Hell? No. A former evangelical weighs in on eternity.

Last updated on: August 5, 2022 at 2:30 pm By Kathryn Shihadah

Today’s exvangelical lecture is on the subject of heaven, hell, and how to qualify for permanent residence in either place. I’ve been reading David Bentley Hart’s excellent book, “That All Shall Be Saved: Heaven, Hell, and Universal Salvation,” for the third time (Amazon description of the book is below – this is an unsolicited endorsement). It’s giving me flashbacks to my half-century as an evangelical, and my fervent hope (especially after embarking on an interfaith marriage) that we (i.e. evangelicals)... Read more

My will be done: an annotated Lord’s Prayer

Last updated on: July 28, 2022 at 10:18 pm By Kathryn Shihadah

(reposting due to a glitch) Let us prey without ceasing. And when we prey, let us say: Our Father (and by “our” I mean our tribe of Christians – the ones who understand the Bible correctly and have figured God out.) Who art in heaven (and by “heaven” I mean that place where I will be for eternity, surrounded by Christians who, like me, prayed the Sinner’s Prayer and then spent the rest of our lives looking down on those who hadn’t prayed the Sinner’s Prayer.) Hallowed... Read more

Christian: is this letter addressed to you? (most likely, yes)

Last updated on: July 26, 2022 at 10:10 pm By Kathryn Shihadah

Dear Christians, Why is compassion sometimes as natural for you as breathing, but other times it is absolutely out of the question? Why do you weep and dig deep in your pockets to help one needy group, but for another, you pass by on the other side? Why will you read a brochure, watch a film, or attend a lecture about one worthy cause, but refuse to learn a single new fact about another? I’ve attended many of your church... Read more

Presbyterians courageously acknowledge Israeli apartheid – what’s next?

Last updated on: July 23, 2022 at 8:58 pm By Kathryn Shihadah

(This is a repeat of a post from July 14, which was inadvertently deleted.) The Presbyterian Church General Assembly has just passed a resolution – by a comfortable margin of 70%-30% – recognizing that the government of Israel is practicing apartheid against the Palestinian people. Christian (as well as secular) supporters of Israel are calling antisemitism. What is the Christlike thing to do here? First, let us keep in mind that human rights groups have been using the moniker “apartheid”... Read more

Epic evangelical self-assurance around abortion

Last updated on: July 21, 2022 at 11:09 pm By Kathryn Shihadah

The abortion debate is still raging within Christendom. It’s probably never going to be resolved, but it could be a lot more civilized. We have to find a way to love and understand each other – even if we disagree – or we will never be effective as the body of Christ. I identify as a progressive Christian, but spent most of my life as an evangelical, so sometimes I try to mediate between the sides. Last weekend, I jumped... Read more

My will be done: an annotated Lord’s Prayer

Last updated on: July 18, 2022 at 9:25 am By Kathryn Shihadah

Let us prey without ceasing. And when we prey, let us say: Our Father (and by “our” I mean our tribe of Christians – the ones who understand the Bible correctly and have figured God out.) Who art in heaven (and by “heaven” I mean that place where I will be for eternity, surrounded by Christians who, like me, prayed the Sinner’s Prayer and then spent the rest of our lives looking down on those who hadn’t prayed the Sinner’s... Read more

“Let’s just agree to disagree about guns” is irresponsible

Last updated on: June 24, 2022 at 4:52 pm By Kathryn Shihadah

Many of the people who need to read this will refuse to do so because they are afraid of facing a challenge to their beliefs. But I hope some will have the courage. Spend three minutes reading this. If something here makes you queasy or unsure, lean into that feeling and do some research. Worst case scenario: you get wiser. Anybody still reading? Thank you for your courage. Folks, we need to stop with the gun-control cliches and memes, and... Read more

Evangelicals: Israel wants to keep this story hush-hush

Last updated on: June 17, 2022 at 10:47 pm By Kathryn Shihadah

A large proportion of evangelical Christians harbor an undiscerning adoration for the modern state of Israel – and need to recognize the true nature of that country. Israel was built on the ethnic cleansing of 750,000 Palestinians, and practices apartheid in order to keep the remaining Palestinians submissive. In the hope of opening some Christian eyes to the truth about Israel, I occasionally post an article that I’ve written for another website (usually this one or this one). This is... Read more

Deconstructing more evangelical gun myths

Last updated on: June 9, 2022 at 2:24 pm By Kathryn Shihadah

We’ve been talking about guns and how they may or may not be responsible for mass shootings. In Christians, when in God’s name are we going to end gun violence?, I called on pro-gun evangelicals to step out of the mindset that requires them to toe the conservative party line equally on every issue (you can be conservative and not support loose gun laws) and addressed the idea that citizens with guns can protect us from a rogue government. In... Read more

“Guns don’t kill – sin kills”?

Last updated on: June 8, 2022 at 4:20 pm By Kathryn Shihadah

Evangelical friends and readers, can you read this post all the way to the end? Can you handle being in close proximity to facts that make you uncomfortable? An open-minded reader might find the facts in this article persuasive, but the reader who isn’t interested in having his point of view challenged might quit in the middle (or sooner). Why? Because integrity requires us to embrace truth. Those of us unwilling to change might choose to avoid awkward truths. But... Read more