As I work though the 23rd year of this column, I will confess that column writing isn’t always an easy gig. It sometimes requires walking a fine line between expressing what I really think or simply spouting what entertains my reader.
As every columnist can testify, strong opinions can either sell papers or lose subscriptions.
If I play it too safe, I bore you. If I venture too far into religious or political topics, or share personal vulnerabilities and temptations, I run the risk of offending you.
That’s why I’ve made this 2025 New Year’s resolution.
I resolve that I will work harder this year to write with more authenticity. I won’t focus on the popular or how I might improve the ups and downs of my readership, but on writing authentically.
To that end, today’s column will preview upcoming topics of 2025 and how I see where God fits into politics, religion, family and personal struggles.
In politics, I will support voices of reason and grace. I don’t subscribe to the argumentative style of liberal commentators like Rachel Maddow or conservative ones like Ann Coulter. Instead of focusing on the noise level, I look for the truth and tone.
As a chaplain, I promise I won’t spout politics UNLESS, politicians start spouting religion.
Our social welfare system needs drastic reform. But from my end, I will promote faith groups that assume their responsibility to help the poor.
When it comes to gun control, I have no use for handguns, nor will I ever own a gun. However, if I felt the need to “protect” my home, I’d use the shotgun my pastor/dad used. He always said that a shotgun blast would either scare the intruder or stop him dead — all without killing a “friendly.”
Of course, I obviously have opinions about religion. For instance, if there’s a hell, Hitler is surely in it and Gandhi is certainly not. Heaven isn’t an exclusive country club. I won’t use my faith as a way to eternally divide people.
I love the Christian Bible, and I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came to reveal the entire truth about God. However, the Bible is not a final authority for history or science, and it’s certainly not an addendum to the Trinity. Meaning, I use the Bible in worship services, but I don’t “worship” the Bible.
I see abortion as a heartrending response to tragic problems. I will portray it in my columns as a decision between a woman and her doctor. BUT, while there are reasons for abortion, it ain’t birth control. I support adoption, and those who know my story, know I live that belief.
Finally, in my personal life, I can be selfish sometimes. I’ve lost my temper with my children, and I’ve known temptation and depression. I’ve told some off-color jokes and have even known inebriation. I’m not proud of everything I do, but my shortcomings help me write this column — a column about meeting God in everyday life.
But, at the end of the day when I put the final touches on this column, I leave the most authentic word to my friend Popeye who said: “I am what I yam what I yam … And I’ll never hurt nobodys and I’ll never tell a lie / Top to me bottom and me bottom to me top / That’s the way it is ’til the day that I drop. What am I? / I yam what I yam.”
Syndicated columnist Chaplain Norris Burkes began his chaplain career with both the active-duty Air Force and the Air National Guard until his retirement in 2014. He later served as a board-certified healthcare chaplain at Sutter Memorial, Kaiser, Methodist and Mather VA hospitals and continues to work with area Hospice. His column is syndicated to more than 35 accredited news outlets. Read past columns at www.thechaplain.net. Send comments to comment@thechaplain.net. Leave recorded comments at (843) 608-9715.
*Views expressed in published guest commentaries are those of the author or submitting organization and do not necessarily represent those of Folsom Times or All Town Media, LLC.
