The Story Does Not Change

Last updated on: November 7, 2012 at 8:32 am By Scot McKnight

Andrew Perriman points to the significant issue many Anabaptists today — not historic Anabaptists, mind you — have with the God of war in the Bible. Perriman pushes back. Here’s a clip, read the rest for his fuller response, but I’m curious what you would say to this sketch: It is very troubling—especially to Anabaptists—that YHWH is sometimes depicted in the Bible as a violent God. The Canaanite “genocide” is the obvious instance. Pietersen considers various attempts made by interpreters to deal with the... Read more

From the Shepherd’s Nook: Pain

Last updated on: November 9, 2012 at 6:45 am By Scot McKnight

This series on pastoral theology is by our friend, a pastor, and an author: John Frye. For whatever convoluted reasons, I avoided conflict for many years in ministry. I liked to think of myself as a “peacemaker,” but what I was really was a pain-avoider. Later in ministry I got some very wise counsel about my jitters regarding conflict. I avoided conflict because it kept me distant (safe) from my own personal pain. In an intense pain-avoidance, therapeutic culture, the... Read more

Are American Evangelicals Seduced by Militarism?

Last updated on: November 9, 2012 at 6:41 am By Scot McKnight

This post comes from Preston Sprinkle. Are American Evangelicals Seduced by Militarism? Is militarism consistent with Christian faith? American militarism. The very phrase evokes a cacophony of responses from the public, not least from the American Evangelical church. It’s undeniable that America is becoming more and more militarized, as several recent books have pointed out (e.g. Andrew Bacevich, The New American Militarism; Rachel Maddow, Drift). Some Evangelicals are quick to celebrate America’s military prowess—the bigger the better—while others see it... Read more

Nate Silver: The New Pollster Genius?

Last updated on: November 7, 2012 at 8:24 am By Scot McKnight

By Daniel Engber: It’s well after midnight on the East Coast, and the results are in: Nate Silver has won the 2012 presidential election by a landslide. His magic formula for predictions, much maligned in some corners in recent weeks, appears to have hit the mark in every state—a perfect 50 green M&Ms for accuracy. Now my Twitter feed is blowing up with announcements of his coronation as the Emperor of Math and the ruler of the punditocracy. Wait—it was even more than that, they say: a victory... Read more

Who Goes Too Far? Secularist or Libertarian?

Last updated on: November 7, 2012 at 8:28 am By Scot McKnight

From Linda Woodhead: Who could have imagined that a court in Cologne would, this year, rule the ancient and sacred practice of male circumcision illegal, or that the previous year the European court of human rights (ECHR) wouldoverturn its earlier ruling that crucifixes should not be displayed in state schools? The see-sawing nature of such judgments about religious freedom suggests something is going seriously wrong in the way the whole issue is being approached. American commentators think they know what it is... Read more

The Bible and the Believer (RJS)

Last updated on: November 8, 2012 at 6:45 am By RJS

A couple of years ago Pete Enns, along with Marc Brettler (Brandeis University) and Daniel J. Harrington (Boston College) participated in a panel discussion at The University of Pennsylvania on “The Challenge of Reading the Bible Today: Can the Bible be read both Critically and Religiously? Jewish, Catholic and Protestant Perspectives.” The audio of the panel discussion is available on Pete’s old blog (before the move to patheos) a time to tear down, A Time to Build Up. Pete also... Read more

Preaching to Mixed Audiences

Last updated on: November 8, 2012 at 6:22 am By Scot McKnight

When Bill Hybels (not the image) came up with the idea of “seeker-sensitive services” his aim was to preach or teach in such a way that it didn’t turn off the nonChristian visitor. In fact, Willow Creek sought to create services — weekend services — that were attractive to nonChristians and that drew upon the questions of those far from God. So Bill learned to “preach” to mixed audiences. Once a friend invited me to Nassau Bahamas to speak at... Read more

Women at the Wall

Last updated on: November 2, 2012 at 7:26 am By Scot McKnight

From Religion and Ethics Newsweekly: There were protests in Israel and elsewhere this week in support of a Jewish woman arrested for leading a group of women in prayers at Jerusalem’s Western Wall. Anat Hoffman, from the group Women of the Wall, was arrested for “disturbing public order.” Israeli policy bans women from reading from a Torah scroll at the Wall and from wearing prayer shawls reserved for men. There are also segregated sections for men and women. Other members... Read more

Orthodoxy and Justification by Faith

Last updated on: November 3, 2012 at 1:59 pm By Scot McKnight

Theodore Stylianopoulos on responding to the evangelical understanding of conversion, justification, and works, but you will have to go to the site to see the full exposition that sets the stage for these conclusions: Let us sum up the main points. The work of salvation belongs entirely to God. It is God through Christ and the Holy Spirit, who has the divine power to rescue us from the forces of sickness, evil, sin, death, and the devil. It is God... Read more

An Every Person Ministry

Last updated on: November 7, 2012 at 7:06 am By Scot McKnight

Tim Keller suggests it takes about 20-25% of a congregation to be engaged in ministry for a church to become a genuine “missional” community. I repeat what I’ve said before: many like to say they are “missional” because they want to avoid being “evangelistic.” Tim Keller is at the other end of the spectrum: missional is very close to becoming a ministry with an evangelistic orientation. Would you say your church is an every person ministry church? How did it... Read more