Ken Arthur

Should We Talk about Politics in Church? Almost a year ago I reflected on politics and the church, wondering if a church can be “purple.” I suggested that “the church should never be called purple (or blue or red) because we serve the God of...

Some Friday afternoon thoughts on politics and church at #OutOfTheAshes...

Can We Survive Republican Gaslighting? Gaslighting is what we call lies told in order to confuse someone so much they can no longer tell falsehoods from truth.

Telling lies and creating false realities are an important and favorite tactic of those trying to solidify their power in an authoritarian government. How do we survive it all? You can read my latest reflection at #OutOfTheAshes. Subscribe to get future posts delivered directly to your email.

Searching for Good News We need to hear some good news once in a while to help us get through the horror of what is happening in our country and world.

Thinking about the story of Jesus, which is often called the good news. I’m also wondering how many people actually think of Jesus’ story as good news. My latest at #OutOfTheAshes is a little teaser for a project I'm working on...

Meaning and Truth in Our National Quagmire I’m writing this week while on a personal retreat at Gilchrist Retreat Center in Three Rivers, Michigan.

Thinking about values, meaning, and truth in our nation. Read my latest reflection at #OutOfTheAshes.

New Musical Discoveries One wonderful thing about social media is that I’ve discovered some really interesting people and other stuff that I probably wouldn’t otherwise know about.

Maybe some good music can help get us through this sh*t-storm we live in. In my latest at #OutOfTheAshes I talk about some of my "recent" discoveries. Several of the artists on the list frequently address themes that are socially conscious and important for our times.

A Culture of Violence An assassination.

"There is no excuse for murder. Violence is not the answer to our problems. However, we can reject violence and still oppose what Kirk stood for." Thoughts on the tragic Charlie Kirk assassination now up on #OutOfTheAshes.

The Republic Has Fallen In one of the more chilling scenes in the Harry Potter movie “Deathly Hallows, Part 1,” followers of the evil wizard Voldemort have successfully staged a coup and Kingsley Shacklebolt sends a warning ...

Be a Jedi. Trust in the Force and persevere. My latest reflection is up. Read and subscribe at #OutofTheAshes. Thanks! kenarthur.substack.com/p/the-republ...

All Time Favorite Music Music, like all art, is critical to human culture.

What music has helped shape you? In the spirit of my recent spate of favorites lists, I offer my personal list of favorite music as my latest post at #OutOfTheAshes. kenarthur.substack.com/p/all-time-f...

Manifesto for a Great Nation From the first time I read it, I’ve been inspired by Wendell Berry’s wonderful poem “Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front.” I even wrote my own response. In order to resist an oppressive, money-...

What is your vision for the future of our country? In my latest reflection at #OutOfTheAshes, I continue to think about what changes we need to make to create a country that is actually for the people instead of for the wealthy elite.

Yet Another Mass Shooting A few quick random thoughts about the shooting this week in Minneapolis…

As much as we need gun control, there's also a deep existential crisis fueling many of the problems in our country, including tragic mass shootings. Read and subscribe at #OutOfTheAshes. kenarthur.substack.com/p/yet-anothe...

All Time Favorite Books (Fiction, part 2) Let’s just jump into it.

Here's the second half of my post on favorite fiction books and authors, covering the science fiction and fantasy genres. Read and subscribe at #OutofTheAshes. There's a link to part 1 in the post.

All Time Favorite Books (Fiction, part 1) Previously, I offered lists of my favorite movies and non-fiction books. I continue here with my favorite fiction novels, although for the most part I’m talking as much about authors as about books. W...

Let's face it, the news can be pretty depressing. We need to take a break once in a while. Doing something we enjoy might even be considered resistance as it's a refusal to give into the despair the fascists want us to feel. This week at #OutOfTheAshes, I'm thinking about my favorite fiction books.

Making America Great (for real) Over the last decade, fascists in the United States have rallied their supporters around the slogan “Make America Great Again.” They pine for days when old, white rich men were in charge and people of...

The phrase has become meaningless as a fascist slogan, but what would it really mean to make America great? Read and subscribe to my latest at #OutOfTheAshes...

All Time Favorite Movies As the world becomes more chaotic in its slide to fascism (thanks for that, Republicans), I find myself occasionally turning to the comfort of an old movie.

If you're interested, here is my list of movies from last week.

All time favorite books (non-fiction) Since I named my all time favorite movies last week, I thought I’d follow up with a few more lists, including the following of my all time favorite non-fiction books.

For a break from fascist Republican BS, let's talk books and movies. In my latest on #OutOfTheAshes, I offer a list of influential non-fiction books. These are books that have influenced me, not the world in general. If you missed my list of movies from last week, there's a link in the comments.

Taking Stock of Our Ongoing Nightmare … and a few resource and book recommendations

Some reflections on where we're at right now in this country... here's my latest on #outoftheashes.

Who’s my neighbor? The foundation of Christian teaching is to love God and love your neighbor as you love yourself.

My latest reflection on #OutOfTheAshes offers a few thoughts on the Parable of the Good Samaritan: Jesus tells this story in part to break down the boundaries that we create between each other, to show us that there is no us vs. them. There is only us.

Keep it Simple and Sacred We’ve probably all heard of the KISS principle, which is usually expressed as Keep It Simple, Stupid.

In a chaotic and cruel world, what would it mean to simplify our faith? My latest reflection can be found at #OutOfTheAshes. Be sure to subscribe to make sure you don't miss future posts! Thank you!

A Sex Positive Spirituality By defying cultural norms, LGBTQ+ people challenge us to talk more openly and honestly about our bodies and what it means to be a sensual and sexual being, inviting us into a more sex positive spiritu...

My final Pride month reflection on faith and developing a more sex positive spirituality. Here's my latest at #OutOfTheAshes. #Pride #LGBTQ+

Breaking Down Boundaries Jesus’ family thought he had lost his mind.1 He wasn’t acting as others thought he should.

Some Pride Month thoughts on conformity, breaking down boundaries, and deviance. Here's my latest at #OutOfTheAshes. #Pride #LGBTQ+ kenarthur.substack.com/p/breaking-d...

Expanding Horizons I’m sorry I wasn’t able to write anything last week, but I hope to catch up by offering two reflections this week.

Looking past our biases and assumptions to see the beautiful diversity in the world. Here's my latest reflection for Pride Month on the queer spiritual gift of expansiveness. #OutOfTheAshes #pride #lgbtq+ #Christianity

The Gift of Questioning June is LGBTQ+ Pride month so this month I’ll be reflecting on what I’m calling Queer Spiritual Gifts.

June is LGBTQ+ Pride month so this month I’ll be reflecting on what I’m calling Queer Spiritual Gifts. The first gift is the gift of questioning. Here's my latest at #outoftheashes. #pride #lgbtq

Finding Wholeness in the Face of Fear Fear and anxiety are running rampant.

What does it mean to live a "whole life"? Can we keep from being overrun by our fear and anxiety? Here are some thoughts on my latest #outoftheashes post.

The Big Brutal Bill of Betrayal Apparently ashamed of their own proposed legislation and the effects it will have on everyday Americans, the Republican Party scheduled a committee meeting in the middle of the night this week to cons...

My thoughts on the Republican betrayal of the American people, aka the budget bill. Here's my latest on #outoftheashes.

The Rebel Alliance As a science fiction fan I try to keep up with what’s happening in the Star Wars universe.

Are we living in the Star Wars universe? Let's work together to keep our energy up and the resistance moving forward. Here's my latest #outoftheashes post. #Ihavefriendseverywhere #Andor

Considering Greatness This week I’m sharing a poem I wrote a month or so ago.

Here is a poem I wrote ("The Great Extremely Stable Genius") thinking about what constitutes greatness or genius. Check out my latest on "Out of the Ashes." #poem #poetry #outoftheashes

Practice Resurrection! In his poem “Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front,” Wendell Berry advises the reader to do things that don’t necessarily make sense, such as “love God and the world.

Reflecting on resurrection not as an event but a principle and attitude we can call practice... here's my latest on "Out of the Ashes." #outoftheashes

Let the Stones Shout “If only these walls could talk” is something we might say when we find ourselves in a historical or sacred place.

We have to keep speaking up and standing up for justice. It's the moral and it's the Christian thing. Let's keep shining our light in the darkness. Here's my latest reflection on #outoftheashes.

Extravagant Love Out of our five physical senses, our ability to smell doesn’t really get the credit it’s due.

Hold on tight to the love and joy in life. It's what fuels us to meet the challenges we are facing. Here's my latest reflection on #outoftheashes.

Moving Forward I don’t know about all of you, but my anxiety these days continues to run pretty high.

No turning back. Let's move forward and build something that matters. Here's my latest reflection at #outoftheashes.