The Dangers of Christian “Marriage Worship”
I've written before about the seemingly contrasting messages we offer to young people in church about sex and sexuality: Sex is dirty; save it for someone you marry someday. Umm, what? Granted, we walk a narrow rhetorical tightrope when discussing sex with our kids. If we tell them it's actually pretty awesome, and then tell them they can't do it, that's a setup for failure. On the other hand, if we focus on the negatives, we risk scarring and shaming them into a life of emotional conflict … [Read More...]
Christian Culture, Chuck Norris, Uppity Bakers & Evil Portland (HBCultureCast)
After a two-week recording hiatus, the gang is back together, and Amy starts everything off with a harrowing story of survival and triumph of the human spirit at a female pastor’s retreat. Our guest this week is the very funny Stephanie Drury who blogs at Stuff Christian Culture Likes and also runs@FakeDriscoll on Twitter. We had a number of things to discuss, from Christian men who want women to dress more modestly to why Mark Driscoll is legitimately dangerous to the … [Read More...]
Elijah to the Baalites: “Your God Sucks!” (Heretic’s Guide Sampler)
Bible Cliff’s Notes (My dog ate my Bible!) First Reading 1 Kings 18:20-21, (22-29), 30-39 Elijah challenges the prophets of the god Baal to a standoff. Both will prepare offerings to their gods, and will call on them to consume the offerings with fire. Baal does nothing, much to the chagrin of his prophets, but the God of Abraham consumes the offering with fire. And Elijah kind of rubs their noses in it. Gospel Luke 7:1-10 Jesus heals a Roman soldier’s slave. The Jewish people … [Read More...]
Church Sign Epic Fails, “Fill Your Cracks” Edition
Pentecost is my favorite religious holiday, because all the good boys and girls get a visit from the Great Pentecost Lizard, who leaves magic droppings under their pillow. Ahh, memories... … [Read More...]
Five Questions with Sarah Thebarge, Author of “The Invisible Girls”
Sarah Thebarge is the author of The Invisible Girls, a new memoir from Jericho Books. I was fortunate to get a few minutes to ask her a few questions about her touching, funny, compelling new piece of work. Q: Your book is about Somali Refugees and also about your survival of breast cancer. How do you write one book about both things? A: When I met the Somali mom and her girls on the MAX the first time, we had a lot of differences - different religions, ethnicities, skin color, … [Read More...]
The Absurdity of Legislating Sexual Morality
I used to joke that there was a glaring, if not largely ignored, loophole in all anti-prostitution laws across the United States. It seemed to me that, if any house of ill repute wanted easily to skirt the laws against money for sex, they simply needed to set up cameras in each boudoir and claim that the participants are making a movie. The fact is that laws about making sexually explicit films are sparse and largely unenforced. There is the so-called "2257 Regulations" that was supposed to … [Read More...]
Tales of a Male “Preacher’s Wife”
(This is excerpted from my full article featured this month in Sojourners Magazine and on the Sojourners website.) MY WIFE IS a pastor. Specifically, she’s the senior pastor of a prominent church in downtown Portland, Ore. I’m on staff too, but only part-time, and she enjoys telling people she’s my boss. Technically, I answer to the church board, but people get a laugh about the reversal of “typical roles.” I get my share of “preacher’s wife” jokes, to which I have a … [Read More...]
CultureCast: Game Church, Jason Collins & Amy on Driscoll
Our guest this week is Drew Dixon, the editor-in-chief of GameChurch.com. Drew talks to us about video games, and their value within faith and culture. Later, in the Echo Chamber, the gang discusses Jason Collins, the first NBA player to come out of the closet. Then we talk about Mark Driscoll, and his latest controversy, which involved talking about how blowjobs are biblical. Did he say anything about men performing oral sex on women? He did not. Christian is annoyed by that, and Amy thinks … [Read More...]
Hey, Wise Guy! (Heretic’s Guide Study for Sunday, May 26th, 2013)
This is a sampler of the full content offered at Heretic's Guide to the Bible. Click the banner above or below to connect with the full weekly studies, live chats, videos and a growing Heretic's Guide community. Bible Cliff’s Notes (My dog ate my Bible!) First Reading Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31 Wisdom (a feminine figure) longs to reach out and share her message with all people. The claims that she (wisdom) has been around since the forming of the universe. We were fashioned, or … [Read More...]
Church Sign Epic Fails, “Yo Momma” Edition
My mom struggled through nine months carrying me, hours of painful labor and a C-section just to bring me into the world. So I got her a card. I figure we're even. … [Read More...]
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