There is one reason that political debates are so intriguing. And let’s not fool ourselves about this. We are not intrigued by these debates because we get to learn about the different positions candidates take on issues. That would be boring. And besides, at this stage of the primary debates, all the candidates have similar positions on the issues. No. The real reason we are so fascinated by these debates is the drama. We want to see who wins and... Read more
This is a guest post by Matthew Distefano, whose book “All Set Free: How God is Revealed in Jesus and Why That is Really Good News” was recently published by Wipf and Stock. Read more of Matthew’s excellent work at his website All Set Free and at the Raven Foundation. Tacit knowledge is the sort of knowledge that is experienced. It is difficult, if not impossible, to use language to explain it. An example should make this clear so let me offer one. If I... Read more
Dear President Obama, Your recent decision to extend indefinitely the longest war in American history was made without the consent of the American people and against the will of millions of Afghans. For hope of stability and security, violence on all sides must cease. The occupation, arms sales, and missile and drone strikes must come to an immediate end. I join the millions of voices that cry “#Enough!” Afghanistan, indeed the whole world, is long overdue for peace. Your announcement that nearly 10,000 troops... Read more
Displayed over a blurred image of Osama bin Laden, the headline on the cover of The New York Times Magazine for October 18 reads: Do we really know the truth about his death? The mysteries of Abbottabad. But weirdly, the article is not an investigation of the truth about bin Laden’s death; it’s an investigation of other investigations. Jonathan Mahler decided to report on two competing narratives about the raid in Abbottabad. His article is a soul-searching reflection on how... Read more
Show Notes Welcome to The RavenCast, a product of the Raven Foundation, parent company of Teaching Nonviolent Atonement. Each Tuesday, we plan to post a video and mp3 to the Raven website discussing mimetic theory. Sometimes these videos will be an individual discussing mimetic theory, but sometimes we will interview people engaging mimetic theory. In this video, Adam Ericksen introduces the RavenCast and mimetic theory by telling the story of his mother as a model of faith. Through her experience with... Read more
It’s hard for me to wait for December 18! That’s the day that Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens is released. For a Star Wars nerd like myself, the anticipation is nearly overwhelming. December 18 cannot come fast enough! But this week I discovered that other Star Wars nerds are boycotting the movie. Why? Because they are racists! They have clearly gone to the dark side. The main character of Star Wars is named Finn, who is played... Read more
We generally think that spiritual practices have to be difficult. No pain, no gain tends to be our mantra in the physical and spiritual realms. But if you are anything like me, you avoid pain like the plague! Jesus said that if you have enough faith, you can move mountains. That sounds like way too much work for me. I’d rather take a nap… But what if spiritual practices don’t have to be so difficult? For example, take the most important spiritual practice in... Read more
Pastors have a frequent question when they begin to discover mimetic theory. “That’s great. But how does it preach?” Reverends Tom and Laura Truby show 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 Tom and Laura’s sermons as an example of preaching the Gospel through mimetic theory. In this sermon, Tom discusses the rivalry between James... Read more
Workers? We was real hard workers, wasn’t we? With those words, 15-year-old Coby Burren alerted his mother, Roni Dean-Burren, to a mistake somehow overlooked by editors and reviewers held to what one would hope to be the highest standards of scrutiny. In his 9th grade World Geography book, a text used by millions of students nation-wide, he had found slavery described as a type of “immigration” and slaves euphemized as “workers.” The caption read: The Atlantic Slave Trade between 1500 and 1800 brought... Read more
The 10 Commandments are central to the Judeo-Christian tradition. And yet for many of us they seem antiquated. But for their time, and for ours, they provide a huge step forward in the human understanding of God. Take the First Commandment, for example – “You shall have no other gods before me.” If you are like me, you have often wondered if this commandment shows that God has a massive ego problem. I mean, what’s the big deal with those... Read more
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