The following incident just happened less than thirty minutes ago. I walked down to the Country Garden Six-Pack to get some beer. While in line, a couple who were not wearing masks cut the line and started to crowd me at the register. I turned and stuck my arm out to create space and asked …
Author: Tattooed Theologian
Seminary educated theologian on a spiritual journey seeking to live out the truth of Jesus' teachings, and be an agent of Shalom in our world. Thy kindom come, thy will be done in heaven and so on Earth...Peace be with you.
America or Jesus?
When I was a child and into my high school years, I was made to say the "Pledge of Allegiance." This nationalistic pledge is still said in some schools today despite the fact that it is quite dangerous for anyone to say for a variety of reasons, which I will highlight below. For Christians, it …
Dear white people…
Dear white people, Hello, I'm Dillon, and if you're a white American, I am writing specifically to you. Like you, I am a white person in America. In fact, according to the two DNA tests I took a few years ago via Family Tree DNA, I am super-duper white. My test results showed that my …
Living Buddha, Living Christ
Recently, I had the opportunity to discuss a book that was seminal to my personal faith journey and deconstructing the fundamentalism I'd been a part of for multiple decades. The book is entitled, Living Buddha, Living Christ by Zen master Thich Naht Hanh. Join me and host Michelle Collins as we discuss orthopraxy, certitude, and …
Jubilee > Business as usual
Despite the dire warnings from public health officials and what is known from historians of earlier pandemics like the so-called "Spanish Flu" pandemic of one hundred years ago, there is a chorus of voices calling for states to reopen to economic activity. The current occupant of the White House has once again resorted to incendiary …
Podluck Podcast with Megan Westra
I recently recorded an episode of the Podlcuk Podcast with host Megan Westra. She graciously allowed me to get on a roll and once the train was moving, it was hard to stop. Click the link below to give it a listen. Going Golden with Dillon Naber Cruz
The Corona Apocalypse
Due to the Corona virus pandemic, the apocalypse is truly upon us, but not in the Left Behind series' way of misinterpreting scripture. Rather, the Corona apocalypse is revealing many aspects of the world we live in as they truly are. The word apocalypse means "unveiling" in its Biblical context and not some horrifying doomsday …
Grace in the time of Corona virus
This is a scary time and as someone with Complex PTSD, I am personally struggling with the stress and anxiety that the Corona virus pandemic is causing. It's hard to know whether to turn off the news and stay off of social media because it can be overwhelming to be inundated with the updates, or …
A Ruthian take down of purity culture?
Let's talk about sex.
Dr. King and intersectionality
Books have the power to profoundly impact our lives. In 2006, I found an audiobook copy of A Call to Conscience: The Landmark Speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr. at my local library. I had some familiarity with King’s work prior to listening to that book, and his autobiography in quick succession, but not much. Those two books changed all of that for me. He was of course a supremely gifted orator and it is a blessing to live in an age where his speeches have been preserved for future generations. Those speeches inform my personal theological stances and have stayed with me ever since.
One of the speeches in the collection truly stood out for me. It is one that likely got him into a good deal of trouble with those who maintain the Domination System in American political life because he was critical of U.S. foreign policy and…
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