Drew Downs

Make a New Normal

  • When I hear talk of “taking our country back” I rarely hear the voice of heroes come to save the Rebel Alliance, with Ben Kenobi as “our only hope.” I hear bigotry and division and might. I hear the faint call of the Empire coming to overtake the Republic.    I have no memory of…

  • This is what trust looks like, what faith looks like. Not only in the mustard seed, but in the calming of storms. Not only in the theoretical, but in our lives; in our triumphs and challenges; in our doubts and our assurances; in our despairs and our elations. GOD is there and way more committed…

  • Dear Brothers and Sisters of  Emanuel AME, I can only begin to imagine the sense of loss and terror you are feeling. The horror of violence and suffering of Wednesday, the defilement of your temple and your people, has shaken me and many of my friends. Please know that our prayers are certainly with you…

  • I’m generally not one to encourage business models in church: we’re generally saturated with them already. Or, more to the point, we apply them indiscriminately, with the idea that churches in general need to function more efficiently and take on a more corporate strategy. My own denomination, The Episcopal Church, did this with gusto in…

  • It’s time. I didn’t want to do it. My ego was bruised. My sense of right and wrong convinced I was right. And yet… It’s time. I am officially an advocate of the single space rule. What’s the single space rule? you ask. This is the use of a single space after punctuation at the…

  • We receive a GOD, who like Samuel, weeps over Saul and the people’s rejection. Or scatters seeds in strange places and allows them to grow, even without our help. Or sends us a promise in a new king, one who doesn’t rule, but teaches; who doesn’t command, but invites; who doesn’t demand, but tells stories.