Commentary
The Entitlement We’re All Given
This week a White Privilege Conference comes to town. Although I’m sure it will be very instructive for many people, I won’t be going. Not because I’m against the conference in theory; I’m just incredibly self-protective these days about certain conversations. See, I’m as sick of hearing about white privilege as many white people are. Actually, it’s…
Listening With Respect: Discussion Tackles Century-Old Issues
This year’s 500th anniversary of the start of the Protestant Reformation raises two questions, in local terms: What, after all this time, still divides Kansas City’s Protestants and Catholics? What common ground is marked by the Venn circles of beliefs and practices of these two huge branches of Christianity? Leaders of my own congregation, Second…
How Our Grocery Stores Connect to the Great Health Care Debate
When my grandmother was alive we had a running joke that if she wanted something from the grocery store she had to give me plenty of notice so that I could get it from a store near me, not the one close to her. My grandmother is gone, that store is closed, and I now…
Coming to the Tipping Point
As a reporter for The Star, Mike McGraw examined the federal prosecution of the 1988 explosion that killed six firefighters in numerous articles. He retired from The Star in 2014 and is now a special projects reporter for Flatland. What finally pried the cell door open last week for Bryan Sheppard, one of the defendants…
Rev. Adam Hamilton Strains to Prevent Schism in United Methodist Church
Forgive the Rev. Adam Hamilton, founding pastor of the 20,000-member United Methodist Church of the Resurrection, if his attention seems divided these days. One minute, he’s celebrating the opening of a new $81-million sanctuary — complete with a breathtakingly large stained glass window — at its main campus in Leawood. The next, he’s worrying that…