By Rev. Ex-Evangelist ~ M y friend Kary owns a pub. It's a place that persons of my "mature" age can go and enjoy. The pub also attracts a lot of undergrad and grad students from a nearby, large, state university.  They come to have a drink, enjoy live music and play pool.  It's the nearest thing to "church" that I have going on in my life these days. I go to Kary's pub several times a week and sometimes get into some very interesting and intelligent conversations with total strangers while sipping his many fine brews and wines. Recently I was hanging out there when two attractive young women came in to order a drink.  They were dressed provocatively and, as "Providence" would have it, sat down next to me at the bar. Well, being an ex-fundamentalist Christian minister, I quickly judged them - based on their outward looks - as being of a heathenish sort:  they were displaying ample amounts of flesh, numerous tattoos and clothed in bl...

By The Rev. Ex- Evangelist ~ I 'm almost sixty years old. In the last few years I've learned that a number of the people who had mentored me as a young Christian in my early twenties have passed away. The news of their passing has triggered many memories. Memories of being young, naive and gullible; of close friendships; wholesome fun and the excitement of "learning" that my insignificant life was really part of a big, cosmic, divine plan that "God" had developed before I was even born! Mental placebos can make you feel good about yourself. When I became a real born-again believer at age nineteen, I went from having no friends and feeling very alienated and rudderless to suddenly being warmly accepted and included by all kinds of people in the evangelical churches and ministries I was introduced to. I was touched by their interest in me and my problems and their basic decency and kindness towards me. They were good people; the proverbial ...

By Rev. Ex-Evangelist ~ I hate going to the doctor. I hate hearing of friends who are having to go for testing and medical procedures. Science and research has supplied us with wonderful cures and fixes for ailments that in the recent past would have spelled the end of one's life. But for all my dislike for tests, procedures, etc. I am very glad they are there. I would have died decades ago had I not had - by today's medical knowledge - a very simple surgical procedure. At that time I was a fanatical, religious zealot who obsessively read and quoted scripture and tried to be "pleasing unto the Lord" in all my ways. I was a firm believer in "The Full Gospel" message of the charismatic movement which said that Jesus not only saves your soul but is also the healer of your body. So when I became doubled over with abdominal pain one morning, I fervently prayed for hours for "the Lord" to heal me but nothing happened. After ten hours of dro...

By Rev. Ex-Evangelist ~ W hile working out at the gym this past Sunday morning, I watched a mega-church , "non-denominational", charismatic minister deliver his sermon on the television monitor in front of the treadmill I was on. The guy was dressed casually; no stuffy and formal, traditional dress coat and tie. This guy had a cool hair-cut and glasses. His delivery was flawless, funny, entertaining and personable. He looked like he works out regularly. I guess he is about 40+ years old. He was a total hipster. You could tell by the verbal response of his congregation that they think this fellow is the best thing since sliced bread . I know they thank God that they have such a cool, modern and holy ghost-anointed pastor. But for all the cool cat vibe he presented, and the background music accompanied by electric guitars, drum-sets awesome sound-system, choir and assorted bells and techno whistles of American-style "contemporary worship," his mess...

By Rev. Ex-Evangelist ~ T oday is Sunday, December 16, 2012. The first Sunday since the horrific massacre of - at last count - of twenty children and seven teachers and staff at the Sandy Hook elementary school in Connecticut. We are all grieving and stunned at what happened. I've had to turn off the TV coverage because I am overwhelmed with the magnitude of it all. While sitting this Sunday morning in my favorite coffee shop, sipping my Pumpkin Spice flavored, holiday brew, and reading the paper, it hit me that if I was still in the ministry my job this morning would be to spin the tragedy so that no one would question their faith. On the surface, my pastoral duty would be to offer comfort and solace to all who grieve. But the heart of my agenda would be to (1) get "God" off the hook for not preventing the carnage and (2) to short-circuit anyone who might be having doubts about church dogma, such as: God's direct and personal oversight, care, love of ...

By Rev. Ex-Evangelist ~ W e just got through an intense presidential campaign. It's nice that it's over. I will tell you upfront that I supported President Obama's re-election. I know others on this site may have supported Gov. Romney or other candidates. All well and good. I'm not trying to get into any political debates or controversies here. Nevertheless, we all know that The Religious Right has become a powerful and influential force within the modern Republican Party (although I know Republicans who don't like this and wish they would leave). So, anyway, I said all that to say this: I have a Facebook page and friends who go back to my elementary school days (I'm now 58!). I grew up in Chattanooga, Tennessee (USA), which is the Buckle of the Bible Belt, as evidenced by the hundreds of fundamentalist churches and five conservative, Christian colleges in the area. Chattanooga has never been a haven for liberal forms of the christian faith. No ...

By Rev. Ex-Evangelist ~ I drove to St. Augustine, Florida this past Sunday, January 1st, for some R&R. For those of you who are not familiar with St. Augustine, it is the oldest city in The United States. It predates the Pilgrims at Plymouth Rock. It is rich in history. It has flown the flags of Spain, England, and The United States. The downtown streets are cobblestone and many of the buildings date back to the 1700s. Being a history buff, I always like visiting there because it's a little like going back in time. The city allows you to catch a glimpse of what life was like in the past. But besides all this, it's a great place to spend the first day of the new year just looking around, eating, drinking some beers and listening to live music. So, I'm soaking up the ambiance of the place and lo' and behold, what do I see among the throngs of tourists but two young men in their twenties holding up a large sign with a bible verse from 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 on ...