This article is part of my blog series inspired by Jesus the Forgiving Victim: Listening for the Unheard Voice by James Alison.* James begins the last unit of the Forgiving Victim course with a recap of how he began, with his understanding of desire. His way of thinking about desire permeates the Gospels and animates Jesus’ teachings, so it’s essential to our effort to interpreting Scripture. But boy oh boy, it’s a tough concept to grasp! It totally flies in the face... Read more
Pastors have a frequent question when they begin to discover mimetic theory. “That’s great. But how does it preach?” Reverend Tom Truby shows that mimetic theory is a powerful tool that enables pastors to preach the Gospel in a way that is meaningful and refreshing to the modern world. Each Wednesday, Teaching Nonviolent Atonement will highlight Tom and Laura’s sermons as an example of preaching the Gospel through mimetic theory. In this sermon, Tom goes to the heart of the Gospel... Read more
This is a guest article by Frances Fuller. Frances spent thirty years in the violent Middle East and for twenty-four of those years was the director of a Christian publishing program with offices in Lebanon. She is the author of In Borrowed Houses: A True Story of Love and Faith Amidst War In Lebanon, the 2014 winner of “The Author’s Show: 50 Great Writers You Should Be Reading” contest. She blogs at www.inborrowedhouseslebanon.com. On a day when I could not watch... Read more
Leshanah tovah tikateiv veteichateim! May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year! Like its secular counterpart, New Year’s Day, Rosh Hashanah is a time to make resolutions, solemn commitments to strengthen our faith and character. For Christians wishing to stand in solidarity with our Jewish sisters and brothers today, the natural place to start is to repent of violence, especially violence against Jews throughout history continuing to today, and to make a resolution for continued reconciliation. The tragedy of... Read more
Fourteen years after 9/11, what has really changed? I know this day will forever be remembered as a turning point in American history. I consider it a turning point in my own life and in my faith journey. For many it is a landmark. But what has really changed? I look back on this day as the beginning of our permanent state of war, but did 9/11 inaugurate war, or merely bring it out of the shadows? According to a popular... Read more
I hate it when my enemies are right. But it’s time to set our national ego aside and listen to one of our enemies. Vladimir Putin spoke the truth last week about the Middle East’s immigration crisis. Many in the U.S. will think his statement is a verbal attack on the United States. It is. But instead of getting defensive, we need to listen to his critique. Putin stated about American foreign policy in the Middle East, …is about imposing... Read more
The Syrians, Palestinians and Iraqis heading north into Europe and the Europeans already there who are afraid of them are equally valued and loved. God wants all his people to find a home. Hispanic people pressing our borders and those already here are just as loved as those of us who have been here for decades. Those prejudiced eyes we look through are clouded by our own inhumanity. Read more
Note: Many thanks to Mark Sandlin, author of “The God Article,” for starting the #IwasKimDavis hashtag, which helps to curb our tendency toward scapegoating and instead embrace empathy. This is my #IwasKimDavis story. “If I have to meet more homophobic people, I hope they’re all like you.” Sixteen years later, these words still sting. I was a freshman in college. I had converted to Islam two years previous, which is another story, and I was struggling to maintain my fledgling Muslim identity at a... Read more
About a month and a half ago, Raven friend Michael Hardin, author of The Jesus Driven Life and director of Preaching Peace, asked me, among others, to contribute to a volume he is editing about religion and addiction. As an icebreaker, he shared with us essays in which he critiques destructive elements that he finds within particular Christian denominations, particularly Charismatic Christianity. Although I agreed, I was a little hesitant. While it is exciting to be invited to contribute, I am not especially familiar with... Read more
A Kentucky clerk claimed “God’s authority” yesterday when she refused to issue a marriage license to same sex couples. As I read her story, I was reminded of Peter, one of Jesus’ closest disciples, who had a vision about God’s authority. This story is told in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 10. The story about God’s authority comes down to this verse: God has shown me that I should not call anyone profane or unclean. This verse was an... Read more
Teaching Nonviolent Atonement
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