Theoblogy
What do you get when you mix a bunch of YouTube videos, interviews with a few ultra-conservative Christians, and some scary Danny Elfmann knock-off music? This: Read more
What do you get when you mix a bunch of YouTube videos, interviews with a few ultra-conservative Christians, and some scary Danny Elfmann knock-off music? This: Read more
I’ve been thinking more about the post I wrote last week about Daniel Kirk‘s new book, Jesus Have I Loved, but Paul?: A Narrative Approach to the Problem of Pauline Christianity. Daniel takes a generous but conservative posture toward homosexual behavior in chapter nine of his book, the chapter that I was asked to review. He gets there by doing three things: (more…) Read more
If I had the chance to do my dissertation research today, instead of 2005, there are a few other churches I’d use in the study. One of them would surely be Common Table in Washington, D.C., where Mike Stavlund and Co. are doing what they can to embody the flat church that I hope for in my latest book. Here’s a something Mike wrote recently for the Emergent Village Blog: Listening to a recent ‘On Being’ podcast with the venerable... Read more
Jonathan Martin weighs on Real Marriage and the Driscoll interview: To be clear, my reason for taking this on has nothing to do with Mark Driscoll personally, per se. I have been just as passionate about defending women in ministry inside my own tradition. (Those are other stories for another time—I just think its important to note that this is an issue dear to my heart in general that I have spoken to consistently, as opposed to just being a bandwagon... Read more
At the Des Moines Register, a withering look at the failed presidential bid of Michele Bachmann, including nine reasons she failed. Here’s one: 1. Supporter cards remain shelved At the straw poll, about 6,000 Iowans filled out Bachmann supporter cards with their contact information, an invaluable resource for galvanizing a base of activist caucusgoers. But the trail went cold for eight weeks when the supporter cards sat in limbo at the national headquarters, said Kent Sorenson, her Iowa chairman until... Read more
This post is part of a blog tour for Daniel Kirk‘s new book, Jesus Have I Loved, but Paul?: A Narrative Approach to the Problem of Pauline Christianity. See all the posts at the blog tour hub. OK, I’m going to be a little tough on my friend, Daniel Kirk, in this post. Daniel is, admittedly, to my hermeneutical right. He’s a New Testament prof at my alma mater, Fuller Seminary, and I have a great deal of respect for... Read more
In light of last week’s gathering of evangelical leaders, in which they threw their support behind Rick Santorum, David Neff of Christianity Today wrote a sensible essay called, “Why Last Saturday’s Political Conclave of Evangelical Leaders Was Dangerous: Brothers and sisters, we are neither kingmakers nor powerbrokers.” He’s smart to distance himself from that group in Texas — in fact, he admits that he wasn’t invited. He also cops to being at the center of the group that in 2008 published... Read more
There are a few votes that I’ve cast in my life that I regret — and, no, voting for Jesse “The Body” Ventura to govern my state for four years is not one of them! I regret voting for the Minnesota Legacy Amendment to the state constitution in 2008. I don’t think that we should legislate via constitutional amendments, nor do I think that taxes should be set by amendment. I regret voting for Norm Coleman for U.S. Senate in... Read more
I’m a big fan of trees, and this map shows every tree in the U.S. (if you look close enough): The full map is said to have an incredible scale: 4 pixels for every acre in the contiguous United States, according to the release. That land mass is 3,119,884.69 square miles, or about 1,996,726,201 acres. The graphic has 12,519,713 pixels (at 4457×2809) so it seems like there is an original, full-sized version is not available (or my math is... Read more
People who are honest about the conservative uprisings in various denominations will admit that many conservative congregations are staying put — at least for now — because the congregations don’t own the building in which they meet, and/or the land on which that building stands. The courts have been split on who actually owns the buildings and the land, but a conclusive ruling in the D.C. area has put conservative Episcopal parishes on notice: If they leave the denomination, they... Read more
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