If I keep on reading theologians like Henri de Lubac, I might not be able to resist going Catholic. The main thing that holds me back is my confidence in the appropriateness of my wife’s call to sacramental ministry and a genuine bafflement that iconic representation of Christ would be gendered in light of Galatians 3:28. Well, and then there’s the fact that like the first Protestant, Paul of Tarsus, if the Jerusalem council told me to make the Gentiles... Read more
It’s quite presumptuous for a Christian to write about an Israeli political issue in the context of a Jewish holiday, but I do so as someone who has been blessed immeasurably by Jewish thinkers and public figures like Abraham Heschel, Martin Buber, Elie Wiezel, Hannah Arendt, Judith Butler, Jacques Derrida, and many others. I love Torah. I love the Tehillim. If I didn’t struggle enough to read my Christian Daily Office and pray my Jesus Prayers every day, I would... Read more
Last week, I had some very strange encounters with God that I interpreted with too much confidence too quickly, since it was the first time I had received experiences of this kind. I wrote a really long strange blog post that was initially intended to be a low-key meditation on the way that American Christians often confuse the fear of the Lord with the fear that has to do with punishment. I will be sharing bite-sized pieces from that strange... Read more
Earlier this year, during Lent, I preached without a manuscript for the first time. My preparation process shifted to oral rehearsal after a lot of note-scribbling. This past weekend, after having a very rich but exhausting spirit-filled week, I preached for the first time without rehearsing in advance. I don’t want to say I didn’t prepare, because God gave me a lot of things to think and talk about that came out in my sermon, but the delivery was extemporaneous.... Read more
Okay so I’m still officially a United Methodist, but I became a Pentecostal preacher this week. I’ve decided to describe what happened to me in a matter-of-fact way even though it was paranormal. Here’s a summary. Wednesday morning, at a prayer meeting, I started speaking in tongues, which I had done before, but without fully owning the gift since I wasn’t sure whether it was “Jesus Camp” fake or not. Then Thursday morning, I was posting a blog piece to... Read more
When strange things happen, it’s best to face them plainly. I took down the last post I wrote because I’m not sure what combination of Holy Spirit and dopamine was involved in its composition. If God does indeed possess prophets, then it would be impossible for that not to look like a psychiatric incident in our world today. But I am a pastor with a responsibility not to frighten people God has given me to love into discipleship. So I... Read more
I made this piece while we were making Jesus trend around the world last night. Please share it with your friends if you like it. Luke 19:40. Isaiah 6:2. Isaiah 40:3. Joel 2:28. Song: jesus is my candidate Lyrics: Babylon is crumbling, Social nets are tumbling, Everyone is stumbling Past Italian faces that misrepresent a Jewish king Preachers writing books, getting bling Who’s in the streets with Dr. King? Did you only hear the one speech? He had a lot... Read more
One of the most dramatic exorcisms of Jesus’ ministry takes place in Mark 5 when Jesus casts a legion of demons out of a man chained to a graveyard in the region of the Gerasenes by sending them into a herd of pigs who run with fury to a cliff and throw themselves in a lake. For the last several years, as certain aspects of the evangelical corner of American Christianity that I inhabit have looked less and less Christlike,... Read more
As the pastor of a politically “purple” congregation, I need to tread lightly on the controversy surrounding Mitt Romney’s remarks about 47% of Americans not paying income tax. I am trying my best to transcend the superficial “issue” level of our increasingly absurd political conversation so that I can yank out the theological roots of the bad weeds that we find in our commonly held assumptions. I really believe that America’s problem is fundamentally theological (and it’s utterly bipartisan). One... Read more
It was only supposed to be a catchy sermon series to attract attention for our fall kickoff season. At first our senior pastor was worried about being misinterpreted in the heat of an extremely divisive election season. We have a beautifully “purple” church where progressive liberals and Tea Party activists worship together. It’s one of United Methodism’s greatest strengths and sources of agony. We’re one of the few big tent Christian denominations left. So many have split on female ordination,... Read more
Mercy Not Sacrifice
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