I am a huge fan of Stephen Colbert. I think he’s incredibly smart and incredibly funny. Along with John Stewart, Colbert has elevated satirical humor to the level of art form that Mark Twain would have admired. Plus, you’ve got to admire – or, at least I marvel at – how he has maintained a three-dimensional media persona – and a completely different private (i.e., real) life – for years on end. I can’t wait to see what happens when he goes to the Late Show. In the meantime, it’s also interesting to know that he’s a faithful Christian. And – if you’ll watch the six-minute interview with Father James Martin below –...

Dear Partner in Preaching, John 3:16, everyone’s favorite Bible verse. But I’ve wondered whether, if people thought about what this verse says for just a little longer than it takes to read a bumper sticker, it might just prove to be one of our least favorite verses in the Bible. Let me explain. Jesus articulates in this statement what Luther called “the Gospel in a nutshell” – that God is fundamentally a God of love, that love is the logic by which the kingdom of God runs, and that God’s love trumps everything else, even justice, in the end. I realize not everyone reads it this way. After all, Jesus says “everyone who...