It’s time for a rest.
I’ve been writing this “Flunking Sainthood” column for 11 years now, first for Beliefnet and then for RNS. The only long-ish break I’ve taken during that time was a few months off when my mother died. Other than that, I’ve been providing religion news and analysis each week for over a decade now, and to be honest I’m feeling a bit worn out.
So I’m excited to announce that starting today, I’m scaling down my RNS presence for the summer. I’ll still pop in a couple of times a month, and there will be some guest columnists who help to keep the content fresh while I’m on hiatus.
What will I be doing during this time? A little bit of travel, a little post-COVID R&R. I’ll continue my research and writing about former Mormons. In fact, later this summer I will be launching a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for Wave 2 of the Next Mormons research, which will expand upon what we did with the first iteration of the survey five years ago, and also add Generation Z into the mix.
But the most important news is that I am going to become a grandma this summer! We’re excited to welcome my daughter’s baby boy into the family in July, and are counting the days. I don’t want to miss this precious time.
I plan to be back in early September with renewed energy and some fresh perspective. Until then, God bless you. I’m grateful for my readers. Many of you have contacted me through the years to thank me for my column and to share a bit of your own stories. It’s a privilege to get to know you through this space, and I’ll see you again here soon.