Unemployed Theologian

Happy first day of Pride everyone. At least, I hope it's happy for y'all. I genuinely do. Unfortunately, it just can't be for me this year. That would be setting an unfairly high expectation for myself.  My Pride this year will be one steeped in grief, and not just because our far right authoritarian government continues its seemingly unimpeded assault on me and people like me. No, the primary wellspring of my grief this year is the sudden and devastating loss of my beautiful mother, Marilyn. My mom was the best possible mom I could have ever hoped for. She was my biggest fan, and the only person in the world constitutionally incapable of judging me. While some of my peers inherited from their parents a self-critical streak born of parental disapproval or the withholding of affection, all my mom ever gave me was a genuinely unconditional love that instilled within me an unshakeable belief in my own talents and abilities. My sister Marlie and I often joke that, while it'...

Many of last year’s best movies resonated in some powerful way with our current cultural and political moment, in which our most disenfranchised neighbors have become outright targets of a fascist authoritarian regime. I’m Still Here , for example, provided a snapshot of life under a similar US-backed far right dictatorship, while Wicked depicted a fantasy-tinged allegorical version of the same. Rebel Ridge, Nickel Boys and Sing Sing all shed light on the deeply-rooted racism of our criminal justice system, and A Real Pain explored the generational trauma visited upon victims of government violence. Thelma and The Beekeeper foregrounded our neglect of the elderly, The Substance and The First Omen each told a twisted feminist parable about our world’s grotesque mistreatment of women’s bodies, and The Brutalist found itself in strange company with Problemista for their portrayals of the surreality of the American immigrant experience. Each of these stories, in its way, speaks me...

Intro: What a great year at the movies! Best since 2019, if you ask me! I always try to get my best-of list out before the Oscars air, wondering whether my friends and loved ones will bother watching the broadcast, but so many high profile movies were nominated this year that people may actually tune in! Anyway, here are my favorite movies from 2023, starting with my honorable mentions (paired by theme): Honorable Mentions: Wes Anderson’s Short Films - Not feature-length, but together, a stunning accomplishment They Cloned Tyrone/No One Will Save You - Excellent sci-fi streamers out of nowhere Scream 6/Evil Dead Rise - Late-in-franchise horror sequels that continue to rock Saltburn/Priscilla - Vibes movies about tiny people caught in Jacob Elordi’s massive orbit Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves/Maestro - IYKYK No Hard Feelings/You Hurt My Feelings - Comedies about feelings! The Killer/John Wick 4 - Assassins on a rampage with mixed results Suzume/Nimona - GREAT year in anim...

I came out five years ago today.  In many ways, the world feels more dangerous for people like me now than it was five years ago. Bathroom bills, “don’t say gay'' hysterics, pundits calling for the eradication of transgenderism from public life, politicians making hay by scapegoating LGBTQ+ people at every opportunity, queer adults being called “groomers” and “pedophiles” for simply living their lives in public, or for no reason at all. Incidentally, you should check in with your gay, bi, and (especially) trans friends; they’re very likely exhausted. I know I am. I left vocational ministry because I knew it would be neither safe nor possible for an out queer man like myself to make a living in that world, especially in Springfield, Oregon. Not because I ever lost my drive or doubted my calling, but because I knew that my brothers and sisters in faith would never allow for the possibility. That I would be seen as dangerous, even predatory, for simply wanting to work with kids, d...

2022 was the first movie year since the pandemic that started to feel more like what came before. Finally, the movies being released (with one notable exception in Top Gun) weren’t holdovers from the before-times, delayed to maximize profits; rather, they were new and exciting stories, many released to theaters, and some even managed to make a little money. Overall it was a pretty-good-verging-on-great movie year, with lots to recommend, so for my honorable mentions I decided to pair movies with some thematic connection together. Then, as always, my top 25. I’ll be grateful to finally put this movie year behind me, if only so I can start catching up on what I’ve already missed in 2023! Hello Cocaine Bear! Honorable Mentions: Chip ‘n Dale/Apollo 10 ½ - Underrated animated films in a year full of great ones Not Okay/Do Revenge - Messy young women being messy She Said/Causeway - Harrowing, female-led dramas The Menu/The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent - Rich people are crazy X/Pearl -...