Cathleen Falsani: This reminds me of Pope Francis, who has accepted the label of “Holy Father” but prefers to refer to himself the “Bishop of Rome.” In doing so, he’s not denying his role as pontiff, but he is telegraphing the idea that he is much more comfortable with a more humble position. He is a shepherd who likes to, as he told crowds during Holy Week, be amid the “smell” of his sheep. A good shepherd keeps track of... Read more
How Did Jesus Understand His Own Death? Brian Zahnd A question for Good Friday: How did Jesus understand his own death? What meaning did Jesus give to his crucifixion? Did Jesus have a “theology of the cross”? Jesus repeatedly predicted his own death by crucifixion to his inner-circle of disciples, but did Jesus ever speak about what it meant? Yes. In Jerusalem a few days before Good Friday Jesus said this in reference to his impending crucifixion: Now is the judgment... Read more
Holy Week culminating in Easter Sunday is the pivotal week and powerful week in the Christian calendar because it remembers and celebrates the central events in the Christian story- crucifixion and resurrection. The next two chapters of Tim Keller’s book The Reason for God focus on these two events – crucifixion (Ch. 12) and resurrection (Ch. 13). According to Keller The Gospel of Christ – the good news – is wrapped up in the story of the cross. This... Read more
In the history of thought the one person who plumbed the depths of relationship was Martin Buber in his famous I and Thou. That book deserves to be read again and again by pastors and leaders in order to comprehend both our relation to God and our relation to others. Few ministry books have plumbed that kind of book, but we are in a new day… a day when more might turn to relational ministries. What is a relational ministry? Relational... Read more
These are the newest numbers about Bible engagement from Barna: Read more
From Dennis Cauchon: She’s a soldier. He’s a stay-at-home dad. She works at a booming software company. He’s starting a graphic design business. She’s a business executive and electrical engineer. He’s quit many jobs to move for her career advancements. These are real-life examples of how changing gender roles and an evolving economy have reshaped American society in barely a generation — from an Ozzie and Harriet nation found in the classic 1950s sitcom to one in which Harriet is increasingly the... Read more
How do Christians go about their world as a witness without falling into one of two approaches today that don’t get the job done? The first method is the bold, unapologetic, shove-it-in-your-face-with-love approach one sometimes observes in public places. The other approach is the conversational approach, the kind of conversation where we get lost in conversation and never get out. These are two approaches that David Fitch and Geoff Holsclaw are seeking to avoid in their book Prodigal Christianity, and where... Read more
At CT, Tim Dalrymple, indefatigable editor at Patheos, wrote one of the essays on what to do if the SCOTUS supports same-sex marriage by striking down DOMA. Tim Keller, too, has said a few things, and I’d like to take this opportunity to say Tim Keller stereotypes the Anabaptist approach into something that is less Anabaptist, more rare, and can be found as much among Lutherans as it can be found among Anabaptists. The Anabaptist tradition has both a strong... Read more
“If a willing Victim that has committed no treachery is killed in a traitor’s stead, the Stone Table will crack; and even death itself would turn backwards.” Did you hear the cosmic boom? Read more
Three Collects O God, who for our redemption gave your only-begotten Son to the death of the cross, and by his glorious resurrection delivered us from the power of our enemy: Grant us so to die daily to sin, that we may evermore live with him in the joy of his resurrection; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. or this O God, who made... Read more
Select your answer to see how you score.
Jesus Creed
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In