Nationalism

If you're not sure what exactly I'm talking about when I talk about compromised nationalistic messages . . . somehow I ran across this one today (I really wasn't looking for it!) . . . this is not the Gospel . . .

Why Wright Is Wrong from bellshoals on Vimeo.

I love this dude . . .

Peter Rollins at Baylor University from Peter Rollins on Vimeo.

Ugh

Ugh . . .

What the Hell . . .

What is Truth?

This is a great article reflecting on the current global warming debate especially in the context of the Copenhagen summit. This question summarizes well his concerns here: As the amplification of human opinion becomes more democratic, is suspicion of the excerpt and the intellectual - a long-held trope in American society - going viral?" Access article here.

The Meaning of Life

the Meaning of Life - stop motion from Vytautas Alechnavicius on Vimeo.

Saw this posted on Rainn Wilson's interesting blog and wasn't sure what to make of it . . . but at the same time found it strangley provocative. Enjoy.

Neither Conservative Nor Liberal

Lee Camp's message is timely, poignant, and needed in pulpits across the nation.

http://ottercreek.podOmatic.com/entry/2009-08-30T13_05_53-07_00

On America as a Christian Nation

Here are some interesting thoughts regarding the way the United States is so often portrayed as a Christian nation.

I also had this article published for Wineskins on the related topic.

Words from Brennan Manning

I have seen Brennan Manning's The Ragamuffin Gospel in bookstores and on bookshelves for years. It is one of those few books that I have seen quoted all over the place - in academic books, among musicians, in devotional works, etc. For whatever reason, I have never had much interest in reading it. I found it at the incredible Goodwill in Lewisburg, TN last year (I've found lots of gems there the past few trips) and it's sat on my shelf since.

Last week, I met with one of the senior citizens who meets in our senior small group on Tuesdays, and we decided that we would study Manning's book. I took up chapter one this morning to prepare some opening thoughts for today's study before everyone has their copies. What a way to begin the morning! I can't believe I have waited so long to delve into this work. It has been a refreshing breath of air to my spirit. I am looking forward to reflecting on it in the coming weeks.


I have been busy working through several books lately and have had some blogging topics come to mind. I had planned to spend some time reflecting on a series of articles in this week's Columbus newspaper, following a priest through his seminary trainging at the local Pontifical College. I just finished reading Mike King's Presence-Centered Youth Ministry that had left an indelible mark on my understanding of youth ministry, and coupled with the articles reflecting on entering the priesthood: giving up a family, sex, ten years of your life to training, I started thinking about how seriously I have taken my role as minister/pastor/priest. King notes how when he is in the presence of a Hindu priest he feels like he is in the presence of a holy man, but in the presence of an evangelical minister he feels like he is in the presence of a car salesmen.

It seems to me The Ragamuffin Gospel is going to be just what I need to re-engage my spiritual fervor and remind me of what undergirds my purpose and my position. I found the ending of the first chapter especially compelling:

"Because salvation is by grace through faith, I believe that among the countless number of people standing inf ront of the throne and in front of the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palms in their hand, I shall see the prostitute from the Kit-Kat Ranch in Carson City, Nevada, who tearfully told me she could find no other employment to support her two-year-old son. I shall see the woman who had an abortion and is haunted by guilt and remorse but did the best she could faced with grueling alternatives; the business-man besieged with debt who sold his integrity in a series of desperate trasnactions; the insecure clergyman addicted to being liked, who never challenged his people from teh pulpit and longed for unconditional love; the sexuall-abused teen molested by his father and now sellign his body on the street, who, as he falls asleep each night after his last 'trick,' whispers the name of the unknown God he learned about in Sunday school; the deathbed convert who for decades had his cake and ate it, broke every law of God and man, wallowed in lust and raped the earth.
"But how?" we ask. Then the voice says, "They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb."
They are there. There we are - the multitude who so wanted to be faithful, who at times got defeated, soiled by life, and bested by trials, wearing the bloodied garments of life's tribulations, but through it all clung to the faith.
My friends, if this is not good news to you,you have never understood the gospel of grace."
p. 32 - 33

That reminds me of something a friend told me last week that is especially convicting for my conservative friends, "If Jesus were here to today, you know the kind of people he's be with? He'd find a gay Latino who was in this country illegally, who was suffering from complications from an abortion she had, and had a rare disease that was only cureable by advances in stem-cell research.

Now . . . I must rush back to my suburban existence . . .

Strange but Interesting

Yet another angle to the Michael Jackson story you may have not yet considered

I Suppose Sometimes It's OK Just to Laugh

More funny videos like the "Jesus Sightings Montage" at Heavy.com
Do you think God ever just messes with us?

Readings off the Map

In researching for my upcoming paper, I'm reading through a lot of scholarly work on the periphery of theological scholarship. Most folks who check this blog out will probably be pretty unfamiliar with much of this work. I know some of you will have difficulty stomaching some of it, but I think there is great reward in exposure to things we have difficulty understanding and that offends. Stemming from a pacifist perspective, consider the following excerpt from Walter Wink's book, Unmasking the Powers. (By the way, this book is written with the Cold War as a backdrop, and it has been interesting for me to see the many parallels with today's works reflecting on the war on terror.)

“This is why the American abolitionist and founder of the Oneida Community, John Humphrey Noyes, could write to William Lloyd Garrison,
‘When I wish to form a conception of the government of the United States (using a personified representation), I picture to myself a bloated, swaggering libertine, trampling on the Bible – its own Constitution – its treaties to the Indians – the petitions of its citizens, with one hand whipping a negro tied to a liberty pole, and with the other dashing an emaciated Indian to the ground . . . The question urges itself upon me – “What Have I, as a Christian, to do with such a villain?”
‘My hope of the millennium begins where Dr. Beecher’s expires – namely, AT THE OVERTHROW OF THIS NATION.’
I have quoted such an extreme view because it helps place in relief the most radical challenge of Revelation 18: its celebration of the fall of the richest and most powerful empire of the time. Are we then to entertain the terrible possibility that the salvation of humanity depends somehow on the decline, destruction or transformation of the United States as a sign of God’s sovereignty over the nations? Rome, yes, but – America? Never! The very suggestion of such a thing will strike many Americans as subervsive. And that reaction itself is an index of our idolatry. A godly people would react ot the treat of God’s judgment with fear, awe, consternation. They would know that no person and no nation is righteous before God. They would say, with Jefferson, ‘I tremble for my country when I remember that God is just.’ But Americans do not, on the whole, think that way. To the degree that they are religious at all, they actually believe that God is pleased, beholden to, partial to, and identified with our land.
This is not to deny that, in many ways, our nation may be a more desirable place to live than some other countries. Nor do I wish to ignore the many positive contributions it has made to human society. My point is simply that these contributions in no way mitigate the objective state of idolatry that has been the price we have paid for nationhood.”

Many of us who speak against the perils of our country take great offense and quickly dismiss us as "haters" or the like. I think the merit in Wink's point here is that it must be possible for the Christian to live critically in the world she is a part embracing the good, but prophetically rebuking the evil.

More Sharing

Peter Rollins' Parable

Should be a pretty provocative book with parables like this:

God Joins the Army by peter-rollins

Peter Rollins

My faith has been formed within a tradition of churches known as the Churches of Christ - not to be confused with the United Churches of Christ or the Christian Churches of Christ. No, we are a pretty unique group. We are definitely "conservative" but not evangelical (though we look more and more like we are). We, like the Anabaptists before us are a dissenting movement, so we have a penchant for the cynical and a strong "what-we're-not" theology. We were birthed through Presbyterian dissenters a few hundred years ago. We are thoroughly autonomous, but even in lacking any central governing or organizing structure, we are amazingly homogeneous (don't read that as a good quality - it is perhaps our greatest asset, and, at the same time, our most understood trait from within).

We are led by local elders and our ministers have a less significant role in the affairs of the church than in most denominations. Doctrinally, our members can be find all across the board - this is a good thing, and is making living peacefully together more and more difficult.

This clip from Rollins is great and highlights the challenges that are before our group - as well as others. Churches of Christ went astray several decades insisting on doctrinal consistency, and, as Rollins illustrates, that world is a facade. What a challenge!

Doctrinally

This is unbelievable!

This, truly, is a different way of being the church. It sure throws some skepticism on our "safe" suburban way of doing church.




If you aren't familiar with the ministry of the xxxchurch.com, check it out. They are really an impressive group of followers.

Refreshing Perspective

Everyone I know is sick of seeing the negativity in this year's Presidential election. I'm not sure we've seen anything like it. On my Facebook page, each time I log on I see all the articles and perspectives people on my friends list have posted. I have been distraught over the numerous articles filled win rancor and dissension from "Christians." Their arguments and their talking points are no different than their particular party's agenda. Hopefully, what I uphold here is not simply another talking post for liberal politics. If I follow closely with the typical liberal perspective, I am not where I want to be. I am sympathetic to much of the objectives of liberalism, however, see in them much short of kingdom perspective. I am in no way offended by conservativism. There is much there that is good. Why would half of our country espouse the two mindsets? There is good in each.

My strongest disappointment this year comes from (especially conservative, but not limited to) folks who have sold out to rhetoric of fear. My esteemed conservative friend who I discuss things with often (and who is no doubt reading this) falls solidly into that category. In arguing why he can't vote for Obama, it was exclusively a perspective of fear. As Christians why are we so afraid? We have a higher calling and a broader perspective. I found the following article in my inbox stating my perspective much better than I can. I hope, if you find yourself steaming at this post, you'll read the following link and see where I'm coming from.

http://www.sojo.net/blog/godspolitics/?p=3287

Benny Hinn

A guy at church showed me this after I showed that video below with a picture of Benny Hinn in it. We had heard this song on the way to Winterfest, so we found it especially entertaining. There are apparently many Hinnites out there, so if you are offended, I apologize, but I found this video hilarious.

Ramblings

Well . . . I have a new favorite team to never root for, never wish anything good to happen, and generally despise in odious fervor . . . stupid Florida . . . gross . . . I especially like the way that their two wins over Ohio State have reignited the Civil War for so many SEC fans . . . stupid school . . . *&$%@#$ $#*^@ . . . that's all I'll say about that . . .

A disgruntled, but proud (and still true) fan!

Other exciting things:

* I have the task of drafting an Easter sermon for this Sunday. I'll post the script here soon.

* I got a sweet deal at the Cokesbury Press store down here in Columbus. It is always a highlight when they do their bag sale. I got 35 books for $15 - how sweet is that? Here's some of the highlights from the sale:
* The Reluctant Parting: How the New Testament's Jewish Writers Created a Jewish Book by Julie Galambush
* Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers by Christian Smith
* Millenials Rising: The Next Great Generation by Neil Howe and William Strauss
* Ethics by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
* Deep Religious Pluralism edited by David Ray Griffin
* Many Members yet One Body: Committed Same-Gender Relationships and the Mission of the Church by Graig L. Nessan
* How to Think Theologically by Howard W. Stone & James O. Duke
* And, perhaps the most bizarre find: Finding God in the Singing River: Christianity, Spirit, Nature by Mark I. Wallace

The bag sale makes my day a little brighter. I have plenty in the hopper going on . . . hopefully I'll have time to comment later.

In the News Again

It's always interesting how when you find something that connects with you and you are very interested in, sometimes it comes at you several different times in several different ways. Check out this video from Nightline Friday. I saw that it was going to be on, but I missed it on tv and caught this webcast from YouTube.