Methodist Blogger Profile: Larry Hollon

Rev. Larry Hollon of Perspectives

Why do you blog?

I blog to share ideas with others and generate discussion of issues that I think are important to individuals of faith and to people in faith communities. Blogging is also a way to find my voice as an individual.

What has been your best blogging experience?

I think the best experience I’ve had is getting people into dialogue. I recently commented on a book by Michael Bugeja and he wrote to the blog. That was encouraging. I’d like to encourage more dialogue and, or course, more comments like this.

What would be your main advice to a novice blogger?

Probably my best advice is “do as I say, not as I do.” By that I mean I’m still trying to get it right. I’ve read advice to keep things simple. Keep posts short. Keep the tone upbeat. I work at this but sometimes I don’t achieve the balance I hope to achieve. Hugh Hewitt’s book “Blog: Understanding the Information Reformation That’s Changing Your World” is an excellent resource for novice bloggers. He says the tone of the blog should be inviting and friendly. That’s really good advice. I find it best to write when I’m able to be reflective and motivated. I enjoy blogs that reveal the passion of the writer, but this doesn’t necessarily mean the writer is angry. In fact, really nasty comments and personal attacks are a bit depressing to me and turn me off. It’s wise to write when you’re feeling a strong urge, but not when you’re angry, I think. When I write in anger I always overstate the case and say things that are not helpful. I enjoy reading blogs that are clear, meaningful and crisply written. I don’t think I’m the best model for this because I’m too wordy and too “heady” sometimes.

If you only had time to read three blogs a day, what would they be?

Dean Snyder is a super writer and clear thinker. Jay Voorhees is personal and honest in a way that’s both revealing and refreshing. Dr. Bruce Prescott at Mainstream Baptist also provides cogent commentary and solid information.

Who are your spiritual heroes?

Among living theologians and thinkers I admire Paul Jones and Tex Sample in the faith community. I try to read and understand Stephen Hawking in the world of physics (which doesn’t belong in the category of spiritual heroes, but theoretical physicists are discussing the question of how life began and some are attempting to find a bridge between science and religious concepts, so I’m including Hawking with this caveat). I still find Barth a challenge and I also find Tillich’s insights helpful even today. I think Bonhoeffer becomes more relevant to our time with each passing day. I also find the work of John Cobb helpful.

What are you reading at the moment?

Speak Peace in a World of Conflict, by Marshall B. Rosenberg; The Interpersonal Divide: The Search for Community in a Technological Age, Michael Bujega; Walking the Bible, Bruce Feiler.

What is your favorite hymn and why?

I have many. However, Ashley Cleveland has re-worked “Power in the Blood” to a rock sound and recently I’ve been re-playing this often.

Can you name a major moral, political, or intellectual idea on which you've ever changed your mind?

I’ve changed my mind on many issues over the years. I used to hold to a very rigid, dogmatic position with regard to the content of Christian faith. But I have come to believe that for me this is not a helpful understanding of the Bible, church history, or Christian tradition.

What philosophical thesis do you think is most important to combat?

The thesis that science and religion are incompatible.

If you could affect one major change in the governing of your country, what would it be?

I would like to see our nation governed by people who have a vision of global community that is based on proactive humanitarian policies similar to those that were demonstrated when Europe and Japan were re-built after WW II. I would like to be led by people who understand that poverty is the greatest threat to international security and who are committed to really attempting to end poverty. I would like to see leaders who create a fair global trading environment. And I would like to see leadership that attempts to end the destruction and pollution of the environment globally.

If you could affect one major policy change in the United Methodist Church, what would it be?

That we would re-focus on effective ministry with the poor, physically challenged and vulnerable, and develop the skills to carry out ministry with these people equal to our skills in ministering to our members who are middle class and upper middle class.

What would be your most important piece of advice about life?

Stay cool. Know that you belong to God. This is God’s world.

What, if anything, do you worry about?

The state of the church, world peace, the current state of consumer culture, global warming and our abuse of the environment; little things like that.

If you were to relive your life to this point, is there anything that you'd do differently?

I would learn more than one language. I would not play football as a youth. I would continue to play a musical instrument.

Where would you most like to live (other than where you do now)?

Someplace where the night sky is clear enough to allow me to see the planets, galaxies and nebulae through a telescope.

What do you like doing in your spare time?

Read, garden, walk, photography, astronomy.

What is your most treasured possession?

The word “treasured” throws me. I don’t think there is any one physical thing I can’t live without. But I do have some favorite things, a Nikon camera, vintage toy trains, keepsake mementos from family, handmade toys I’ve picked up from around the world.

What talent would you most like to have?

I wish I were a great country music harmonica player.

If you could have any three guests, past or present, to dinner, who would they be?

Present--David Brooks, Tex Sample, Mike McCurry

Past—Martin Luther King, Albert Einstein, Jesus (if he behaved himself and didn’t get too personal with me)