Q : Ideas for the Common Good

Gospel

What Can We Do?

by Diane Langberg

It's the natural question after a disaster like yesterday's tornado in Oklahoma. Our hearts break for the hurting and the grieved. We want to reach out, to help. As citizens of planet earth we are regularly and often confronted with the problem of pain, with the reality of human suffering. Natural disasters occur with increasing frequency and force. The number of slaves in the world lingers at an unacceptably high number. Depression rates soar. Wars rage. In this challenging Q talk, Diane Langberg argues that trauma is perhaps the most important place for service and mission in the 21st century.

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Business

Organic Entrepreneurship

by Hans Hess

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Social Sector

Humility in the Time of "Me"

by David Brooks

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Social Sector

Confessions of a Funeral Director

by Caleb Wilde

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I take 40 mg of antidepressants each day. I’ve done so since my last dangerous bout with burnout some five years ago...

May is mental health month and it should come as no surprise that caregivers—those who are often on the frontlines of serving those suffering from mental illness, depression, grief and sickness—often find themselves in the midst of their own emotional battles.

Church

6 Ways Churches Should Be More Like Libraries

by Amy Simpson

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Public libraries in urban areas have often become de facto homeless shelters—and many have risen to the occasion, offering services to those who seek refuge there. These libraries are not only addressing a poverty crisis, they’re also addressing a serious mental-health crisis. Like libraries, churches are common points of contact for people in need, including those with mental illness—homeless or not. So what can churches learn from these pioneering libraries?

Business

Bravery vs. Ambition: Leaning Out, Not In

by Rebekah Lyons

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Virginia Woolf once wrote, “For most of history, Anonymous was a woman.” Lucky for us, Woolf’s words no longer ring true. Women are now showing up everywhere—from the marketplace to the church to the culture at large. They are finding their voice, evolving into a gender that resembles something more like a lion, and perhaps a bit less like a lamb.

Education

The Real Crisis in Higher Education

by Joseph Loconte

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A recent Pew Research Center poll found that 75 per cent of adults think higher education has become unaffordable — and most believe it's not worth the money. Liberals see a "student loan crisis" and denounce cuts in government spending on education. Conservatives, for their part, criticize the expansion of federal loan programs for encouraging inflated tuition rates and student indebtedness. Missing from the discussion, however, is meaningful talk about the fundamental purposes of higher education and how best to achieve them.

Social Sector

What Your Wife Really Wants for Mother's Day (That has Nothing to do with Being a Mom)

by Gabe Lyons

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The date is imminent. Mother’s Day Sunday is just around the corner. If you are like me, your mind races and stomach turns to try and plan a great day. Where should we eat the ideal lunch? Do we sit outside or in? Celebrate with just our family or others? Can I find the perfect gift? Yet over the past few years—even with my best laid plans—it hasn’t been enough. What she really wanted last Mother’s Day was a new kind of year ...

Arts + Entertainment

Day One of Q 2013, Los Angeles

by Q Ideas

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If there was a theme that emerged from opening day of Q LA, it was the idea of "constraint." What does it mean to be bound? How do limits, in fact, offer more freedom? Whether they intended to or not, each of the presenters spoke into this idea in their own way—offering a perspective on the creativity available within constraint. A round-up of Day One here at the 2013 Q Ideas conference in Los Angeles ...

Science + Tech

What Is Environmental Health?

by Lyndsay Moseley

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Many in our communities suffer from the rising air- and water-borne toxin levels in our local environments. From Asthma to Autism, one of the most hotly contested debates in the medical world today is, “How much does our polluted environment contribute to our diseases and sicknesses?” In this important Q panel, we’ll hear from two activists on the front lines of the conversations who help us understand our roles as creation stewards.

Government

Prayer as Politics?

by Jonathan Merritt

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Since 1952, the first Thursday of every May has been set aside as “The National Day of Prayer.” It’s the one day that everyone from politicians to pastors bow their heads to seek God on behalf of our nation.

Thousands will pause today to reflect on the importance of prayer—both in their own lives and in the great social arenas of our world today. Prayer is powerful and it has always characterized the "political" and social engagement of Christians ...

Media

Want to Talk to Non-Christians? Six Tips from an Atheist

by Chris Stedman

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While Christianity remains a majority, the West is becoming more pluralistic. As the religious dynamic of the country shifts, Christians must learn to have better interactions with people of other beliefs. Atheist and interfaith activist Chris Stedman offers these six outsider tips for how Christians can engage in constructive dialogue.

Cities

Public Faith in a Pluralistic Society

by Miroslav Volf

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Many Christians argue America (or Europe) needs to return to its Christian roots. Others will contend a secular society is the only truly free one. In this Q talk, Miroslav Volf argues that neither really works—because both stem from misunderstandings about human flourishing, abundant living and co-existing alongside others. He explains how pursuing the common good in a pluralistic context doesn’t mean compromising our deeply held convictions.

Gospel

When Christians Have Power

by Andy Crouch

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The word “power” often brings to mind the image of a mighty dictator or rolling tank, marble floors and wealthy exuberance. Power in our world is synonymous with force, violence, and poorly wielded influence. But could power mean something different? Something more redeeming? Andy Crouch asks what it would mean, as Christians, to wield power well ...