So apparently now you can “like” things not only beyond Facebook, but even on paper. I wonder how many educators will/would use this stamp, and why or why not… UPDATE: Someone asked about a “dislike” stamp. Apparently there is indeed a set of Like and Dislike Stamps and you can buy them from Amazon.com! Here’s a picture: Read more
Stephen Mattson has written a piece for Sojourners, “Do Churches Alienate Intellectuals?” Here is a sample: By their very nature, intellectuals are curious. They analyze, theorize, and love to ask questions. These attributes are often criticized by church leaders and seen as an attack on traditional and established institutionalized beliefs. Innocent inquires are often met with an “How dare you question what we say?!” type of response, often followed up by cold-hearted exclusion and derision. Many churches stubbornly hold theological,... Read more
I'll share at least one photo of me in costume later today. In the meantime, feel free to share what you dressed as, or what your all time favorite costumes are! Read more
I could have called this post several other things. I considered “What in Samhain is going on at Crooked Creek Baptist Church?” or perhaps “Bring Your Gods to Church Day.” But let me start at the beginning. The text for last Sunday’s sermon at my church was Paul’s speech at the Areopagus. My wife was due to give the children’s talk, and she thought that it might be interesting to bring some statues that I had from when I visited... Read more
Commenter arcseconds put it beautifully: Doesn’t it strike you as remotely strange that the world’s scientists should accept a framework which is so obviously flawed any idiot can see through it? I mean, if it’s really this simple, they’re either a bunch of fools, or engaged in some huge confidence trick. The former seems contradicted by the fact they can build something like the Hubble. The later seems incredibly unlikely. It requires the sort of conspiracy theory normally attributed to... Read more
If you suddenly enjoy the movie more as a result of reading this, let me know… Read more
Bob Cargill shared the following about a documentary which, unless all the footage ended up on the cutting room floor, I will be in: I’m pleased to announce that a new documentary series will begin airing on History beginning Monday, November 11, 2013 at 10:00pm / 9:00 Central. The series is entitled, Bible Secrets Revealed, and is produced by Prometheus Entertainment for the History channel. The titles of the six episodes and their schedule of appearance are as follows: “Lost in Translation” – November 11, 2013 “The Promised Land” –... Read more
Here is the video of the second public lecture in this year’s series on religion and freedom of expression. This one focuses on Islam, and the three speakers are Saba Mahmood, Peter Gottschalk, and Sholeh Shahrokhi. Read more
David Hayward’s latest cartoon makes a good point. People have justified all sorts of contradictory things from the Bible – from their faith to their atheism, from their right-wing politics to their left-wing economics, from their violence against others to their pacifism. What are the implications of recognizing this and taking it seriously? At the very least, no one should think that because their worldview is bolstered by many repetitions of the phrase “the Bible says,” that therefore the Bible... Read more
There were some interesting responses to a post I shared recently with a church sign advertising a book burning session (for members only). One commenter asked about the burning of books in the kingdom of God. I found the question profoundly ironic, since the only people I can imagine finding the question meaningful, or answerable, are people who are sure that no one who will enter the kingdom of God would ever under any circumstances read those sort of books... Read more
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