Megan Rapinoe, in her now famous speech in New York after winning the World Cup, included this call to action: “This is my charge to everyone. We have to be better. We have to love more, hate less. We got to listen more, and talk less. We got to know this is everybody’s responsibility, every single person here. Every single person who is not here. Every single person who doesn’t want to be here. Every single person who agrees and... Read more
Forgetting the “Protest” in “Protest-ant” Lately I’ve been wondering how Protestants forgot the “protest” in Protestant. At least in the majority culture, among the group that likes to call itself the moral majority (or now, the Christian Coalition), very little true dissent is happening. The goal instead seems to be enforcement of religious assumptions much more beholden to this world than the kingdom of God. Which is to say, the majority Christian tradition seems to have sold itself out to... Read more
9.5 Theses On Being A Sanctuary Denomination “[One] who will not help or support others unless they can do so without affecting their safety or their property will never help their neighbor.” – Martin Luther, 1527 I. Sanctuary means the provision of shelter: Congregations and institutions of the ELCA either currently are able to offer shelter or can be modified to do so; shelter is offered according to the needs of our neighbor. Although the resolution from the New York Synod... Read more
So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. (God) Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy... Read more
So, you’d like your church to declare itself part of the new sanctuary network. You are ready to house an individual or family seeking sanctuary. What do you need to know? Step One: Read A Little Bit Read the go-to resource for sanctuary as an alternative to deportation, Church World Service’s web site sanctuarynotdeportation.org . There are a ton of great resources here, ways to participate broadly in the new sanctuary movement, in advocacy, actions, and more. In particular, for... Read more
What’s up with the progressive spiritual tradition’s almost dogmatic focus on this earthly life? As much as focus on heavenly things leads to lessened commitment to liberative action in this world, I sympathize with a focus on such things as the fulness of life, human flourishing, grounding in this world, lessons in “how to be here.” But I wonder if this “spiritual materialism” has become the new dogmatism, worth a bit of pushback. Notice the great teachers of progressive spirituality... Read more
Some books are books, intended from inception for print. Other books arise out of vital conversations. These books are attempts to record in print the power of a speech event. The new posthumous book by Krister Stendahl is of the latter variety. It is a manuscript created from the transcript of lectures given at Dana College, a small Lutheran school in Nebraska. The manuscript was kept and edited by colleagues, and is now published together with interfaith commentary. Stendahl’s reputation... Read more
Whenever readers embark on a bible reading journey beginning in Genesis and ending in Revelation, inevitably somewhere about 1/4th of the way into the journey, you’ll hear reactions like, “The OT is so violent. I’m sick of all the bloodshed and war.” Then, you’ll get this additional comment, “Thank God for the New Testament.” So without being too snarky on the point, I thought I’d at least register the following points: 1) How did we get the notion that the... Read more
If you’ve got it all figured out, and are settled on all the answers, you’re doing it wrong. If you’re doubting and struggling and questioning and inquiring, you’re on your way. It’s unfortunate but appears to be the case that what used to be called theological inquiry is now considered by many Christians to be doubt. I wish more people who actually wonder how Jesus could be both God and man or whether he was born of a virgin could trust that,... Read more
Lately I’ve been chatting with colleagues in my denomination about our theology of the Eucharist. Or maybe I should say our ecclesiology of the Eucharist, because more than we have a theology of what the Lord’s supper means, we seem to have a structure around who can preside at it. \In this post, I’m going to try and describe why I have a “radically adjacent” ecclesiology of the Lord’s Supper compared to my denomination and many colleagues. On the one... Read more
Clint Schnekloth
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