Blog

How to Hold a Community Group During a Pandemic

The 2020 pandemic need not preclude Community Group meetings. We can, of course, use Zoom.us, as we do for our regular meetings. The advantage is that Zoom is not limited by distance; the disadvantage is that it is a bit impersonal...

Why the Secular Should Care About Religion

I am fairly middle of the road when it comes to my agnosticism. That being said, I’m not apathetic about religion or belief in God – what some have dubbed “apatheism.” I actually see the topic of God’s existence to be relevant and important...

Reflecting on Community Groups

As the Fall 2019 community groups start wrapping up, I wanted to reflect upon the whole experience. I’ve been coming to Oasis for a long time, long enough to remember when we fit into a much, much smaller room.

Irene

Dad and Irene, his first wife, grew up in Sylvester, TX, a small, dusty, West Texas town with no more than a few hundred people in the whole county. Dad never talked about Irene.

The Dog Park: A Day at Oasis

The doggie daycare looked like heaven compared to my lawn which was full of brambles and weeds. Through the fence I could see a perfectly manicured yard, a little obstacle course for the hounds to run through, a doggie pool where a golden retriever shook his coat freely, with almost a wry smile only a happy puppy could give...

Presenting the Oasis Care Team

The strength of any community is dependent on shared vision, trust and support. With that in mind, we have formed a Care Response Team. The Oasis Care Response Team is dedicated to overseeing secular celebrations of life as well as being actively present in times of need.

What is your Argument Really About? Working Toward Understanding

Everybody has had a “I said this,” “you said that” argument in their life. I would dare to say that it is the most common form of argument that a person has. When we are communicating to somebody, we are confident we formed the clearest possible sentences and that the other person understands us completely...

A Review: Wholly Family -- The Humans, Faith, and Knowing

The Humans by Stephen Karam played at The Alley Theater in Houston on March 1-24. This complicated family drama follows the Blake Clan, an Irish-Catholic family, on a Thanksgiving holiday as they help their youngest daughter, Bridgid, move into her new Chinatown duplex apartment in New York with her boyfriend, Richard.

Finding Purpose in an Increasingly Automated World

There has been a lot of discussion about automation, artificial intelligence, and how technology in general will impact our future. Most of these discussions are centered on concerns of how income and wealth will be distributed when only a small fraction of humanity can be meaningfully employed.

How are You Doing? Do You Need Anything?

"How are you doing? Do you need anything? Those questions still throw me back into the first hazy, grainy days after my husband, Bruce, died very suddenly November 22, 2017 from double pulmonary embolisms.

Finding Your Tribe

Every four years, the world slows to a standstill to watch 22 grown men chase after a ball. The World Cup provides drama and pageantry, but is there something truly special about sweaty individuals with muscular thighs trying to kick a ball through a rectangle?

The Limits of Compassion

A community of reason and compassion. That is how we describe the Houston Oasis Community. It’s an encapsulation of the community’s core values. Yet beneath this simple expression lies complexity and ambiguity...