The gift of late friendship
Voices of Faith

The gift of late friendship

My friend Carmen Merritt died this spring at age 83. A person of intellectual and spiritual depth, of gentle kindness, humor and strength, he had lived a full life with…
The joyful possibility of connection
Voices of Faith

The joyful possibility of connection

This year my partner, Kelly, and I started serving as ELCA global missionaries in Central Europe. As part of our orientation, we’re taking Hungarian language classes to better communicate with…
I’m a Lutheran: Jamie Bruesehoff
Voices of Faith

I’m a Lutheran: Jamie Bruesehoff

Member of an ELCA congregation in New Jersey (name and town omitted for privacy reasons) Author of Raising Kids Beyond the Binary: Celebrating God’s Transgender and Gender-Diverse Children (Broadleaf Books,…
What’s (human) love got to do with it?
Voices of Faith

What’s (human) love got to do with it?

Series editor’s note:  Throughout 2023, “Deeper understandings” will feature biblical scholars reflecting on one of the books of the Old Testament. Rachel Wrenn will continue this theme in the next…
My take: Holding the center
Voices of Faith

My take: Holding the center

“Things fall apart; the center cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world .… The best lack all conviction, while the worst Are full of passionate intensity.” —W.B. Yeats,…
God revealed through people with disabilities
Voices of Faith

God revealed through people with disabilities

Editor’s note: This piece originally ran on March 7, 2018. We are rerunning it this year in observance of Disability Pride Month.   His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned,…
ELCA chaplain fulfills a dual calling in the Navy
Voices of Faith

ELCA chaplain fulfills a dual calling in the Navy

Growing up as the son of a U.S. Air Force chaplain in Rice Lake, Wis., Peter Muschinske grew accustomed to people telling him, “You’re going to be a pastor like…
The mission and the many
Voices of Faith

The mission and the many

If there’s such a thing as a classic Lutheran upbringing, it must resemble Greg Busboom’s childhood in Flatville, Ill. Busboom’s great-great-grandfather arrived in Flatville from Germany in 1874 and, with…
My faith journey: “You are not alone”
Voices of Faith

My faith journey: “You are not alone”

I remember that day well. On July 4, 1983, when I was 8 years old, I was moved to the Thu Duc Orphanage, on the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh…
Lingering with the lotus
Voices of Faith

Lingering with the lotus

Imagine the Mekong River as it winds through Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam to the South China Sea. A unique riverscape with houses on stilts, fishermen tossing nets, gilded temples and…