From a former student and now in seminary: Scot, I’m writing to you in regards to the death of Osama Bin Laden. I’ve been reflecting a lot this week on how to respond to these moments as a citizen of America, and ultimately of the Kingdom of God. The Psalms, Proverbs, and Romans 12:9-21 & Romans 13:1-7 (and more) seem to give us paradoxical responses in regards to a death like this, and to all that the death represents. I’m... Read more
From Jordan J. Ballor at First Things, who wonders if there is not another way beyond budget cut conversation: Even more troubling is the mounting evidence that Christians have adopted this mentality, too. We see this in giving patterns among American Christians. The majority of evangelical church leaders, for instance, seem not to think that tithing is a biblical imperative (estimates for levels of evangelical giving typically range from 2 to 4 percent of income). As Ron Sider himself put it,... Read more
David Fitch, in his new book, The End of Evangelicalism? Discerning a New Faithfulness for Mission: Towards an Evangelical Political Theology (Theopolitical Visions), thinks evangelicalism’s influence is more or less over, that it needs to reexamine itself, and that it needs to rediscover what it could be in our world. At the core of David’s project is the philosopher Slavoj Zizek’s analysis of “ideology.” I will do my best to sketch in brief terms David’s own sketch and use of... Read more
Many of us, and I would include myself in this number, were taught that Calvinism’s theology is TULIP theology. That is, Total depravity, Unconditional election, Limited atonement, Irresistible grace, and Perseverance of the saints. Ken Stewart’s new book, Ten Myths About Calvinism: Recovering the Breadth of the Reformed Tradition , shows why this way of framing Calvinism is neither the most accurate way and is, in fact, a late comer in how to frame Calvinism. In fact, he goes further:... Read more
Kris and I spotted a Blue Gray Gnatcatcher on our evening walk. First time for us. Read more
From Journey Church to Paraclete, this video is awesome. And this older DVD promo: See: The Jesus Creed: Loving God, Loving Others. Read more
From NYTimes: WHEN we don’t get the results we want in our military endeavors, we don’t blame the soldiers. We don’t say, “It’s these lazy soldiers and their bloated benefits plans! That’s why we haven’t done better in Afghanistan!” No, if the results aren’t there, we blame the planners. We blame the generals, the secretary of defense, the Joint Chiefs of Staff. No one contemplates blaming the men and women fighting every day in the trenches for little pay and scant... Read more
I recently read three posts on the blog Cognitive Discopants worth some serious discussion. The first, Why I Have Difficulty Trusting Christians, leads to the title of my post today. This post outlines a journey from acceptance to distrust of evangelical apologists and authorities. The next two posts provide an approach to searching for truth in the face of complex questions. The titles reflect the journey described in the first post: Tips On Not Getting Duped Again Part I and... Read more
Frank Viola, in his new book, Revise Us Again: Living from a Renewed Christian Script, says there are three gospels at work in the church today: The Libertine Gospel: Jesus is my Savior, I believe in God, I go to church, I am a good person, and beyond that God doesn’t care much. The libertine gospel has a minimum of content, a maximum of freedom, and massive dose of belief that God loves us — and that love often is... Read more
From CT by Dan Wallis: It’s ironic that I’m now a preacher [assistant pastor at Cornerstone Wesleyan in Ontario]. That I can stand in front of people and speak, read, enunciate, articulate, and express myself is a gift I revel in and do not take lightly. Stutterers often have a good vocabulary; it helps to be a veritable walking thesaurus of all the alternate, and easier, ways of saying things. I’ve always been the witty one, the one with insight and... Read more
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