end up in hell! There’s such a dangblangit fine line between “Funny!” and “Meet Snikky and Snarky, the two fanged minions who throughout eternity will be jabbing at you with searing tridents. Have fun, funny boy!”

Read More →

Pastor Bob's Corner

A Primer on Islam: The Basics (Lesson 1 of 6)

Sep
30
2011

pastorbob1

Hi. I’m Pastor Bob. This is the first lesson of a multi-week class on Islam I taught for a large gathering of folks from multiple congregations: Lutherans, Presbyterians, Methodists, Catholics, recovering agnostics, etc.

Read More →

Personal

My Five Reasons For Not Having Children

Nov
20
2009

world

When young my wife and I decided not to have children. Here’s why.

Read More →