Naked Fishing! Magic fish sandwiches! Jesus-happy earthworms! Who says the Bible is boring??? Check out this sampler of this week’s Heretic’s Guide to the Bible, and when you can’t stand it anymore and have to see what else we’ve got to dish up on the heretical hot plate, come on over to Heretic’s Guide to the Bible and join us. Read more
We didn’t have a guest this week, so we decided to take a Pew poll on religion. We got all of the questions right! And by “we”, I mean “me”, because Amy and Christian got one wrong. The poll itself shouldn’t be too difficult for listeners, but the statistics afterward about how various faith groups scored definitely is astonishing. In the Echo Chamber, we talk primarily about Game of Thrones but also about 20 other shows that we’re into including (but not... Read more
Feed Me, Seymour: A Search for Real Meaning (Heretic’s Guide: April 14, 2013) Bible Cliff’s Notes (My dog ate my Bible!) Gospel John 21:1-19 Jesus’ third appearance to the disciples after the resurrection. They’re not catching fish; Jesus tells them to try the other side of the boat and they catch hundreds. First Reading Acts 9:1-6 Paul (called Saul until he converted to Christianity, then renamed Paul), the erstwhile professional Christian assassin, encounters Jesus on the road to Damascus.... Read more
My pastor asked me when I got to church today, “You’ve gotta ask yourself; do you feel lucky? Well, do you, punk?!?” Little did I know it was pledge Sunday. DAMMIT! Read more
Uncertainty about the existence of God is not the same thing as certainty about the non-existence of God. I’ve enjoyed taking part in the “Subverting the Norm” conference this weekend with many of the forefront thinkers in what has been called “Radical Theology.” Although the word “radical” has sensationalist connotations for lots of people, it really just means a theology that isn’t firmly rooted. I know that in itself sounds scary to some folks, but the radical theology camp might... Read more
Jimmy Carter offered an open letter a few years back (republished this week by Women’s Press HERE)explaining why he is divorcing himself from the Southern Baptist Convention after six decades as a deacon and Sunday School teacher. Basically, the SBC continues to legislate gender inequity from the top-down, cherry picking select verses to serve a desired patriarchal end, to which Carter responds: It was, however, an unavoidable decision when the convention’s leaders, quoting a few carefully selected Bible verses and claiming... Read more
I’ve been getting ready to head out to speak at the Subverting the Norm conference this past week or so, and in preparing, I’ve been talking though my presentations with my wife, Amy. Basically, the conference is a dive into the roiling waters of postmodern theological thought, with the aim of addressing the question of whether such theology can exist within the structure of organized religion. I’m a big fan of much of what is being discussed by the forefront... Read more
Fact or Truth? Bible Cliff’s Notes (My dog ate my Bible!) Gospel John 20:19-31 Jesus appears to his disciples and breathes the Holy Spirit into them. He endows them with powers of healing and forgiveness of sin. Thomas wasn’t there and doesn’t believe unless he sees Jesus for himself. Jesus reappears to the disciples and lets Thomas feels his wounds, and says, “Happy are those who haven’t seen and still believe.” First Reading Acts 5:27-32 Disciples are brought before the... Read more
This week on the Homebrewed CultureCast, we welcomed Stephen Simpson, one of the heads of Psychology at Fuller Theological Seminary, to the show to discuss the intersection of faith and psychology. Specifically, we wanted to try and figure out with him where the thin line between religious fanaticism and pathological mental illness was. Hey, there it is!!! Get used to Steve, because he’ll be back on the show for sure. Later, we talk about the worth in changing one’s Facebook... Read more
I went up to the drive-through and ordered a Big Mac, and all I got was this crucifixion instead. Can anyone say “REFUND???” Read more
Christian Piatt
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