My parents called it “talking back.” Some people call it “sassing.” It’s that willful behavior that children have when they just have to respond to what they’ve been told—sometimes with attitude, snarky upturn of lip or obvious petulance. The admonition not to “talk back” is a few steps from the adage, “children should be seen and not…
A lot of religions consider blood to be an appropriate sacrifice to God or gods. Kill the fatted lamb, say scriptures in the Hebrew Bible. Lay the ram on the altar – instead of your son, God tells Abraham. Place the blood upon your doorposts, and the angel of death will pass you by. Slit…
I long became comfortable with bleeding. The Red Tent, Honoring Menstruation and Sacred Woman guided me into a healthy relationship with my womanhood, my womb and the cycles of the moon. I didn’t know what to do when I stopped bleeding. It felt like weeks before I got to a pharmacy, asked if brand name…
I grew up in the 1980s before AIDS was called HIV. My closest friends and I were trained to be deathly afraid of unprotected sex. At worst, you would get AIDS and die. And best, you got pregnant and there went your career dreams. Or so we believed as we sat around the pharmacy section…
If you’ve been following my blog, you’ve noticed that I’ve been really quiet lately. Like all summer lately. What’s up with that? Well, part of the challenge of writing about depression is that it’s hard to write when depressed, and, well, depression happens. But I’m back – well, back to Beautiful Mind Blog – and…
I’m an ordained minister, but I’m not good at all that the life of ministry requires. I’m particularly embarrassed at how bad I am with hospital visitations. Early in my ministry career, I delighted when I put the clergy pass on my car’s dashboard and parked in the specially designated spot. Someone from the church…
I have a big cookie, I break it in two Some for me and some for you I’m sharing! When my sister was in pre-school, she learned this song. The last line about sharing was shouted in loud toddler glee. The short song is catchy—it was stuck in my head for hours after she sang…
Borders Book Stores are closing. It’s the end of an era. That’s a little melodramatic, I know, but I’ve got my reasons. Although Borders Books is known to most people as a large chain that could be found all over the country, it’s still a neighborhood store to me. I’m from Ann Arbor, Michigan, and what is…
I’m into new media. I have a website, Twitter account, four Facebook pages, a LinkedIn profile, an old-school Myspace page, and I’m thinking about adding Tumblr. I use my smartphone for GPS, finding restaurants, playing crossword puzzles, texting, emailing, and sometimes talking. I keep a separate iPod for music, photos, and different apps. I’m fairly…
Perhaps the story of Lot’s wife is a monument. Perhaps the pillar of salt is a testimony to the fact that sometimes a place calls your attention home. “I feel a strong spiritual pull to go back to the South.” These are the words of Deborah Brown as quoted in a recent New York Times…
Dr. Monica A. Coleman is an award-winning scholar, writer, and minister dedicated to the intersections of faith, social justice, and transformation. Through speaking, consulting, and writing, she empowers individuals and organizations to navigate change with purpose and integrity.
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