by The Rev. J.C. Austin | Nov 5, 2023
“What do you mean, Biblical?” The Mayor of New York City is struggling to take in what he’s being told by the group of disheveled people standing intently before him. It’s a pivotal scene in the classic movie Ghostbusters, which I watched on Halloween this past week...
by The Rev. J.C. Austin | Oct 29, 2023
“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes; the ones who see things differently…” That’s how one of the best ad campaigns in U.S. history begins: a voiceover celebrating bold visionaries who broke the...
by The Rev. J.C. Austin | Oct 22, 2023
“I wish I could go with you.” That’s what so many people said to me when I told them that I had won a fellowship that would let me spend my first year after seminary studying at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. It was 25 years ago at this point, so it was...
by The Rev. J.C. Austin | Oct 8, 2023
“The children are always ours, every single one of them, all over the globe; and I am beginning to suspect that whoever is incapable of recognizing this may be incapable of morality.” James Baldwin wrote these words in November of 1980, but if he were still living, he...
by The Rev. J.C. Austin | Oct 1, 2023
When I was twelve years old, my family moved from here in the Lehigh Valley to Atlanta, Georgia. My father had been a senior executive at an outdoor advertising company, and when the company was finally sold, he and several of the other executives banded together to...
by The Rev. J.C. Austin | Sep 24, 2023
“Don’t make me angry. You wouldn’t like me when I’m angry.” Every good superhero has at least one signature catchphrase. Batman’s “I’m Batman,” is about as simple as you can get, but it’s surprisingly effective at intimidating bad guys who are desperately hoping they...
