Fascinated with Sex? Newt Gingrich, Megyn Kelly, and Overcoming Hatred

Last updated on: October 28, 2016 at 11:00 am By Adam Ericksen

What began as a friendly conversation between Megyn Kelly and Newt Gingrich quickly escalated to a heated exchange last Tuesday on Fox’s The Kelly Files. The interview took a quick turn when Kelly stated that Donald Trump might be a “sexual predator.” That’s when Newt Gingrich, a Trump surrogate, went on the offensive. Kelly: If Trump is a sexual predator…. Gingrich: He’s not a sexual predator. Kelly: Okay, that’s your opinion. Gringrich: You could not defend that statement. I’m sick... Read more

A Flood of Violence: Is It Divine or Human?

Last updated on: October 27, 2016 at 9:59 am By Adam Ericksen

Why would we teach our children the story of Noah and the flood? It’s not a cute story about animals entering an ark. It’s a divine horror story that should be rated R. Despite that horror, I’ve talked before about how the flood story in Genesis is light years beyond other ancient divine flood stories. In the Babylonian tale, for example, the gods flood the earth, killing everyone except for one family. Why? Because humans were too noisy. They partied... Read more

Wednesday Sermon: Justified Already!

Last updated on: October 26, 2016 at 1:44 pm By Adam Ericksen

Pastors have a frequent question when they begin to discover mimetic theory. “That’s great. But how does it preach?” Reverend Tom Truby shows that mimetic theory is a powerful tool that enables pastors to preach the Gospel in a way that is meaningful and refreshing to the modern world. Each Wednesday, Teaching Nonviolent Atonement will highlight his sermon as an example of preaching the Gospel through mimetic theory. In this sermon, Tom describes a recent road trip he took with his... Read more

Questions for the Candidates… and Ourselves

Last updated on: October 25, 2016 at 12:46 pm By Lindsey Paris-Lopez

The three presidential debates were exhausting disappointments. Among the factors limiting their quality was the exclusion of third-party candidates and the narrow range of questions that fell into a bipartisan consensus of militarism and American exceptionalism. Opening the debates to third party candidates – as Democracy Now has done with their exceptional “Expanding the Debate” coverage — broadens the range of ideas and perspectives significantly. This gives the American people the opportunity not only to decide whom to vote for, but... Read more

Islam and Violence: Debunking the Myths with Dr. Asma Afsaruddin

Last updated on: November 1, 2016 at 4:21 pm By Suzanne Ross

When it comes to campaign rhetoric about Islam, immigration and ISIS, fear often crowds out reason. This installment in our election series offers us a chance to step back from our fears in order to examine commonly held beliefs about the connection between Islam and violence. Maybe there’s less to fear than we thought, or maybe we are afraid of the wrong things. It would be good to find out! We recently spoke with Dr. Asma Afsaruddin, who gave... Read more

Conversation with Brian McLaren: Voting Christian Values – Seeking a Better Way

Last updated on: October 21, 2016 at 1:12 pm By Adam Ericksen

This week we were honored to continue the Raven Reviews Election 2016 series by talking with Brian McLaren, influential Christian author, speaker, and activist. We talked about Brian’s latest book The Great Spiritual Migration and the current political climate. Brian spoke with us not just about political issues, but how to talk with others about the issues we face during this political season. He stated, “In the current political campaigns, the focus is so much on winning that we poison the whole system. We make... Read more

Parenting During a Political Crisis

Last updated on: October 20, 2016 at 9:30 am By Suzanne Ross

What is happening in American politics and how do we talk to our kids about it? It’s hard for me to shake the feeling that we are facing a political crisis that is symptomatic of a deeper cultural one. Let me begin by saying that my comments here only indirectly refer to the crisis of morality, decency, and reason represented by Donald Trump. His flagrant disregard for common courtesy, human rights, and the democratic process disqualify him from holding the... Read more

Who is God? Answers from Christianity and Islam

Last updated on: October 19, 2016 at 7:20 pm By Adam Ericksen

This is the third installment of my series on Faith and Families. These weekly videos are generally based on the lectionary passages for the upcoming Sunday and seek to find ways families can discuss passage, along with providing a family activity that relates to the message. This week we are going off lectionary to explore Christianity and Islam’s view of God. Who is God? Christianity and Islam have different, but not opposing, answers. In this video and in the text... Read more

The Suzanne Ross Interview: The Problem with Being Good

Last updated on: October 18, 2016 at 11:33 am By Suzanne Ross

Suzanne Ross, Teaching Nonviolent Atonement contributor and founder of the Raven Foundation, was recently interviewed on the Twelve Enough podcast with Jonathan Malone. They talked about Suzanne’s book The Wicked Truth: When Good People Do Bad Things, which explores the intersections of mimetic theory and the musical Wicked. Twelve Enough has themes throughout the show, including riliage (what’s making you angry in the world), Scripture reading and interpretation, and whatchya into? Show notes to part one of their insightful conversation... Read more

Faith and Families Series: The Persistent Widow – Is God Even Listening?

Last updated on: October 14, 2016 at 1:18 pm By Adam Ericksen

This is the second installment of my series on Faith and Families. These weekly videos are based on the lectionary passages for the upcoming Sunday and seek to find ways families can discuss passage, along with providing a family activity that relates to the message. Does God listen to our prayers? In the video and text below, I discuss Jesus’s parable of the Persistent Widow, also called the Parable of the Unjust Judge. It’s found in Luke 18:1-8. The parable... Read more