There are so many people who believe that doubt has no place in the Church. From Church leadership to the layperson. The reason that is often given has to do with the perceived incongruity between faith and doubt. However, what most of these people fail to understand is that faith is created in the infernal cistern of doubt. Even when most evangelicals present the Gospel it is often presented in such a way that one must doubt their “worldly” perspective... Read more
Retraction/Clarification 4/21/22. It has been brought to my attention by Keith that his intention was not to compare Richard Rohr and Rob Bell’s writings to Gnosticism in general, but to Valentinus’ specific book The Gospel of Truth. It is always my goal to make sure that all of my writings are honest critiques, so in this spirit, I give you this clarification. Recently, in his article “First Century Deconstruction” my friend Keith Giles gave the impression that Gnostics... Read more
Another evangelical institution has been accused of sexual misconduct. Yesterday it was reported that Christianity Today underwent a third-party investigation, which determined that under prior leadership sexual harassment was an issue. 12 women came forward during the investigation to testify that former editor-in-chief Mark Galli and former advertising director Olatokunbo Olawoye were the two culprits. The current President and CEO of CT Timothy Dalrymple explains here Christianity Today Handled things (almost) Perfectly I have been reporting on sexual misconduct within... Read more
This image came to my mind when I began considering what Jesus would do in Ukraine? You can view my UNenlightenment YouTube Channel HERE You can view my UNenlightenment Podcast HERE You can follow me on FaceBook HERE Read more
In part one we deconstructed racism by looking at its history from the Civil War to the highway construction project. In this part, we will look at the economic racism that was prevalent in the Regan years. Ever heard of “Reaganomics”? Ronald Reagan was known for his economic policies. So much so that an economic perspective was created known as Reaganomics. We are often taught in conservative economic theory how great this time was for our country. We are taught... Read more
Note: I will not be able to address this issue as it deserves because the information is so plentiful it would easily fill books upon books. Therefore, this is a very slim survey meant to help provide at least some perspective for those who want to better understand why racism still exists in our country today. Much of the racism that occurs in America today (at least for those not intending to be racist) is based upon a lack of... Read more
I had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. David Fitch who is a Professor of Evangelical Theology at Northern Seminary in Chicago. Kierkegaard once said that when Christianity became legal it ceased to be Christianity. Although Kierkegaard was mostly writing hyperbole when he said this, Dave Fitch is very serious when he argues that the Church changed in a significant way once Constantine began to influence the Church. In this conversation, the historical nature of the evolving Church... Read more
As a disclaimer, I should say that I have many presuppositions as it relates to sex. I will try to shed as many of those as I can in this article; but, alas, I am a former evangelical; I identify as a male, and I am white. There are doubtless other factors that influence my perspectives on sex, but those are likely the most significant ones. Let me also say that I am a work in progress about this... Read more
Theologians, philosophers, and scientists have been making claims about God as long as humans have existed. In this article, I don’t want to rehash classical arguments for the existence of God or even have a debate. What is presented here is more like a conversation with my interlocutor mulling over the idea of God’s existence. Perhaps this conversation asks questions you have never considered before. Maybe this conversation asks questions that you have thought of before and you feel... Read more
Is there any room for a view of theology that is both progressive as well as orthodox? Do the two ways of thinking contradict one another? On the one hand, progressive theology suggests something current and up-to-date. Whereas, orthodox reflects a belief that has been established for a long time. Although there are plenty of progressives who desire to make something new out of Christianity, I believe the majority of people are simply interested in discovering the truth about early... Read more
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