67 topics
Topics
God and the big questions
The Character of GodWhat God is like when Jesus is the clearest picture: love that feels with us, refuses to coerce, and can be trusted. 42 The TrinityGod as a communion of self-giving love, and what that means for life together. 2 Suffering and EvilWhy terrible things happen, the easy answers that fail people in pain, and where God is in suffering. 15 Hell and UniversalismHeaven, hell, judgment, and the hope that God's love will reach every person in the end. 11 The Cross and AtonementWhat Jesus' death means when it is read as God's love rather than God's wrath. 12 SalvationWhat it means to be saved: freedom from sin, fear, and death, and liberation now, not only a ticket to heaven. 13 ResurrectionEaster, the empty tomb, and learning to live resurrection life now. 13 IncarnationGod taking on flesh in Jesus, and what that says about bodies, places, and ordinary people. 13 The Holy SpiritPentecost, the Spirit poured out on all people, and the Spirit's work in the church today. 13 Evil and the PowersSatan, demons, and the forces and systems that hold people captive, and how Jesus confronts them. 16 Apocalypse and the EndWhat the Bible says about the end of the world, read as a story of renewal rather than escape. 15 Creation and New CreationThe goodness of creation, care for the land, and God's work of making all things new. 19
Reading the Bible
Reading the BibleHow to read Scripture well: its history, its cultural world, and Jesus as the lens for the whole. 42 Hard PassagesTexts that have been used to harm people, or that picture God as violent, read again with care. 17 The ParablesJesus' short stories and the upside-down world they ask us to imagine. 22
Practices
PrayerLearning to pray without pretending, from the Lord's Prayer to unanswered prayer to praying again after harm. 15 Sabbath and RestRest as gift and as resistance to a culture of endless productivity. 12 Contemplation and AttentionMeditation, silence, and choosing where to place our attention in a distracted world. 17 Wonder and EnchantmentRecovering awe, beauty, and delight, and a faith that lives beyond the head. 5 Worship and SacramentsSinging, liturgy, communion, and baptism, and why we practice them together. 12 Spiritual GrowthDiscipleship, holy habits, and the slow work of being changed. 37 Calling and DiscernmentHearing God, making decisions, and finding your way when the path is unclear. 21
Faith under strain
DoubtQuestions, uncertainty, and seasons when faith feels empty. 12 Deconstruction and RebuildingLetting go of harmful beliefs and building a faith sturdy enough to hold you. 28 Religious TraumaHealing from spiritual abuse and church harm, including when it is time to leave. 13 Exile and WildernessFaith in seasons of displacement and waiting, in-between times when God seems silent, and living far from home. 16 Endurance and CourageFaithfulness when it costs something, and staying the course under opposition. 8
Inner life and healing
Grief and LamentMourning loss and death, and the biblical practice of crying out to God. 25 Fear and AnxietyWhat fear does to us, how anxiety spreads through families and groups, and the call to not be afraid. 14 Mental HealthDepression, anxiety, and mental illness, named without shame, and the care that helps. 5 Emotions and Self-CompassionFeelings as messengers (anger included), the inner critic, and learning to treat yourself with care. 12 Trauma and RecoveryHow overwhelming experiences shape body and mind, and the relationships and practices that help us heal. 8 ShameWhere shame comes from, how it isolates us, and how grace answers it. 9 Identity and the True SelfWho you are beneath performance, false stories, and other people's expectations. 34 Burnout and LimitsBusyness, exhaustion, burnout in justice work, and the gift of human limits. 20 Joy and CelebrationJoy, play, and celebration as spiritual practice and as resistance. 12 HopeHope that names what is wrong and keeps working, even when the news is bad. 27 HealingJesus' healing stories, why healing does not always come, and healing as restoration to community. 13 Small Acts and Ordinary LifeWhy small, faithful acts and ordinary days matter when you can't see results. 11
How we treat each other
Loving God and NeighborThe greatest commandment, and why love of neighbor, enemy, and self has no exceptions. 7 Grace and MercyGod's lavish, sometimes annoying, mercy toward everyone. 22 Sin and TemptationWhat sin is, how temptation works, and how God sets us free. 12 Forgiveness and RepairConfession, repentance, forgiveness, amends, and repairing harm. 17 Conflict and AccountabilityHealthy challenge, correction, and holding one another accountable in love. 9 Enemies and DivisionUs-versus-them thinking, and how religion gets used to make enemies. 15 Power and HumilityAmbition, self-emptying, and the kind of power Jesus uses. 29 Peace and NonviolenceShalom, the nonviolent way of Jesus, and a gospel of peace. 12
Church and community
Community and BelongingWhy we gather, what real community costs, and friendship with one another. 44 Hospitality and WelcomeWho gets invited to the table, and the early church learning that everyone gets to play. 37 Family and Chosen FamilyThe families we come from, the families we choose, and the patterns we carry from both. 14 Singleness and MarriageSingle life, marriage, and partnership, and a church where people belong whether or not they marry. 5 Mission and WitnessHow the church joins God's work in the world without conquest or coercion. 23 The Table ChurchOur story, mission, and values as a church in Washington, DC. 24
Justice and liberation
Racial JusticeRacism, white supremacy, repair, and the work of racial reconciliation and justice. 27 Black Theology and the Black ChurchBlack theology, spirituals, hush harbors, and Afrofuturism as resources for liberation. 16 Theologies from the MarginsAsian American, womanist, queer, Latinx, and Indigenous theologies, and why the 'default' theology was never neutral. 8 LGBTQ InclusionQueer and trans people in Scripture and the church, and the passages used against them. 19 Gender and PatriarchyWomen's leadership, the submission passages, masculinity, and language for God beyond gender. 18 Sexuality and the BodySex, desire, body image, and an embodied faith, approached without shame. 13 DisabilityDisability as part of human diversity, and churches that make room for every body. 7 Money and Economic JusticeWealth, poverty, Jubilee, and an economy of enough. 27 Generosity and GivingGiving, stewardship, and how a church funds its shared life. 14 Empire and ResistanceFaithful resistance to empire, from Pharaoh to Rome to Washington. 56 Christian NationalismChristian nationalism and supremacy, Christian Zionism, and antisemitism in the church. 7 Privilege and SolidarityMoving from allyship and centrism to solidarity with people on the underside of power. 27 Place and the CityWashington, DC, our neighborhoods, Indigenous land, and seeing place as holy ground. 9 Imagination and DreamingImagining a world that does not exist yet, as a spiritual and political act. 20