I recently heard Miroslav Volf say in an interview that the atheist/skeptic/doubter who rails against God because of the problem of suffering and evil in the world may actually be closer to God than some Christians. Is it possible that the atheist/skeptic/doubter is taking the claim about God being good and loving more seriously than […]
Hypernymous
Here’s a paragraph from Rollins’ How (Not) to Speak of God that’s worth thinking about: What is beginning to arise from the discussion so far is the idea that God ought to be understood as radically transcendent, not because God is somehow distant and remote from us, but precisely because God is immanent. In the […]
October 22, 2006 by 2 Comments
The House Unity Built
I’ve been asked a number of times what I hoped would come out of the reconciliation and unity celebrations that occurred at events like the Tulsa Workshop and NACC. I kept saying I hoped it would lead to some concrete demonstrations of unity beyond getting together for a worship assembly. I’m really proud of some […]
October 17, 2006 by 7 Comments
CSI Sermon
Did you watch CSI last night? If so, at the very end you heard some heavy duty reflection on morality that is uncommon for a popular TV show. Grissom got downright preachy and it was good. Update: Here’s the gist of what Grissom said: Our culture preaches, you shouldn’t be ashamed of anything you do […]
October 13, 2006 by 12 Comments
Late Breaking News
Earlier this week, Greg Taylor informed me that it’s no longer necessary to insert two spaces after a period. He said it’s been that way for years. It was the first I had heard of it. I was stunned. I still am. Every single sentence I’ve typed for who knows how long has ended with […]
October 12, 2006 by 16 Comments
How (Not) to Speak of God
I’m encouraging everyone I know to read Peter Rollins’ How (Not) to Speak of God. It has stimulated my thinking more than any book I’ve read in the last year or two. It’s fairly short, but it’s dense. The payoff is worth the time spent. It informed some of what I said at the Zoe […]
October 11, 2006 by 6 Comments
Random Declaration #5
Chips and salsa/queso is my favorite comfort food.
October 10, 2006 by 9 Comments
Imperial History of the Middle East
Here’s a handy-dandy history map sent to me by Sam Middlebrook. You can find it here.
October 9, 2006 by 3 Comments
God in the Bathroom
The ancient Hebrew language didn’t have a world for “spirituality.” Apparently that category didn’t exist in ancient Hebrew thought because they believed that all of life had the potential to be “spiritual.” This is very different from our dualistic worldview that separates the world into two categories: the spiritual (sacred) and the material (secular). In […]
October 5, 2006 by
The Looming Presence
One of the ways we can be more present to the God who is always present is to slow down and pay closer attention to what’s going on around us. You never know when heaven and earth will kiss each other in a moment of clarity, insight, or transformation. The Celtic Christians called these moments […]
October 3, 2006 by 3 Comments
Telling Stories, Asking Questions, Learning Lessons