If you ever had any doubt whatsoever that the Church was patriarchal, consider the fact that the very first HUGE fight the early Christians got into was over what the penis should look like (Acts 15). Now, I know what you’re thinking. I’m being provocative. It wasn’t about foreskins as much as it was about covenants. And to a degree, you are right. But the penis played a much larger role than you may think. And sometimes when we use... Read more
Think you can stump a scholar? No question is too tough or too radical (this IS the Bible after all — a tough, radical book) for our new Stump a Scholar series at Patheos Progressive Christian. Every Tuesday, we’ll answer your questions about the Bible, Christian history, the Church, theology; and we’re bringing in the experts to tackle your questions. This month, we’re focusing on the Bible and have invited Jerry L. Sumney, professor of biblical studies at Lexington Theological Seminary, to be our resident scholar.... Read more
Hey, here’s an idea. Let’s raise money for a charity by daring each other to pour buckets of ice over our heads. Two months ago, if someone had suggested this in a planning session at church, I doubt I would have gotten behind the idea. It never occurred to me that so many people—young, old, famous, obscure—would willingly sit down in front of a video camera and let friends pour vast quantities of ice-cold water over them. I admit that... Read more
“The more I wrote about the radical nature of Jesus’ message, the more I felt willing, one hundred times over, to completely sacrifice whatever it takes to continue living it out.” — Benjamin Corey, author, Undiluted The summer of 2014 has been a rich one for Patheos Progressive Christian authors. In the past several months, we’ve seen new releases from the likes of Marcus Borg, Brian McLaren, Christian Piatt, Chris Smith and John Pattison, Tim Suttle, Frank Schaeffer, Peter Enns and Benjamin Corey … all... Read more
By Ellin Jimmerson Dear President Obama and Members of Congress, I am a Baptist minister in Alabama and full-time advocate for unauthorized immigrants and guest workers. My ministry has focused on production of a migrant justice documentary called The Second Cooler, narrated by Martin Sheen. I first felt called to make the documentary because I was heartbroken for the families, especially the mothers, whose children died under the blazing Arizona sun as they were trying to cross the heavily militarized border... Read more
One of the more fascinating stories in the Gospels that many Christians conveniently ignore is Jesus’ encounter with the Canaanite woman in Matthew 19:21-28 (par. Mark 7:24-30). Here is how it reads in the NRSV: Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon. Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon.” But he did... Read more
Mae Holland, the protagonist in Dave Egger’s terrifying novel The Circle, lands a dream job at the world’s largest innovative tech company. Think Google, Apple, Twitter, Microsoft, and Amazon amalgamated into one mega-corporation. Midway into the novel she turns a device on (the company calls the device SeeChange) that makes her life “transparent” to the rest of the world, live-streaming audio and video of her entire life as it happens. Mae, who has by this point become a leading spokesperson... Read more
Something felt right about going to Ferguson. And something felt right about going with Derrick. I’ve watched Derrick grow up as an African-American youth in North Philadelphia — facing unfair obstacles like a bankrupt school system, an epidemic of gun violence, and a tantalizing drug economy. Despite Philly’s 40% high school dropout rate, Derrick graduated. And now he’s in his senior year of college. Derrick has been living with my wife and I during his summer break. As we watched... Read more
Think you can stump a scholar? No question is too tough or too radical (this IS the Bible after all — a tough, radical book) for our new Stump a Scholar series at Patheos Progressive Christian. Every week, we’ll answer your questions about the Bible, Christian history, the Church, theology; and we’re bringing in the experts to tackle your questions. This month, we’re focusing on the Bible and have invited Jerry L. Sumney, professor of biblical studies at Lexington Theological Seminary, to be our resident scholar.... Read more
Editor’s Note: I share this sermon preached yesterday at the church I attend, First Plymouth Congregational Church, by the Rev. Dr. Eric Smith. In the aftermath of the Ferguson, MO, tragedy and the ensuing protests, I can’t imagine a much better sermon being given in many other churches around the country than this. — Deborah Arca How To Be a Midwife in Egypt Exodus 1:8-2:10 Shiphrah and Puah had a decision to make. Their orders were clear. Their orders were that all the baby boys... Read more
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