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	<title>The Thoughtful Pastor</title>
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	<link>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/</link>
	<description>A pastor ponders life, death, hope, despair, theology and the nature of God</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:34:27 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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		<title>Money Can&#8217;t Buy Me Love . . . Or Class</title>
		<link>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/04/16/money-cant-buy-love-class/</link>
					<comments>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/04/16/money-cant-buy-love-class/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Christy Thomas]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:34:27 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Christianity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[class]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[entitlement]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HOA]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[neighbors]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://admin.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/?p=9475</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Yep, money can’t buy us class . . . or peace . . . or even agreement over aging trees and eroding beaches, all of which are part of living in a world where everything changes, everything ages, and disruptive new births are essential for continuing life and health.

One of my moments of sadness over the state of humanity. We’ve reduced ourselves to slogging through the stench of mud-slinging, crass, classless, expletive-laden tirades, starting at the top and permeating every aspect of society.

Folks, we can be better than this. And it can start with us.]]></description>
		
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			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
			</item>
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		<title>Hate And Curse Or Bless And Curse Not: You Choose</title>
		<link>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/03/30/how-do-we-fight-hate/</link>
					<comments>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/03/30/how-do-we-fight-hate/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Christy Thomas]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 30 Mar 2026 17:04:29 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Bible]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[religion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[same-sex marriage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sanctuary]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[schism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[schooling]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[science]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SCOTUS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[secrecy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[separation of church and state]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sexism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sexuality]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iranian war; Pete Hegseth]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/?p=7261</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[This is the eternal question: how do we fight hate? How especially do we fight hate when people claim that “God” has directly told them that murder, genocide and destruction are divinely sanctioned? A terrorist act inspired by hate A number of years ago, a horrific terrorist attack left multiple people dead and wounded in [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
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			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>I Murder Wasps: How Is This Different Than Bombing Iran?</title>
		<link>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/03/14/murder-wasps-different-bombing-iran/</link>
					<comments>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/03/14/murder-wasps-different-bombing-iran/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Christy Thomas]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 15 Mar 2026 02:01:15 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[religion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iran war]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[right-wing evangelical]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[wasps]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://admin.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/?p=9667</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[How do we decide when an opinion or action “may” be threatening to our very existence? When is the first strike the most legitimate choice? What about the harm that such a first strike causes to the innocent? How does one measure and manage the collateral damage?]]></description>
		
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			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
			</item>
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		<title>The First Rose; The Easter Hope</title>
		<link>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/03/06/first-rose-easter-hope/</link>
					<comments>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/03/06/first-rose-easter-hope/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Christy Thomas]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sat, 07 Mar 2026 02:16:28 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Bible]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Christianity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Easter]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[darkness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hope]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[light]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Peggy Martin Rose]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://admin.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/?p=10286</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[We live in a world growing increasingly desperate for an Easter experience. The web of interconnectedness leaves none untouched by bombs falling thousands of miles away, or from the desperation of poverty just past our doorsteps. With innocents across the world murdered in cold blood, we, too often, see boastful bombast over thoughtful leadership.]]></description>
		
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			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
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		<item>
		<title>Religion and Immigration Redux: Some Things Never Change</title>
		<link>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/02/25/religion-immigration-redux-never-change/</link>
					<comments>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/02/25/religion-immigration-redux-never-change/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Christy Thomas]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 25 Feb 2026 22:21:02 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Christianity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[religion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[immigration]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://admin.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/?p=11107</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[A knee-jerk reaction to current immigration problems will only hurt us in the long run. Let us be both Christian in our hospitality and faithful to our national heritage by offering open borders and reasonable ways for legal status. That is how we stay a great nation.]]></description>
		
					<wfw:commentRss>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/02/25/religion-immigration-redux-never-change/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Donald Trump, The New Adam, A Moral Coward</title>
		<link>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/02/14/donald-trump-new-adam-moral-coward/</link>
					<comments>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/02/14/donald-trump-new-adam-moral-coward/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Christy Thomas]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sat, 14 Feb 2026 19:39:21 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Christianity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Adam]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Barton Swaim]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[coward]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Donald Trump]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Epstein files]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://admin.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/?p=10391</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Donald Trump saw it, and he remained silent--thus perpetuating the sin of the first man, the first moral coward. Let’s call it for what it is: If you choose to protect the rich and powerful over the young and vulnerable, you have earned the wrath of hell.]]></description>
		
					<wfw:commentRss>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2026/02/14/donald-trump-new-adam-moral-coward/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Forget The &#8220;Do-Overs&#8221;&#8211;Find New Mercies Instead</title>
		<link>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2025/12/30/forget-do-overs-find-new-mercies/</link>
					<comments>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2025/12/30/forget-do-overs-find-new-mercies/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Christy Thomas]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Tue, 30 Dec 2025 17:39:20 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[betrayal]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Christianity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[religion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Lamentations 3]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new mercies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new years resolutions]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://admin.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/?p=9669</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Most of us look for security in all sorts of human institutions, including church, family, economics and politics. But we will not find it in those places or anywhere else. When I make security the primary driver of life, I immediately move to the worship of money and things. I then become resistant to God, to change, to new mercies, and to the needs of others. Fear shuts me down.]]></description>
		
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			</item>
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		<title>The Christ Mass And The Winter Solstice Confusion</title>
		<link>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2025/12/15/the-christ-mass-and-the-winter-solstice-confusion/</link>
					<comments>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2025/12/15/the-christ-mass-and-the-winter-solstice-confusion/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Christy Thomas]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 15 Dec 2025 18:10:30 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Christianity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[religion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Christ Mass]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[human evil]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[winter solstice]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://admin.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/?p=9635</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[The time of our northern hemisphere Winter Solstice marks the time of the southern hemisphere Summer Solstice. While those of us north of the equator watch for the longest night, those in the southern hemisphere see the year’s longest day. The winter solstice this year takes place on Sunday, December 21, 2025, at exactly 10:03 [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
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			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Musk, Robots, And The Care Of The Dying</title>
		<link>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2025/12/06/musk-robots-care-dying/</link>
					<comments>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2025/12/06/musk-robots-care-dying/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Christy Thomas]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sat, 06 Dec 2025 16:50:04 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dying]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Elon Musk]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[end-of-life care]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Optimus]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://admin.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/?p=9504</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[I guess because dying is messy and sometimes smelly and often emotionally painful, care of those at the end of life should be punted to the local robot, rather than draining energy from us superior beings. “Optimus will take on the duties usually performed by various health personnel for end-of-life care.” Now, “Optimus” is a [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
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			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>I Just Said NO To God</title>
		<link>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2025/10/05/just-said-no-to-god/</link>
					<comments>https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/2025/10/05/just-said-no-to-god/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Christy Thomas]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 05 Oct 2025 20:00:26 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Christianity]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thoughtfulpastor/?p=18015</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[I often wonder how many in the Evangelical world, particularly the female portion, have been afflicted with autoimmune diseases. I suspect answers would shock many—but not enough to change the essential message or carefully examine the toxicity of the core theology. Instead, the male leadership would only double down on the idea that women should not be in spiritual leadership roles—clearly, we are too weak to handle their so-called absolute truths—the ones that keep them in absolute power.]]></description>
		
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