Written by Tylor Standley I found progressive Christianity during my attempt to find a community—a tradition—that exemplified the sort of love and charity that early Christians talked about so often. I found in progressivism people who fought against the gatekeepers that pushed me away from the conservative fringes of the faith—the people who thought they had the authority to separate the wheat from the tares. I found a new home. Or so I thought. Read more
Did the Resurrection Really happen? Like, the literal, physical, bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ… I mean, probably not. BUT, before anyone casts that electronic stone in the form of a comment, forever anathematizing me from their RSS feed (which, if I’m not on yours already then…) just read to the end, then comment away! Consider this: Historicity does not dictate meaning and/or interpretation; History cannot be proven; we can only verify what most probably happened; Natural law is not an impervious barrier our theological interpretation(s)... Read more
Years ago I heard a story of a pastor who lost his faith. I’ve heard various renditions of similar stories. None of which I know or could confirm to be true… Regardless, I imagine this is how our biblical parables were pieced together; while incongruency is there, the moral of the story remains. But, Like any other person’s faith, this pastor’s Faith didn’t die overnight; it happened slowly, steadily, and then suddenly… all at once. Some might call it death... Read more
Written by Christena Cleveland (Note: Since many pastors, church leaders, and readers of this blog are married, these tips are written for that audience. The irony that I’m writing a blog post about singleness for married people is not lost on me. :)) 1. Admit that singleness is complex and that you know little to nothing about it. A lot of people seem to think that singleness is to marriage as junior varsity is to varsity. As a result, married people sometimes mistakenly believe... Read more
Lent is Not for the Oppressed… In order for any of this to make sense, you must understand that the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ was political. Christ posed a threat to the empire and so they tortured him into submission, labeled him a “terrorist,” and then justified his execution. It’s not that Lent or Ash Wednesday or this whole “forty-days-of-Lent-thing” are unBiblical (per say), it’s just that, it’s not very “Christian.” At best, Lent is a time for the privilege... Read more
This tweet caught my eye and inspired my next two posts… In some cases, it’s already at that point. You only have to look at places like Chicago, Detroit, Washington, and New Orleans – cities with crazy high gun control laws and cities that have the most murders by guns. — Jason Vana Is there a way for us to implement a control on guns without it turning into another “war on drugs”? I mean, what’s this really about? What’s... Read more
Three Reasons Billy Graham is Definitely Not an “Evangelical” Written by Tylor Standley It’s hard to picture anyone other than Billy Graham when thinking about “evangelicalism.” The term is notoriously difficult to define, but somehow he embodied it best. Yet, while he may have embodied the Evangelicalism of yesteryear, can we say the same today? The list of those qualified to be called “Evangelical” gets a little shorter every day. I’ve already mentioned Rev. Graham among a few that should... Read more
“We have hundreds of friends, why do we feel so alone?” A while back I met with a mentor to talk about a relationship I was in at the time. I remember telling him how afraid I was. Nothing was wrong with her or with our relationship. In fact, everything was good. Which is why I think I was so afraid—afraid that I’d get hurt. You see, within this relationship, I wasn’t relating so much as I was performing, working so hard... Read more
“How the Internet is Killing American Christianity” The question is valid, “How much more do we have to take from the church until we have had enough?” The odd part of this question is that many of those asking this are Christians. It seems they’re tired of distorted images defining who and what they are, and deciding how the world views them. Too many Christian’s are becoming fed up with Fox News or Pat Robertson and his 700 Club being the face of Christianity. This... Read more
Most pastors professing Jesus are actually hard-working but very insecure people-pleasers preaching in accordance with learned politics; as opposed to scriptures; I know this because I was on my way to becoming this. Usually, when people respond to this question, “What do you look for in a pastor?” they don’t answer it in regard to what they’re looking for in a pastor, so much as what they expect from a pastor. The other night I grabbed a beer with an... Read more
Andy Gill
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