My Christianity Today Piece: Pastoring in the Age of Deconstruction

Another day, another dream

Hello my friends,

This past week, CT ran a piece I wrote on pastoring the deconstructing. I think it turned out really well. I believe I’ve made this link a free gift, so there shouldn’t be a paywall. But I’ve known to be wrong before! Enjoy :)

Here’s a preview:

The first time I heard the term, I was a campus minister at the University of Missouri. I figured I knew how to respond to it. But after several dozen conversations with deconstructing college students, it became clear: I didn’t have the tools to help these students re-engage with Jesus.

Often, students would raise fairly typical objections to Christianity in these conversations, and I had fairly typical answers to their questions. Sometimes, I could tell these answers landed well. It was exactly what they needed—a clear, compassionate answer to their doubts.

But for others, something wasn’t clicking. I’d offer my gracious, rational answers to their questions, but it just wasn’t working. By “not working,” I don’t mean the student was unconvinced—I mean they were simply unmoved. They’d often say something like, “Yeah, I get what you’re saying.” But their expression said something else:“You didn’t hear the heart behind my question.”

Again, here is the gift link.