Waking up to our evangelical roots For those who embrace it, evangelicalism represents a religious, social, and even political movement that is at the core of our collective moral well-being. For opponents, it is tantamount to a four-letter word. Historically, “evangelical” has been synonymous with “protestant.” In Europe, evangelical churches are distinguished from reform churches that follow in the footsteps of the likes of John Calvin, and subsequently Jonathan Edwards. Today, the term is associated with belief in the inerrancy... Read more

OK, the first two attempts to post this in different ways failed, so we’ll go with a good old fashioned link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzoNInZ2ClQ CDP Read more

If you’re interested, you might enjoy checking out the interview I did this morning with three LOST podcasters. They each have posted the interview on their respective sites (links can be found on www.christianpiatt.com on the “Interviews” page) and I’ve also posted the direct link to the feed if you want to go straight to it. You can also subscribe to at least one of the podcasts via itunes if you use that, so it will download to your MP3... Read more

‘Friends of God’ portrays church on warpath Alexandra Pelosi’s new HBO documentary, “Friends of God,” portrays dimensions of evangelical Christianity about which many of us have heard but may have never seen. Pelosi’s trek across (mainly southern) America is equally amusing and distressing. The documentary has particular relevance today, given that one of the principal figures in the piece is Ted Haggard, former pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs. Before getting caught in a tawdry scandal involving sex... Read more

Well, well, the creative team wasted no time in plot development during this episode. It appears, based upon the reatings on the Fuselage website, that most fans found this to be an excellent episode, and I tend to agree, with a qualification or two. First off, the brainwashing scene was great, smacking of Kubrick’s Clockwork Orange. I played that scene twice over at 1/4 scene to catch all of the snippets on the screen. I’m not exaclty sure, however, how... Read more

Piatt clearly not lost as he examines program’s meaning By AMY MATTHEW THE PUEBLO CHIEFTAIN Even though it permeates nearly every facet of our world, it’s easy to dismiss pop culture as irrelevant. True, it’s often nothing more than the most recent superficial fad, something that never will have true impact on our lives. Sometimes, however, something that appears to be a fad actually has depth. In his new book, “Lost: A Search for Meaning,” Pueblo author Christian Piatt explores... Read more

We’ve all witnessed the early political positioning of many likely presidential candidates for next year’s election. Most of the high-profile contenders so far are on the Democratic side, though several Republicans have thrown their hats into the ring. It’s amazing that a day doesn’t go by that we don’t hear something from one of the handful of frontrunners, causing me to wonder how sick of it all we’ll be by the time it’s all over, nearly two years from now.... Read more

Anyone who follows church politics knows that homosexuality is one of the most divisive religious issues we face. The Episcopal Church is on the brink of a national split, based principally on this issue. Meanwhile, just up the road, a mega-church is still reeling from the news that their leader engaged in some form of homosexual extracurricular activity. Like a phoenix from the ashes comes a summit to be held in, of all places, Colorado Springs. Religious leaders and thinkers... Read more

Bottom line: Love trumps gender roles for kids James Dobson wrote a Dec. 18 editorial in Time magazine about Mary Cheney, her pregnancy and her plan to raise the child with her partner, Heather Poe. Dobson wastes no time building a body of scientific evidence about why this is inappropriate. Three decades of social science indicate children are best off when raised by a male and female, both of whom are their birth parents. Though he concedes the couple undoubtedly... Read more

Is life like hell without faith?   My wife, Amy, and I have been in Pueblo for nearly three years, trying to grow a new church. Had we known how hard it would be, we might have opted for an existing ministry. Starting a new church is one of the most emotionally volatile experiences we can imagine. It’s easy to get hung up on the number of people who show up on any given Sunday. It’s hard not to take... Read more