This is a sponsored post and part of the Patheos Book Club. Check out the Book Club for more posts on this book and for responses from the editors. When I got this book — 25 Books Every Christian Should Read: A Guide to the Essential Spiritual Classics — in the mail, I was looking to pick a fight. There was no way I was going to agree with all 25, probably not even half. In fact, I’d say that... Read more
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This post is part of a Patheos symposium on the Future of Seminary Education. You can see all of my posts in this symposium here. There’s a lot of really good stuff on the Patheos symposium, maybe the best stuff that’s ever been collected on this subject, and from a very wide range of perspectives. You’ve got everything from an evangelical saying that seminaries need to doctrinally retrench, to a former evangelical who runs an inter-faith seminary. I don’t think... Read more
“ “This is the confidence we have, that if we ask anything according to God’s will, He hears us.” I John 5:14. #WhyPray New Charlotte November 13, 2011 8:23:42 AM EST ReplyRetweet “ Please tell me why you pray. Use the hashtag #whypray. Thx Tony Jones November 16, 2011 8:32:18 AM EST ReplyRetweet “ #whypray It’s the best time I find to focus on God. Dyfed Roberts November 16, 2011 8:33:36 AM EST ReplyRetweet Orant – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia... Read more
Today, I’m starting a new book. It’s tentatively titled, Why Pray?, and it’s going to be my attempt answer this question for myself. It’s a question that, quite honestly, I don’t have an answer for. I hope that by the end of writing the book, I will. If you pray, you’ve probably got an answer. I’d like to hear it. You can comment here, or in subsequent posts. You can answer my questions on Facebook. You can tweet me an... Read more
After yesterday’s bouquet-throwing, I’ve got a brickbat in hand today for Christian denominations. Thanks to a tip from Doug Pagitt yesterday, I tuned into an hour on Minnesota Public Radio News. The Penn State child sexual abuse scandal was being discussed, more specifically, the ethics thereof. One of the guests was Daryl Koehn, Professor in the ethics and business law department at St. Thomas University, and author of The Nature of Evil. One after the other, callers to the show proclaimed that... Read more
I encourage you to take 15 minutes out of your day and watch this video. It’s the wedding video of a gay couple who were “married” this summer in Minneapolis.* (If you need proof that these are Minnesotans of Scandinavian ancestry, hang till the dancing at the end. That’ll prove it to you.) If you suffer from the “Ick Factor” when same-gendered persons kiss, this will push some buttons for you. I’m NOT asking you to consider if this is... Read more
I’m pretty tough on denominational Christianity in this space. But not unequivocally so. There are bright spots, and grace-filled moments, even in the lives of bureaucracies that are basically on palliative care. One of these moments happened last weekend, when Mariann Budde was consecrated as the Ninth Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, D.C. And, she’s the first woman to hold that post. I know Mariann a little bit. She is a fine person, in whose presence one... Read more
Every week I get a book in the mail from a Christian publisher. It’s another book about how incredibly, totally, awesomely, sacreligiously RADICAL Jesus is. Inevitably, the book uncovers the scandal that the church has missed out on how RADICAL Jesus is, and the erstwhile author trots out the usual list of examples from the life of Jesus about how he RADICALLY challenged the religious authorities of his day. And how he RADICALLY hung on the cross. I mean, he was seriously RADICAL.... Read more
Scott asked the question. I already know the answer. It’s always instructive to see how religious heirarchies are likely to respond to movements for social change. Religion is often, though not always, a conservative force in society, so that militates against the possibility of Anglican officialdom siding with the Occupy movement. But beyond that, it seems that religious leaders only really start to lead when they’re forced to follow the most radical implications of their traditions. And it’s fortuante that... Read more
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