iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 20h

Ideologues and partisans differentiate themselves by the kinds of people they are most willing to kill. Christians distinguish ourselves by our dedication to everyone's right to live.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

"Whether by omission or commission, the forces of racial division, antipathy, and dehumanizing exploitation depend on the participation of sinful people like me." buttondown.com/david.w.swan...

buttondown.com

Pendulums and Repentance

Choosing solidarity by jumping into the fray

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

As people are treated like machines and machines are imagined as people, as we are increasingly desperate for spaces to experience the sacred nature of our God-given humanity, may our churches double-down on the embodied, incarnate, and decidedly anti-machine nature of the Body of Christ.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Once, when traveling in England to advocate for racial equality back home, Ida B. Wells was asked what the world-renowned evangelist D.L. Moody had done to advocate against the white lynch mobs terrorizing Black U.S. citizens.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

These are the two books I think about every single time another tech leader warns about the existential risks posed by A.I. while simultaneously developing the technology as quickly as possible.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Next month I'll begin facilitating a preaching cohort with Charlie Dates. "The Prophet in the Pulpit" is designed to equip preachers to build sermons that courageously proclaim the gospel in the face of injustice while faithfully illuminating scriptures. Info: wheatonbillygraham.com/preaching-in...

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

I've seen it again and again during my years in ministry– the malformed intuition that a person must choose between God's righteousness and a commitment to justice. But as Charlie Dates writes in his new book, this separation couldn't be more wrong. 1/

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

I'm glad to be partnering with my friend Charlie Dates for this preaching cohort. Covering many of the basics of sermon preparation and delivery, we'll also focus on preaching God's heart for justice and righteousness. Learn more or register here: wheatonbillygraham.com/preaching-in...

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

"A break from being expected to say things about God can allow a pastor to be freshly destabilized by the reality of God." My sabbatical begins tomorrow and this is one of the things I'm most looking forward to. buttondown.com/david.w.swan...

buttondown.com

The Hazards of God-Talk

The sabbatical invitation to say less

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

Our nonprofit is hiring part-time and full-time positions! If you or someone you know is interested in working with some incredible young people as we pursue healing, reconciliation, and flourishing, take a look: Staff: drive.google.com/file/d/1-ZK1... Lead: drive.google.com/file/d/1-ZK1...

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

God's good, pleasing, and perfect will does not choose between social structures or personal piety. We embrace justice and holiness because Jesus is Lord of all.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

Wearing my A Rocha USA hat while watering the New Community Outreach gardens. Love that I get to support these two incredible organizations! newcommunityoutreach.org arocha.us

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 24/05/2026

It's become our church's tradition on Pentecost to trade the sermon for a two-block walk to a local elementary school where we pray over the gardens that we'll spend the summer tending and harvesting. Grateful for a church that is willing to leave the building to pray... even in a bit of rain!

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 23/05/2026

"As we reclaim our God-desired agency over the small decisions, gentle words, and generous actions which make up a human life, we find that we are not as helpless before the systems of violence as we were led to believe." buttondown.com/david.w.swan...

buttondown.com

We Are Not Helpless

Reclaiming agency in a catastrophic age

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 23/05/2026

President Trump is still a racist, misogynist, liar, and thief. Christians will pray for the man's repentance and speak truthfully about him until he does.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

Those who aren't grieved by the persistent assault on Black citizenship have proven themselves profoundly unsafe.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

Church folks: Is there any way your pastor could use AI for sermon preparation that would be OK with you?

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

I recently had the privilege of preaching for a seminary commencement. I spoke about the temptation of relevancy we pastors face. "A Christianity that has appropriated the tools of consumer capitalism expects measurable and impressive results from its ministers." buttondown.com/david.w.swan...

buttondown.com

The Irrelevant Pastor

The expression and experience of vocational weakness

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

Wisdom is differentiating between the willfully and the honestly ignorant. Those whose ignorance comes honestly deserve our patience. We've each been among this group and our growth came through someone's patience with us. But to those whose ignorance is chosen we can only offer our boundaries.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

The amount of emotional, relational, and physical harm AI companies are willing to expose their users to is... telling. Behind their utopian propaganda is a vision of humanity that is profoundly inhumane. www.reuters.com/legal/litiga...

reuters.com

Waymo recalls 3,800 robotaxis over risk of entering flooded roads

Waymo said on Tuesday it is recalling about 3,800 robotaxis in the United States after identifying a ‌risk that vehicles could enter flooded roads with higher speed limits, raising safety concerns.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

There were so many warblers in Jackson Park this morning, though most of them were too busy hunting snacks to pose. Thanks to the palm warbler, song sparrow, and blue-gray gnatcatcher for hanging out for a bit.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

Each year our church's nonprofit org offers a seven-week Summer Leadership Program for young people in our community. It's an amazing (paid!) program and it's so encouraging to watch the students grow as leaders throughout the summer.... newcommunityoutreach.org/programs/key...

newcommunityoutreach.org

KEY Summer Leadership Program - New Community Outreach

KEY Summer Leadership Program

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

"It's about states' rights," said the White Citizens' Council back then. "It's about political redistricting," says MAGA today. But Jim Crow is always about racism. Same as it ever was.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 06/05/2026

Before taking office, Trump pressured Republicans to kill a bipartisan immigration bill. Now, despite GOP majorities, no immigration legislation has been advanced. For the president and his supporters, immigration is not a challenge to compassionately resolve but an opportunity to cruelly exploit.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

The relentless efforts to disenfranchise Black citizens – the SAVE Act, the dismantled Voting Rights Act, etc. – expose how terrifying Black freedom remains to white power.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

Multiracial democracy is the dream. White supremacist autocracy remains the reality.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

After the stillness of winter, it's always such a lift to hear the birdsong return to Jackson Park. Thanks to the ruby-crowned kinglets, white-throated sparrows, yellow-rumped warblers, and all the others who joined me for my walk this morning.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

It's an old and predictable tactic: powerful people who distort and vilify nonviolent resistance to distract from their own violent aggression. Don't get distracted. Motivated by love, keep seeking and speaking the truth.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

"The authoritative leader...displaces the rule of law and 'common' sense to become the quixotic judge of what is just or unjust, truth or lie, in each moment." - Shoshana Zuboff

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

To those who value efficiency and power, the work we’ve given ourselves to will typically appear foolish and weak. buttondown.com/david.w.swan...

buttondown.com

The Crowd Has Departed

Re-imagining reconciliation when others have moved on

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

Happy Earth Day, friends. Don't let anyone tell you to pick between your care for the environment and your commitment to racial justice. www.ivpress.com/plundered

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

Such a gift to spend the weekend in beautiful Seattle, but I'm glad to be home for a walk through Jackson Park to welcome back migrators like these yellow-rumped and palm warblers.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

To paraphrase Abraham Joshua Heschell, a prophet is distinguished by the ability to hold the righteousness of God and the frailties of humanity "in a single thought." Though it rarely ends well for those with this both-and call, our either-or churches and culture desperately need their voices.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 18/04/2026

"But if inevitabilism is an invention than it isn’t inevitable. Altman’s version of utopia isn’t a foregone conclusion, even if his investors want us to think it is." buttondown.com/david.w.swan...

buttondown.com

Against Inevitability

The future has not been foreclosed

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

The old saints used to sing, "I will trust in the Lord... I'm gonna treat everybody right... I'm gonna stay on the battlefield... I'm gonna stay on bended knee... until I die!" God, give our generation this kind of enduring faith.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

"Mrs. Long-Sullivan kept little treasures — like dolls or toy cars — in her backpack to give to kids for birthdays and other special occasions." When they were younger, my sons were the recipients of these little generosities. She will be missed.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

“The problem with a vision of a violent Jesus who justifies our warmongering is not that it makes our Savior too powerful; it makes him weak, embarrassingly weak.” buttondown.com/david.w.swan...

buttondown.com

Jesus Doesn't Need Our Weapons

Rejecting a violent vision of our Savior

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

A people committed to the singular lordship of Jesus Christ will always provoke the empire's fearful and violent response. www.thedailybeast.com/trump-offici...

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 07/04/2026

A beautiful morning in Jackson Park made even better by the cherry blossoms and the first palm warbler of the season.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 18/02/2026

Over the years I've landed on a few social media boundaries that have been helpful in keeping these spaces in their proper places: - no SM before breakfast or after dinner - no SM on my phone (IG is off unless I've recently posted) - SM breaks for Advent and Lent

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 17/02/2026

The song sparrows and cardinals were singing enthusiastically this morning.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 16/02/2026

Studying Revelation 13 for Sunday's sermon: A violent, blasphemous, power-hungry empire animated by Satan and legitimized by deceptive religion. "Let anyone who has an ear listen." (13:9)

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

Heading out for a few days with the amazing A Rocha USA board. A Rocha's mission is to live out God’s calling to care for creation and equip others to do likewise. Learn more here: arocha.us

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 11/02/2026

At this point, people who deny the presidential administration's white supremacist assumptions and aims are either willfully ignorant or quietly supportive. The evidence is simply to overwhelming to deny.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 10/02/2026

I got to hangout with this little downy woodpecker for a few minutes during this morning's sabbath walk through Jackson Park.

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

Yesterday during worship I invited our kids to reflect on the racist video posted by the president earlier in the week. I said that the video was racist because it treated a group of people as less-than human than other people. 1/

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 08/02/2026

What's everybody bringing to the Super Bowl party? I'm gonna try my hand at this... cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1025...

cooking.nytimes.com

Jalapeño-Corn Dip (Published 2024)

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David W. Swanson @davidwswanson.bsky.social · 07/02/2026

Reminds me of the Minneapolis pastor who told me about the guy in his church who has started a door-replacement ministry for all the doors ICE agents have kicked in.

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