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Photo Courtesy of North Texas Annual Conference
Insight coordinator Cynthia B. Astle recalls the history of the United Methodist Reporter and ponders what its impending demise will mean for the church. more »
May 16, 2013 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge (7 Comments)
Photo Courtesy of Saddleback Church
The tragic death of Matthew Warren, son of Rick and Kay Warren, co-founders of Saddleback Church, deserves only to be mourned, not villified. more »
Apr 9, 2013 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge (1 Comments)
Illustration Courtesy of Amy Geary Holmes
Think you're still a United Methodist Lay Speaker? Not according to the new Book of Discipline, which has stripped the standing from hundreds of faithful church officers throughout the denomination. more »
Mar 9, 2013 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge (5 Comments)
UMNS Photo by Mike Dubose
It's sad that the United Methodist Men's Commission yielded to a backlash against the possibility that the Boy Scouts of America might drop its ban against gay members and leaders -- especially when that backlash was ill-informed prejudice. more »
Feb 25, 2013 in Views from a Ridge (3 Comments)
UMNS Photo by Mike DuBose
To everything there is truly a season, as changes at UMCOR, MFSA and Walmart attest. more »
Feb 15, 2013 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge
Photo Courtesy of Frank Draper Jr. Website
Four decades on, a father's early death brings clarity to the moral injuries inflicted by war and the need for a new ministry to repair wounded souls. more »
Dec 4, 2012 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge (2 Comments)
Photo Courtesy of OURWalmart
Standing up with Walmart associates seeking better working conditions sets off questions about whether today's Christians truly believe another world is possible, as Jesus taught. more »
Nov 28, 2012 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge (2 Comments)
When we create a space where God's Holy Spirit can shape our lives, we start finding paths into the future God has for us. more »
Oct 2, 2012 in Views from a Ridge
World Council of Churches
A regular Internet search for the phrase "vital congregations" turns up a remarkable connection. more »
Sep 17, 2012 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge
Talk about spiritual wisdom unexpected quarters! A noted business guru's blog holds good counsel -- not statistics -- for The United Methodist Church amid its turmoil about the future. more »
Sep 17, 2012 in Views from a Ridge
UMNS photo by Mike DuBose
If a definition of insanity is doing the same things over and over expecting different results, then how do we learn to welcome the "strangers" in our midst when they hold moral views so opposed to our own? more »
Aug 24, 2012 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge (5 Comments)
Here's a welcome notice from a Catholic faith community that's getting lots of notice around cyberspace. Can your church make this claim to radical hospitality? more »
Jul 27, 2012 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge (1 Comments)
A stroll around jurisdictional delegates' reports on this year's election of United Methodist bishops in the United States. more »
Jul 20, 2012 in Views from a Ridge (3 Comments)
The South Central Jurisdiction's little-noticed vote to allow its Mission Council to decide issues of property disposal is a sad conclusion to the efforts of those who opposed bringing the Bush Presidential Institute to SMU. more »
Jul 19, 2012 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge (2 Comments)
The latest episode in the 2012 General Conference Follies points the way toward overarching issues that The United Methodist Church must address cohesively, not piecemeal, contends Cynthia B. Astle. more »
Jun 14, 2012 in Views from a Ridge
UMNS Photo by Paul Jeffrey
Coming elections of bishops in U.S. jurisdictions offer an opportunity to survey the tattered state of trust in United Methodist leadership, and the qualities that grassroots clergy and laity would like to see in their new episcopal leaders. more »
Jun 1, 2012 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge (2 Comments)
In Cynthia Astle's experience, The United Methodist Church has achieved its streamlined structure by sacrificing its commitment to racial and gender justice. more »
May 3, 2012 in Views from a Ridge (1 Comments)
Photo Courtesy of UMCom
Reserve delegate Annie MacNeal talks about being disempowered in a subcommittee because she read from notes on her iPhone. more »
Apr 30, 2012 in Views from a Ridge
Illustration by Andrew Conard
Andrew Conard, web minister for the Church of the Resurrection in Kansas City, has collected tweets from the opening days of General Conference to analyze the content of the Twitter conference #gc2012. more »
Apr 26, 2012 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge
Illustration Courtesy of Web Developer Depot
The world of social media makes it possible to "attend" the 2012 General Conference without being present -- but not quite. more »
Apr 25, 2012 by Cynthia B. Astle in Views from a Ridge (1 Comments)
Perspectives from Cynthia B. Astle, project coordinator of United Methodist Insight.
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David Eichelberger
A forum for discerning God's future for The United Methodist Church, hosted by St. Stephen UMC, Mesquite, TX
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