Tony Jones tackles the subject of Judas Iscariot and what he refers to as "Christian universalism." His discussion rubs up against a discussion we had here earlier about the desire for some notion of ultimate, eschatological justice, the unbiblical idea of Hell and what I called "the Hitler Question." In that earlier post, I noted that I do believe in some form of ultimate accountability — eschatological justice that can address the injustices of this world. I also noted that... Read more
Tribulation Force, pp. 325-326 Rayford returned from a quiet dinner with part of his new crew … Oh no, here we go again. Let me guess — a quiet dinner with the young, single, female part of his crew. Just an innocent candlelit dinner during which much is implied but nothing is overtly stated and Rayford is able to reassure himself that it's all perfectly appropriate because he never touched her. Eventually, after months of such quiet dinners, she'll confront... Read more
I got sideswiped and sidetracked this morning chipping around reading the blog posts and news items appearing in Google Reader. I was following my usual routine of opening the longer posts in separate tabs before going back to read them one by one. This video-rich music post from Amanda Marcotte wound up providing the soundtrack for reading the other posts, and as it happened I was listening to David Bowie and Gail Ann Dorsey singing "Under Pressure" when I started... Read more
But you won't believe it, 'cause it ain't true … "Chicago," Sufjan Stevens"Chicago Seemed Tired Last Night," The Hold Steady"The Chicken," The Choir"Chicken Crosses the Road," Terry Scott Taylor"Chief," Patty Griffin"Child Killers," The Delgados"Child of the Wild Blue Yonder," John Hiatt"Child of the Wind," Bruce Cockburn"Children of the Revolution," Violent Femmes"Children's Crusade," Sting"Children's Story," Tom Waits"Chillout Tent," The Hold Steady"China," Randy Stonehill"China," Tori Amos For fans of Christian-brand rock, that's Ashley Cleveland singing backup in the John Hiatt video linked... Read more
Tribulation Force, pp. 317-325 Here, at last, we come across some of the standard vocabulary of a thriller. It's late at night outside of a hotel room in Jerusalem. The mysterious professor stands beside a waiting car. "Get in," he says. Not a frightfully original set-up, but at least it is a set-up. This book, after all, is billed as an "End-Times thriller." A thriller is supposed to thrill or, at least, to attempt to thrill. But we've slogged through... Read more
Wheaton College grad Cathleen Falsani asks, "Is Evangelical Christianity Having a Great Gay Awakening?" That's an optimistic question, and Falsani wants to give an optimistic answer. "A growing number of evangelical leaders," she writes, are publicly refusing to categorize homosexuality as a sin. As an example of this rising tide, she cites Jay Bakker, son of former televangelists Jim and Tammy Faye, and now pastor of The Revolution church in New York. I first met Jay years ago at Cornerstone... Read more
The TV people on "Fox & Friends" were perplexed and offended by the Native American blessing offered at the memorial service Wednesday night in Tucson, Ariz. Fox's Brit Hume seemed to mock the prayer's inclusion of blessing for other living creatures. Hume said, condescendingly, "While I'm sure that is an honorable tradition with his people, it was most peculiar." (See video courtesy of Jon Stewart.) That just strikes me as an incredibly egocentric and petty response to a memorial service.... Read more
You couldn't pin this one on me … "Build Me Up Buttercup," The Foundations"Build That Wall," Aimee Mann"Building a Mystery," Sarah McLachlan"Building the Perfect Beast," Don Henley"Built for Glory, Made to Last," The Lost Dogs"Built Her a Cloud," Terry Scott Taylor"Bukra Wba'do," Pink Martini"Bullet Proof … I Wish I Was," Radiohead"Bullet the Blue Sky," U2"Bullet the Blue Sky," Vieux Farka Toure"Bullet Train," The Lost Dogs"Bullet With Butterfly Wings," Smashing Pumpkins"Bullets and Blue Eyes," The Silencers I miss pretty Radiohead. "Bulletproof... Read more
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/all/modules/swftools/shared/flash_media_player/player5x2.swf Read the full transcript here. I particularly liked this bit from near the end, about 9-year-old shooting victim Christina Taylor Green: Imagine — imagine for a moment, here was a young girl who was just becoming aware of our democracy; just beginning to understand the obligations of citizenship; just starting to glimpse the fact that some day she, too, might play a part in shaping her nation’s future. She had been elected to her student council. She saw public... Read more
The point here being that she doesn't and she isn't. In the previous post I note that an armed revolution would be difficult, if not impossible, to justify in a constitutional democracy. In the post before that, I note that we seem to have millions of Americans claiming that they no longer live in a constitutional democracy, but in a cryptofascist state in which the Bill of Rights is nothing more than window-dressing and the democratic process is wholly corrupt,... Read more
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In