Am I too old for this?
In a few weeks, I will celebrate birthday number 75. I am planning a party, and more about that below; but right now, I am thinking, is it too late for me to engage the struggle for a democracy that serves all of us and a religion inspired by the words and deeds of Jesus?
In 2016, I retired with my wife to St. Simons Island in Georgia. It is a terrific place, a mixture of beach and marsh, just minutes from Jekyll Island and its first-class croquet court. But it is a long way from Kentucky where I still had family responsibilities; so, I sought out a halfway place and found it in Hendersonville, North Carolina. There, the Providence Baptist Church needed a pastor, and I began a 43-month ministry. In month 40, we sold the house on the island and moved to an apartment in Travelers Rest, South Carolina, continuing my pastoral work from 30 miles away.
My pulpit work, however, came to an end with the last Sunday of 2024, pushed by my public response to the election of President Trump and my growing concern for the mass of Americans who had given up on church—40 million, some say: the de-churched, others name it. Seven days after my last sanctuary sermon in North Carolina, I launched Sunday in the House. It is my half-hour online broadcast on Facebook. For the first five Sundays, I did it solo, from our apartment, feeling my way forward week by week.
Frankly, I am the most unlikely person for this, as I am the most churched person I know. I like church: the music, the prayers, the preaching, the people. It has been my life for 74 years: in Kentucky, Missouri, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and North Carolina. And in South Carolina: after my 9 am broadcast, I am visiting churches here in Travelers Rest; there must be a dozen within walking distance.
It has taken me seven weeks to find my groove, so to speak: to get a feel for speaking to a scattered congregation without seeing their faces and hearing their voices. Especially because so many of them have given up on church, not the least because so many congregations capitulated to the MAGA movement that too often allows Trump to overshadow Jesus. In short, they are sick of a religious movement that pushes back against civil rights, women’s rights, gay rights, and the need to protect the environment and care for the poor, the sick, and the refugee.
These things, then, have shaped my preparation for Sunday mornings: for a warm and open welcome to whomever signs on, thoughtful responses to the many comments and questions that the program generates, a serious but short exposition of the words of Jesus (what we call the Red Letter Bible), and a strong critique of the MAGA version of Christianity and its complicity in the Trump Regime.
These are consequential times. It is too early to know whether a Christ-centered version of Christianity will survive or be swallowed up by the lust for power and privilege. It is too early to know whether democratic institutions and values will survive the onslaught led by people who also crave power, privilege, and wealth more than justice, equity, and righteousness.
Am I too old to engage this struggle?
Do I have enough energy and vision? Do I have enough emotional and mental strength? Do I have enough skill and discernment? Do I have enough support?
I did not identify all these questions in December, let alone answer them, before I launched full force into this new gospel venture. It just poured out of my soul, and I suppose that is one answer to my questions.
I call it Sunday in the House, a tip of the hat to the media platform I have used since 1998: The Meetinghouse Inc. It is a non-profit corporation, chartered in Kentucky, and recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)3 organization.
Which is, of course, one way you can help, by making a contribution to my work. I need to raise about $2,000 a month, and to that end, I am pushing forward with the strategy launched in 2020 and updated this month: to secure 75 donors, in honor of my 75th birthday. I hope to do this by the end of March as March 30 is my birthday, and March 29, a Saturday, is the day I am hosting a party: for family, friends, and donors.
Yesterday, I received a $25 donation from the 44th person to give since 2020, and another gave $500 to become #45. You can be number 46; you can help me reach 75; and you can attend the party on Saturday, March 29, here in Travelers Rest. You can also pray for me, that I will have the desire and the energy to stay in the struggle for a Jesus-centered faith and a democracy-focused nation.
God help us all, in these dramatic and traumatic times.
Subscribe to Dr. Moody’s weekly email newsletter, which includes his lead commentary, book reviews, updates on his Meetinghouse projects (like Sunday in the House) and other stuff. It’s free!
Am I too old for this?
In a few weeks, I will celebrate birthday number 75. I am planning a party, and more about that below; but right now, I am thinking, is it too late for me to engage the struggle for a democracy that serves all of us and a religion inspired by the words and deeds of Jesus?
In 2016, I retired with my wife to St. Simons Island in Georgia. It is a terrific place, a mixture of beach and marsh, just minutes from Jekyll Island and its first-class croquet court. But it is a long way from Kentucky where I still had family responsibilities; so, I sought out a halfway place and found it in Hendersonville, North Carolina. There, the Providence Baptist Church needed a pastor, and I began a 43-month ministry. In month 40, we sold the house on the island and moved to an apartment in Travelers Rest, South Carolina, continuing my pastoral work from 30 miles away.
My pulpit work, however, came to an end with the last Sunday of 2024, pushed by my public response to the election of President Trump and my growing concern for the mass of Americans who had given up on church—40 million, some say: the de-churched, others name it. Seven days after my last sanctuary sermon in North Carolina, I launched Sunday in the House. It is my half-hour online broadcast on Facebook. For the first five Sundays, I did it solo, from our apartment, feeling my way forward week by week.
Frankly, I am the most unlikely person for this, as I am the most churched person I know. I like church: the music, the prayers, the preaching, the people. It has been my life for 74 years: in Kentucky, Missouri, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and North Carolina. And in South Carolina: after my 9 am broadcast, I am visiting churches here in Travelers Rest; there must be a dozen within walking distance.
It has taken me seven weeks to find my groove, so to speak: to get a feel for speaking to a scattered congregation without seeing their faces and hearing their voices. Especially because so many of them have given up on church, not the least because so many congregations capitulated to the MAGA movement that too often allows Trump to overshadow Jesus. In short, they are sick of a religious movement that pushes back against civil rights, women’s rights, gay rights, and the need to protect the environment and care for the poor, the sick, and the refugee.
These things, then, have shaped my preparation for Sunday mornings: for a warm and open welcome to whomever signs on, thoughtful responses to the many comments and questions that the program generates, a serious but short exposition of the words of Jesus (what we call the Red Letter Bible), and a strong critique of the MAGA version of Christianity and its complicity in the Trump Regime.
These are consequential times. It is too early to know whether a Christ-centered version of Christianity will survive or be swallowed up by the lust for power and privilege. It is too early to know whether democratic institutions and values will survive the onslaught led by people who also crave power, privilege, and wealth more than justice, equity, and righteousness.
Am I too old to engage this struggle?
Do I have enough energy and vision? Do I have enough emotional and mental strength? Do I have enough skill and discernment? Do I have enough support?
I did not identify all these questions in December, let alone answer them, before I launched full force into this new gospel venture. It just poured out of my soul, and I suppose that is one answer to my questions.
I call it Sunday in the House, a tip of the hat to the media platform I have used since 1998: The Meetinghouse Inc. It is a non-profit corporation, chartered in Kentucky, and recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)3 organization.
Which is, of course, one way you can help, by making a contribution to my work. I need to raise about $2,000 a month, and to that end, I am pushing forward with the strategy launched in 2020 and updated this month: to secure 75 donors, in honor of my 75th birthday. I hope to do this by the end of March as March 30 is my birthday, and March 29, a Saturday, is the day I am hosting a party: for family, friends, and donors.
Yesterday, I received a $25 donation from the 44th person to give since 2020, and another gave $500 to become #45. You can be number 46; you can help me reach 75; and you can attend the party on Saturday, March 29, here in Travelers Rest. You can also pray for me, that I will have the desire and the energy to stay in the struggle for a Jesus-centered faith and a democracy-focused nation.
God help us all, in these dramatic and traumatic times.
Subscribe to Dr. Moody’s weekly email newsletter, which includes his lead commentary, book reviews, updates on his Meetinghouse projects (like Sunday in the House) and other stuff. It’s free!
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