Bill Keller, executive editor of the New York Times, questions the impact of Twitter and other social media on our minds. Here are a few salient excerpts: I don’t mean to be a spoilsport, and I don’t think I’m a Luddite. I edit a newspaper that has embraced new media with creative, prizewinning gusto. I get that the Web reaches and engages a vast, global audience, that it invites participation and facilitates — up to a point — newsgathering. But... Read more
Part 12 of series: What Was the Message of Jesus? I ended my last post with an apparent riddle. Throughout the Gospels Jesus proclaims the kingdom of God, sometimes as coming in the future, and sometimes as a present reality. So which is it? How can we understand the apparently divergent themes in Jesus’ preaching of the reign of God? Throughout the last 150 years, many New Testament scholars have cut this Gordian knot by claiming that some of what... Read more
Jeremy W. Peters of the New York Times reports that Barnes & Noble, purveyors of the Nook Color, have been pleasantly surprised by the popularity of this device among women, especially for magazine reading. Here are some excerpts from the article: Even as the iPad remains the favorite son of the magazine business, publishers are discovering that the Barnes & Noble Nook Color is a very promising younger daughter. The Nook Color has surprised publishers of women’s magazines like O,... Read more
In yesterday’s post, I examined several sayings of Jesus that suggest the kingdom of God is coming in the future. Today, I want to consider sayings that emphasize the presence of the kingdom now. The Present Kingdom If Jesus had only spoken of the reign of God in a future tense, our task would be simple. Unfortunately for those of us who like things neat and tidy, Jesus also spoke of the presence of the kingdom. Here are some examples:... Read more
How can you preach when you’re exhausted? I respond to this question in the latest edition of my column in the Patheos Preachers Portal. Here’s how it begins: How can you offer living water through your preaching when your well is bone dry? Have you ever asked yourself this? I have, many times. During my years as Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church, the question usually struck me during the middle of May. My professional calendar paralleled that of the... Read more
Part 10 of series: What Was the Message of Jesus? In my previous posts in this series (May 16, May 19), I considered the question: Where is the kingdom of God? I showed that in the teaching of Jesus, the kingdom of God is not just in heaven or in our hearts, though it touches both heaven and hearts. Rather, the kingdom of God is not so much a place as it is the reality of God’s sovereignty and power.... Read more
The Times reports that the New York Public Library has released the first in a series of iPad apps. The point of the apps is for the library to “bring its research collections into ‘the palms of the public’s hand,’ as library officials put it in a statement.” I’m reminded of Yale University’s recent decision to make its digital library available to the public. I’ve often thought that many of the media creations supposedly for education create more distraction than... Read more
Is It Right to Rejoice when Injustice is Avenged? Psalm 58:1-11 The godly will rejoice when they see injustice avenged. They will wash their feet in the blood of the wicked. Psalm 58:10 A few days ago, the United States military killed Osama bin Laden, a mass murderer who was plotting the death of innocent people throughout the world. For many, their immediate response to the death of bin Laden was rejoicing. Some took to the streets with placards celebrating... Read more
Well, it’s happened. It wasn’t unexpected. But it happened sooner than many pundits had predicted. The New York Times reports that Amazon since April 1, 2011, Amazon is selling more e-books than print books (hardcover and paperback combined). “We had high hopes that this would happen eventually, but we never imagined it would happen this quickly,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s chief executive, in a statement. “We’ve been selling print books for 15 years and Kindle books for less than four... Read more
I had a marvelous surprise this past week. While I was working away on my computer, my wife called to me: “Mark, did you see that bright red bird in the tree?” “Was it a cardinal?” I asked. “No,” she said, “it was smaller and even more brilliant red.” I grabbed my binoculars and camera in the hope that I might see whatever Linda had spied out of the window. Sure enough, before long, I saw it, one of the... Read more
Mark D. Roberts
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