I am a passionate worshiper. I sing loudly and feel the songs deeply. As a former drummer, I also dig rockin' worship. Having said that, my recent travels have given me reason to pause. In three different states - in three different regions of the country - I have had the pleasure of attending … Read more about Who Loves Us? or What’s Up With Worship Music?
Concerns About ‘The’ Cross
I want to thank all of you who shared, commented and emailed about this past weekend’s post on Blood: Easter, the Cross and that quote about Liberals. I have received lots of feedback via email, FaceBook and text. It seems that most people get the main thrust of the article but have one … Read more about Concerns About ‘The’ Cross
Invitation To Conversation: Ancient Future Faith
An 'Ancient-Future' faith is an idea that gripped me more than a decade ago and, even as I have emerged into a very different expression of my faith, I can not shake. As I have revisited and revised my participation and understanding of the Christian faith, this concept has haunted me in the best of … Read more about Invitation To Conversation: Ancient Future Faith
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
Reclamation, Religion and Consumerism’s Bricolage: in conversation with Philip Clayton
A couple of weeks ago I had a very interesting conversation with Philip Clayton. Several of us went out for lunch after the High Gravity session on Religion & Science. We were at a restaurant where the walls were decorated with a busy collection of reclaimed signs, old pictures and repurposed … Read more about Reclamation, Religion and Consumerism’s Bricolage: in conversation with Philip Clayton
Call for Proposals: Derrida and Caputo in Actual Churches
This year at the Annual Meetings of the American Academy of Religion and Society for Biblical Literature (Baltimore, November 23-26) we're interested in assembling a panel of speakers who can address concrete, physical Christian activities which have been influenced by post-modern thought. That … Read more about Call for Proposals: Derrida and Caputo in Actual Churches
The Crowd the Critic and the Muse with Michael Gungor
Musical artist Michael Gungor joins us for a conversation about creativity, spirituality and the deeper things of life. His new book is called The Crowd, The Critic, and the Muse along with all of the band's amazing collection of music. The songs you hear in this episode are from the live … Read more about The Crowd the Critic and the Muse with Michael Gungor
NERD OUT! Preaching, Power, Pannenberg, & Pastor Pops
This episode is brought to you by the letter 'P'... Preaching, Power, Pannenberg, & Pastor Pops. Bo and I finally got back together in person after I made it back from the Wild Goose Festival in North Carolina. This is the result of our friendly nerding. In this episode we discuss..... * … Read more about NERD OUT! Preaching, Power, Pannenberg, & Pastor Pops
Worried about Worship
In the past several week I have read three interesting blog posts about worship. The first was from theologian James K.A. Smith with An Open Letter to Praise Bands The second was from Tony Jones guest posting at PoMoMusings on the next 100 years The third was from Tara Burke over at … Read more about Worried about Worship
Thoughtful Eucharistic Heresy
I’ve been happy to reflect, as of late, on the notion of communion, its proper place and its meaning. The institution is an interesting one. A sacrament and material means for the communication of God’s grace and God’s covenant to be a God who loves us unconditionally, communion has come to be … Read more about Thoughtful Eucharistic Heresy
Can I worship to this song? Poetics and Process
I live in a worship culture. Part of it is the North American context. Part of it has to do with my living between two worlds - my family and friends are Evangelical-Charismatic and I work at a Mainline church with a serious music program ... including a gargantuan Pipe Organ. I love music. I … Read more about Can I worship to this song? Poetics and Process
Transitioning toward Theology
In the book “Who Needs Theology?” Grenz and Olson provide a helpful little spectrum of 5 kinds of theology: Folk, Lay, Pastoral, Professional, and Academic. I have pastored for over 15 years and have always considered myself a Pastoral Theologian. Over the last 5 years I have been transitioning … Read more about Transitioning toward Theology