Faith Forward

In case you missed church last Sunday, here’s a powerful sermon from the Rev. George Anastos, Pastor of First Plymouth Congregational Church in Denver, CO. I was extremely moved by his reflections on Jesus’ humble, unconventional entry into Jerusalem, especially as they were followed by a communal bringing forward of coats for the Denver Rescue Mission. As coats piled up on the piano in the middle of the narthex, higher than the last person could even reach, I experienced a kairos moment of being both in that sanctuary and also being on the road to Jerusalem with Jesus, throwing down my coat before him.

Read Full Post »

Nearly every episode of the five seasons of Battlestar Galactica offered fodder for theological, moral, or ethical discussion, while also providing an action-packed, engaging narrative.  Building on the success of this series, the creators developed a prequel series, Caprica, which takes place on the titular planet and focuses on the Adama and Graystone families, both [...]

Read Full Post »

What books have most shaped your theology? I have shared my top ten books below. Consider sharing your own top ten books.

Read Full Post »

Holy Week is almost here, marking the final stretch of the 40-day Lenten season.  But it’s not too late to begin a Lenten discipline.  Give away 40 items today, one for every day of Lent. Give up some stuff you don’t need, and take on the practice of charitable giving.

Read Full Post »

One of my favorite responses from the many I appreciated from my interview with Brian McLaren was this one regarding inter-faith dialogue:

“Central to my vision of a new kind of Christianity is the realization that my primary call to my neighbor of another religion is to love him or her as myself. Not terribly radical, I know, but surprisingly rare! This is especially important at our moment in history, it seems to me, because Jesus called us to be peacemakers, and God knows we need more peacemakers across religious boundaries.

Read Full Post »

Mark Yaconelli is the King of story-telling.  Founder and director of the innovative Youth Ministry & Spirituality Project for 10 years and now a popular speaker, teacher and author, Mark can weave a tale that has you laughing hysterically one minute and weeping the next.  Whatever the subject, he always manages to touch your heart [...]

Read Full Post »

Last week, I attended an outstanding conference at Claremont School of Theology called Theology After Google. The hope of the conference was to encourage progressive Christians to “leverage new technologies and networks for transformative ministry.” The event was hosted by a passionate group of progressive theologians including Philip Clayton and Tripp Fuller, founders of Transforming Theology, a grassroots project to get theology out of the academy and back into the church.

“Progressive Christian theologians have some vitally important things to say,” said Tripp Fuller, event co-creator, “things that both the church and society desperately need to hear. We need to equip progressive Christians to effectively use the new technologies, social media and social networking. When it comes to the effective communication of message, the Religious Right is running circles around us.”

Read Full Post »

One of my very favorite things about church is communion. I’m always moved by the steady flow of people; all shapes and sizes, embodying so much joy, grief, wonder, questions, longings and hope, coming forward week after week to be fed at the table. The bread and the wine Jesus shared with his friends a reminder of his love for us and presence with us, and our interconnectedness to all. I’m always struck by the audacity of the invitation to “come,” whoever we are, in whatever state we find ourselves, to be a part of the feast. To be God’s friend at the table.

Read Full Post »

Welcome to Faith Forward, the new group blog of the Mainline Protestant Portal. Our hope is to host a new space for a wide variety of forward-thinking voices from the mainline, progressive and emergent church around the conversations that are shaping the future of the Church. In the coming days, you’ll be hearing from pastors, scholars, youth ministers, sacred artists, parents and youth — all seeking to reveal some some piece of the puzzle of what it is to live faithfully as a Christian in the world. Look for posts on everything from practicing our faith in a Facebook age to serving as a medical missionary in Bangladesh. We’ll be hosting conversations on transforming theology, the changing church landscape, spirituality, preaching, parenting, faith and politics, religion and science, interfaith dialogue, movies, art, music and sports.

Read Full Post »