Anthony B. Robinson

Tony is a writer, teacher, speaker and ordained minister (United Church of Christ). He served as Senior Minister of Seattle’s Plymouth Congregational Church for fourteen years. His newest book is Useful Wisdom: Letters to Young (and not so young) Ministers. He divides his time between Seattle and a cabin in Wallowa County of northeastern Oregon. If you’d like to know more or receive his regular blogs in your email, go to his site listed above to sign-up.

Courtyards in Mexico: Magical Refuges for the Soul

I read that the courtyards of San Miguel have their roots in the Moorish gardens of ancient Spain, which were themselves inspired by the earlier courtyard gardens of even more ancient Persia. Paradise itself means "walled garden."

Marilynne Robinson’s Deep Dive into Genesis

I had thought of the Bible as a book of heroes, stories of the especially virtuous and faithful, and as such both boring and untrue to life. Not so.

Linda Greenhouse: How The Supreme Court Got to Where it Is

In her formal talk, Greenhouse traced the evolution of the court to its present conservative “agenda,” and expressed apprehension over multiple aspects of that, particularly the Dobbs decision overturning Roe.

Surviving 2020: I Still Get PTSD

Was 2020 an apocalyptic year when the divisions that mark our nation hardened, and that the extremist scripts that we’ve lived with since have played out?

MAGA and the Souls of Evangelical Christians

They are motivated by fear. Which may be the most concise way to describe what’s truly sad and alarming about our country today: faith, which among other things means trust, now seems overmatched by fear.

The Return of Judgment

After a short go at “judgment free,” being judgmental has made a roaring comeback, thanks to the internet, and especially in the on-line space. Man, has it ever!

What the Devil Explains Trump?

By and large, mainline and liberal Christians stopped crediting the devil or the demonic a couple generations ago. For that crowd — my crowd — there were only two actors on the cosmic stage: God and the human being.

Trump Versus the Military — I Just Don’t Get It.

What don’t I get? How anyone can think Trump — or anyone who says such things or holds such views — is fit to return to office as President and Commander-in-Chief.

In Search of Grace: The Korean Series “Navillera”

"Navillera" like "Ted Lasso," gives us a different take on ourselves and our world. Less the battlefield of contemporary life and politics and more the hospital, where everyone is in some way broken and in need of help and healing.

Ways to Address the Decline of Mainline Churches

A better word for us than “mainline” was “sideline.” We had the problem of all established groups, that is, we thought we had no problems and that our future was secure.

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