So some context first. A few months ago, I wrote a blog that got way more traction than I thought it would. The traffic from it literally shut down my old blog, which was unfortunate because I had written a couple of more posts about it. (If you missed the first part of this, you can find it here.) It’s a story of Justin Bieber being baptized and the church that baptized him. Hillsong New York, a really “cool” church, who is... Read more
Back in the Medieval ages, some Franciscan monks from the Church decided to combat predatory lending by offering small loans to the poor. These monks weren’t looking to make money, but to help the poor have both their God-given dignity and an opportunity to provide for their families and make something in the world. They decided not to ask for interest, but instead they asked that people leave some kind of collateral as a promise that they would pay the money... Read more
“I don’t want to sound cynical, because (as a member of the clergy) I love what I do. Only it’s not what I expected. I thought I would spend hours in a leather chair, reading books, writing sermons, keeping appointments with souls who sought my counsel…I thought I would pray more. Instead, I answer telephone calls, oversee budgets, pay bills, proofread bulletins, and take the church cat to the vet.” -Barbara Brown Taylor “Everybody wants to change the world…nobody wants... Read more
If you lead or serve in a local church, than this post is for you. Hold off on watching the video above for a second. Two weeks ago, I was hanging out with a group of ministers and seminary professors who were trying to figure out how churches and seminaries can work better together for training future ministers. It was an incredible meeting, and kudos to that seminary for caring enough to ask the question, “How can we do better?” One of the more... Read more
Earlier this month, I got to sit down with my frenemy Luke Norsworthy and co-interview my good friend and church member Richard Beck to talk about his great new book “Reviving Old Scratch: Demons and the Devil for the Doubters and the Disenchanted” I plan on reviewing Richard’s book soon, but until then check out this podcast. In it, we talk about why Spiritual Warfare is so essential for Christians to recover today, even for progressive Christians, maybe especially for progressive Christians. When you... Read more
A few months ago, I read a beautiful article in GQ written by Taffy Brodesser-Akner. Akner is a Jewish reporter who had been assigned to research and report on a Hillsong Church plant. The growing (and befuddling) Mega-Church in the heart of New York City. She begins her article by telling a heart-breaking story about the day that Justin Bieber was baptized by one of Hillsong’s pastors “Pastor Carl” Justin had hit bottom, he was quickly making the transition from celebrity to notorious villain, he... Read more
Hi there. My name is Jonathan Storment, and it is a huge honor for me to be asked to write on Patheos. For the past two years, Scot McKnight has graciously given me a weekly column on his own Patheos site over at Jesus Creed and I plan to continue that as long as he’ll have me. And for years, I’ve also blogged at my personal website, creatively titled JonathanStorment.com, but a couple of months ago my site crashed when I wrote a... Read more
Jonathan Storment
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