Author: Ronnie McBrayer

It was the early 1980s. It was Texas. It was December. It was a Southern Baptist church. It is customary

There is an old story about a monastery that fell on hard times. Once it had thrived, but over the

In American literature, the biggest religious pretender of all time is probably Sinclair Lewis’ Elmer Gantry. While most of us

For the last several months I have been keeping a regular appointment with an oncologist. I’m not the one receiving

My wife attended Lutheran Catechism. My neighbor went to an Adventist Sabbath class. My college friend was enrolled in a

Years ago my oldest son asked me a question: “What is a saint?” When you’re driving along with a numb

“There is something rotten in the state of Denmark.” That is a centuries old phrase from William Shakespeare’s masterpiece, “Hamlet.”

I’ve been involved in ministry or “church work” for over two decades. Don’t let my youthful persona fool you; I’m

Curtain climbers. Yard monkeys. Cherubs. Whippersnappers. Ankle biters. Urchins. I don’t know what you call them, but our children have

In Paulo Coelho’s brilliant little book, The Alchemist, the author tells of a young lad sent by his father to

When I was a bit younger and a bit braver, a group of friends and I shot the rapids on

Do you know the three most frightening words in the English language? “Some assembly required.” You order something online; a

According to the Pew Research Center’s recently released report, a full one-fifth of Americans are now unattached to religion, and

For those who grew up in the revivalistic tradition, we heard the same basic sermon every Sunday: “You are sinner.

Bishop Desmond Tutu will celebrate his 81st birthday soon. The accomplishments of his eight decades are well-known and many. We

As a child I rode my bicycle without a helmet or elbow pads. I would leave home on that same

“When I needed them most, they didn’t respond. When I spoke, they didn’t listen…The pain and hurt the church has