The Cross & the Jukebox: Tammy Wynette’s “Stand By Your Man”

In this episode of Question and Ethics, I answer a question about dealing with a combative mentor. How are we to respond to accusations and vitriol from others? What are we to do when we are unjustly maligned, and how are we to respond? As we respond, we must be careful as we are confronting a person who thrives on conflict not to become the same type of person. Because we have a sense of the Judgement Day, and the fact that justice will eventually be done, we are freed from our need to seek judgement in the present age. The only caveat is that we should not, by our refusal to engage in needless controversies, confuse those who would think that our lack of engagement is an endorsement of the teaching or actions of the controversial person. Join me each episode as I walk through your questions and ethical dilemmas. You can submit your question to [email protected] (and I’ll never use your name unless you ask me to). I hope you’ll subscribe and leave a review or comment.

In this episode of Question and Ethics, I answer a question about my own crisis of faith. The question comes out of my writing about the generational crisis that is going on among young people leaving the faith and the tension that many are experiencing about the contradiction between what people read in the Bible and the Christian culture around them. Crises are not always a bad thing. They are the points that demand a decision and a moment of reflection. And the different types of crisis will demand a different response, whether of intellectual arguments or questions of authenticity and integrity. In all of these, we need not be afraid of the crisis, but rather trust the one who walks with us through it. Join me each episode as I walk through your questions and ethical dilemmas. You can submit your question to [email protected] (and I’ll never use your name unless you ask me to). I hope you’ll subscribe and leave a review or comment.

In this episode of Question and Ethics, I answer a question about marriage and Social Security benefits. I once thought that this was a niche or uncommon problem. However, there is a rising number of senior adults who are foregoing marriage because doing so will cost them their social security benefits. There is an understandable (though incorrect) thought process for many of them as they are looking at their financial situation which may be precarious, especially if they lack family support. And this is especially problematic given that the state is unfairly penalizing and disincentivizing marriage. However, there are reasons that we should discourage this practice and encourage these seniors to marry and enter into the accountability and truth-telling that comes with those vows. Just as I would say to young adults who worry about their finances before getting married, I would encourage senior adults to get married and the financial matters will work themselves out. And this is a place where the church can step in and help bear one another’s financial burdens so that we encourage holy marriage and proper accountability within the community. Join me each episode as I walk through your questions and ethical dilemmas. You can submit your question to [email protected] (and I’ll never use your name unless you ask me to). I hope you’ll subscribe and leave a review or comment.

In this episode of Question and Ethics, I answer a question about productivity. While not a moral question, it is a question that we all face in our lives as we have to face all the demands on our time and responsibilities. Though I’m less productive than people may think, and much of what looks like productivity is really just me doing what interests me, there are some practices that I have which are helpful for me. But I do have some advice for how to avoid the things that make me unproductive. Everything from perfectionism, imposter syndrome, and waiting for inspiration can hamper our calling and productivity.

In today’s episode of The Cross & the Jukebox, we talk about Vampire Weekend’s “Harmony Hall.” There is a dissonance between the dark lyrics of the song and the exuberance of the melody. Koenig’s lyrics speak to the way that anger can create a false sense of harmony, but also how that harmony can lead to injustice creating an incongruence between words and actions or a person’s public and private personas. Further, the imagery of the song points to some of the deepest longings in the human condition, especially the way that the pursuit of power can be the result of trauma and shame and end up replicating abuses of power. Though the temptation is to become cynical, Christians must instead recognize the pernicious effect of sin and at the same time not become apathetic to the injustice around us. Music Video: https://youtu.be/IlkTVMMkCP4 Join me each week as I think about some of my favorite songs. I hope you’ll subscribe and leave a review or a comment. Episode Notes Song Exploder Interview with Ezra Koenig: https://songexploder.net/vampire-weekend "Are We the Baddies?" Clip: https://youtu.be/hn1VxaMEjRU