Author Archives: Richard Heyduck

Those who argue against abortion are sometimes the same people who argue for capital punishment. Those who are for abortion will then claim this is an inconsistency on the part of anti-abortionists. But why do we need to argue for … Continue reading →

One of the trajectories I notice when I look at the history of Christian influence on society is a broadened conception of who counts as human or truly human. We see it explicitly in Jesus when he talks about love … Continue reading →

Did your vote count? Though the final results are likely a few days away, the preliminary numbers show that Bush defeated Kerry by nearly 1.7 million votes in Texas. No matter which way you voted, would it have made any … Continue reading →

At General Conference last spring, a resolution was passed which concluded: Therefore, be it resolved, that the 2004 General Conference affirms its commitment to the basic doctrines of the Christian faith as taught in Scripture and in The United Methodist … Continue reading →

Sometimes I wish I would be snet to pastor a church that is already everything it should be. So often I feel like I have to start over from scratch, especially in terms of basic teaching. Every church I’ve been … Continue reading →

Some of the press has been reporting that this year’s election is the dirtiest most divisive in history. Other reporters have put it in historical context: presidential elections in the United States have a strong tradition of being contentious. I … Continue reading →

There is great social unrest happening in Iran. With the repressive regime, this is no surprise. Keep praying for the people of Iran.

In response to those who say Christians should tend to “lost souls going to hell” instead of “meddling” in the political arena… If we consider that doing something about “lost souls going to hell” to be what Jesus was about, … Continue reading →

The insight that accountability to fellow believers is essential to growing in maturity as a Christian was central to early Methodism. Methodism survived beyond Wesley’s lifetime because of his organization genius, and that genius focused on developing structures to of … Continue reading →

Once upon a time it seemed a good thing to many United Methodists that our denomination was not fraught with doctrinal disputes and narrowmindedness the way some are. The phrase, “The thing I like about being United Methodist is that … Continue reading →