Author Archives: Philip E Jenks

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About Philip E Jenks

Philip, a synodical deacon in the ELCA Metropolitan New York synod, is a retired communicator for American Baptist Churches USA, the U.S. Conference for the World Council of Churches, the U.S. National Council of Churches, and two Philadelphia area daily newspapers. He and his spouse, the Rev. Dr. Martha M. Cruz, are the parents of six adults and are members of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Rye Brook, N.Y. They live in Port Chester, N.Y.

Grandpa, What Was Print Media?

Posted on July 29, 2018 by Philip E Jenks

July 29, 2018 – A few years ago my oldest grandson asked what I had done in the Air Force and his father told him I had used a typewriter. “What’s a typewriter?” he asked. Now before my youngest grandson … Continue reading →

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An Unplanned Conversation with Julian Bond

Posted on July 26, 2018 by Philip E Jenks

Among the decaying newsprint clippings I discovered in the attic this weekend was a February 20, 1970 issue of The Spotlight, the student newspaper of Eastern Baptist College. Headlining the issue was an exclusive interview with Georgia legislator Julian Bond … Continue reading →

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Odyssey of a Would-Be Cartoonist, Part 6

Posted on July 23, 2018 by Philip E Jenks

Eastern Baptist College, Part 4 As is the case with most institutions, the faculty is the heart and core of the student experience.

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Odyssey of a Would-Be Cartoonist, Part 5

Posted on July 23, 2018 by Philip E Jenks

Eastern Baptist College, Part 3 Either despite or because of the tenor of the times, the spiritual dimension of life at Eastern was never lost.   And the theological discourse was rarely tame.  

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Odyssey of a Would-Be Cartoonist, Part 4

Posted on July 23, 2018 by Philip E Jenks

Eastern Baptist College, Part 2

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Odyssey of a Would-Be Cartoonist, Part 3

Posted on July 23, 2018 by Philip E Jenks

Eastern Baptist College July 23, 2018 – I spent barely six months at McConnell AFB, Kansas, from February to August 1968. It was the briefest and, in some ways, the most educational period of my Air Force experience. As a … Continue reading →

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The Lutheran Peacemaker

Posted on July 3, 2018 by Philip E Jenks

July 4, 2018 – Independence Day need not be devoted entirely to martial marches and soldierly invocations. Even our founding parents envisioned it as a day that should be celebrated in peace. In 1971, as an ex-GI engaged in the … Continue reading →

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Shining Light on Luther by Standing in his shadow

Posted on June 25, 2018 by Philip E Jenks

June 25, 2018, Feast Day of Philip Melanchthon, 1497-1560 Martin Luther’s friend and supporter, Melanchthon honed and refined Lutheranism as we know it today. With Luther he joined in the denunciation of indulgences, excessive saint worship, the sacrament of penance, … Continue reading →

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John and John

Posted on June 15, 2018 by Philip E Jenks

I knew I understood Blackie Ryan, a fictional priest who appears in 17 novels by Father Andrew Greeley, because he esteemed three great Johns in his youth: John Unitas, John Kennedy, and John XXIII. I was never much into Unitas, … Continue reading →

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White Russians and Yeltsin in the Wings

Posted on May 31, 2018 by Philip E Jenks

May 31, 2018 – A year ago this month, the safety of secret Soviet spies Elizabeth and Philip Jennings, posing as middle-class Americans in the U.S., was assured by none other than the World Council of Churches. Elizabeth and Philip … Continue reading →

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