I awoke to a provocative text from my friend on the East coast yesterday morning. He had a 3 hour head start on me and I assume he was at an Easter sunrise service. My friend knows that I now minister in a context where not everyone believes in physical resurrection, preferring a more ‘spiritual’ … Read more about Resurrection – whether physical, spiritual or poetic – Really Matters!
Jesus Isn’t Superman
As you may be aware, with the release of the Man of Steel movie earlier this year there was a major push by evangelical marketing types to get preachers to focus on the messianic imagery that had been intentionally spliced into the movie. This is not my concern (although insights about that … Read more about Jesus Isn’t Superman
Apple Updates and the Church
I have been thinking about the church and technology a lot lately. Part of it comes from planning to update a sanctuary constructed in 1951. Some of it has to do with recruiting a team to handle all the tech stuff at 'church plant'. A bit of it came from the odd analogy that was used repeatedly … Read more about Apple Updates and the Church
AAR Event: Derrida and Caputo in Actual Churches
Caputo and Derrida in Actual Churches Exploring the Influence of (a stream of) Postmodern Thought on Christian Practices Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Religion Saturday, November 23 7:00 pm 9:00 pm Loch Raven Room II Sheraton Inner Harbor We’ve assembled a panel of speakers … Read more about AAR Event: Derrida and Caputo in Actual Churches
Your Spiritual Genius
I have been reading an inspiring book entitled Spiritual Genius by Winifred Gallagher. She looks at 10 'masters' and the quest for meaning. One of the passages early on in the book has really stuck with me and yesterday I had the opportunity to present it as a 'conversation starter' (we don't do … Read more about Your Spiritual Genius
Meaningful Dialogue and Dialogue about Meaning
Guest Blogger: Amy Mitchell of UnchainedFaith.com Not long ago, I read a lively discussion among a group of fellow writers on the interpretation of Scripture and who has earned to right to explain the meaning and original context for the Bible. Two of them suggested that theological discourse must … Read more about Meaningful Dialogue and Dialogue about Meaning
God Is Not Like Me
I grew up in a tradition that said I should be, as much as possible, like Jesus. I get that - and I try to do so. Yesterday at the Loft LA I had the privilege to say 3 things (among many others) about God: God is Black (from James Cone) She Who Is (from Elizabeth Johnson) God is a Fag ( … Read more about God Is Not Like Me
Emergent Preaching?
A good question can stimulate the brain to put together things that one had not previously connected. Stuart Harrell asked my a question about what a course on emergent "preaching" would look like. Here are some of my thought - I would love to hear yours. My cleaned up tweets are posted as … Read more about Emergent Preaching?
The Cross: meaning, redemption and the future
Guest post by Renee Axtell - one of the stars of the Easter Call-In Challenge has sent us her thoughts from the amber waves of Kansas. Should we stop saying that God sent Jesus to die? My answer is yes. We should stop saying that God sent Jesus to die, because that implies that God’s … Read more about The Cross: meaning, redemption and the future
Jesus, the Cross and Another Way
Guest post by Ken Alton - one of the stars of the Easter Call-In Challenge TNT has sent us his thoughts from the northern forest of British Colombia, Canada. Did God send Jesus to die on a cross? Did God send Jesus to die for our sins? My reaction is to say no. God sent Jesus to save … Read more about Jesus, the Cross and Another Way
Palm Sunday Is The Most Political Sunday
As a children’s and family minister, I love Palm Sunday. At our stained-glass and organ church we do it up big. We get lots and lots of palm branches for folks to wave during the singing of the hymns and we have the kids process down the aisle and march around the sides of the pews. It is quite a … Read more about Palm Sunday Is The Most Political Sunday
TNT: Bible Bash with Brueggemann and Fretheim
Bo and Tripp riff off of Terence Fretheim and Walter Brueggemann answering the same set of questions. These two legends of Biblical Theology give us their best take on passages to preach when controversial subjects come up. Topics include: Economy Ecology Homosexuality Immigration Other … Read more about TNT: Bible Bash with Brueggemann and Fretheim