In preparation for St. Patrick’s day I decided to read St. Patrick’s Confessio.  It’s really interesting and the webpage http://www.confessio.ie/ has posted a great collection of versions of it. Here is how it begins: My name is Patrick…I am a sinner, a simple country person, and the least of all believers. I am looked down upon by many.My father was Calpornius. He was a deacon; his father was Potitus, a priest, who lived at Bannavem Taburniae.His home was near there, and that is where I was... Read more

Infertility is a major theme in the scripture. In many ways it highlights many of the struggles that come along with faith. God often shows up, not in monumental demonstrations of his power to the world but in the creation of life in the barren womb. It is arguably the greatest of all miracles, while being at the same time remarkably natural. Although I have been blessed with a son, this blessing has only heightened my sensitivity for people who are... Read more

This week  the other doctoral students on the Crossed Purposes podcast and I talk about the four senses of scripture. Literal: What the passage says about past events Allegorical: What the passage can tell us about Christ Moral: What the passage can teach us about how to live Anagogical: What the passage tells us about our ultimate fate Take a listen and let us know what you think! If you cannot see the audio controls, your browser does not support the audio... Read more

Ran into this on Catholic Memes today. Thought it was worth sharing! I think it might have been inspired by this sketch…  > Read more

Although there is very little documentation available that describes how the liturgy was practiced in the west, in the early middle ages, as one begins to study the liturgy in the later centuries of the middle ages, things become more complicated. Where manuscript evidence is sparse in earlier centuries, once one begins to explore the liturgy in the tenth and eleventh centuries the manuscript evidence becomes so abundant and varied that recognizing a “standard” practice anywhere becomes impossible. Seeing just... Read more

A lot of the terminology that Paul employs in the New Testament is loaded with multivalent semantic fields; his words have multiple meaning depending on the culture you are in. As both a former pharisee and a Roman Citizen his theological terminology is rich in both Jewish meaning and Greco-Roman resonance. I recently encountered this great chart in Michael Gorman’s Apostle of the Crucified Lord: A Theological Introduction to Paul and His Letters. It highlights some of the genius of Paul’s use of language. Each of these words holds somewhat different meanings depending on the context that... Read more

A reader recently read about my decision to join the Catholic church  and wrote me a message expressing their concern about the issue of Justification vs Sanctification and how the Catholic church differs from the protestant church on this issue. I thought I would take some time to respond to the concerns and share it with you, just in case other readers are having similar concerns. First of all, thanks for writing. I am touched by the many people that have written to... Read more

So did you hear about the fake bishop that managed to evade security and sneak into the Vatican? Ralph Napierski, a self-appointed German ”bishop” from the apparently made-up Corpus Dei order, somehow managed to get through a manned Vatican checkpoint and mingle with Cardinals as they gathered for a meeting in preparation to elect a new Pope.  Although it appears his main goal seems to have been to have been to have been to get photos with Catholic big-wigs, it does raise... Read more

I ran into this recording of Everything is Spiritual, a talk given by Rob Bell a number of years ago. I was actually present at this recording in the front row right in the middle, so you can see the back of my head a lot in it. It’s a good talk for a number of reasons: He makes some excellent observations and weaves them together wonderfully. It’s Rob Bell as the height of his game as a communicator. I can’t tell... Read more

Just wanted to let you all know there is a special deal on my book right now. $2.99 for the kindle edition (normally it’s $9.99).  Get it today! Read more