Back in Baltimore! (But It's Not Over)

Well, today I flew from Denver to Baltimore. But don’t worry, my trip isn’t over. I just came back to get an award! That’s right, the (formerly) skinny boy from the Iron City is doing well for himself.

This is why I had to take a bus from Fairfield, Iowa to Denver, as I didn’t want to miss my flight. But I wanted to save the surprise.

I received third place in the Chandler Award, sponsored by the Religion Newswriters Association. The award recognizes excellence in religion reporting in print media among students, and I won for three articles I wrote while in grad school. They were:

1) Mormon missionary rock bands in Thailand. I wrote this while at an internship with the Associated Press in Bangkok. Due to a non-solicitation law passed in the 1980s, Mormon missionaries cannot go door-to-door, as they do in other countries. So, instead, they revived a rock group from the 1970s, which plays in malls and grocery stores, jamming in flawless Thai. Everyone loves them.

2) Gay issues causing churches to jump the Atlantic between Nigeria and America. This was something I wrote for The L Magazine in New York City. Many are familiar with the issues about gay inclusion in the Anglican Church and how some Nigerian clergy are inviting conservative American churches into their fold. But there’s also the Metropolitan Community Church, a historically gay-friendly American church which is also setting up shop in Nigeria. This article compared and contrasted the two movements.

3) Jesus for President. I wrote this for the Religion News Service, and it appeared in USA Today and the Washington Post, among other places. Basically, a former reporter in Rhode Island was curious what Jesus would want if he were a presidential candidate. But instead of deciding for us, the reporter created an online forum for the public to hash out issues.

Anyhow, I’m in Baltimore/D.C. for a week, to attend the Religion Newswriters Association’s annual conference, but I’ll be back on my bike next week.

Oh, I also just found out I received another award! The International Center for Journalists is sending me to Turkey this December and to somewhere else next year to report on modern trends in religion in the Islamic World. It’s through a program they have called “Faith in the Media,” which seeks to promote cross-cultural cooperation among journalists. Wish me luck.

Oh, and if you’ve noticed the lag in updates to my blog, it’s because my computer broke. In Iowa, of course. But I wrote all my notes down, and will be filling in blanks shortly.