Tag Archives: Culture

Worship and Culture

Robert Jenson wrote: “If you can teach previously clueless inquirers to participate in some ‘service of worship’ in a week or two, the service is merely thereby unmasked as dubiously Christian. The baptized face a new culture of the church … Continue reading

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(not) Enlisting Jesus as Our Political Trump Card

If you’re a Christian, you know Jesus is really important. We who claim to be his disciples think we ought to listen to him, follow him, and obey him. We ought to do what he did. One of our current … Continue reading

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Today’s Lament

A lament, in light of the signs of the times. I lament that so many women suffer from the depredations of men who treat them as mere objects. I lament that so many of those men cover their actions with, … Continue reading

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The Moving Preacher

Anyone who has heard me preach knows that I usually don’t stand still. Sometimes I get comments on my constant movement. Some people like it, others not. I have two reasons for moving, the first isn’t really under my control … Continue reading

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Means and Ends

Ends are purposes or goals toward which we aim. Means the the methods and devises we use to achieve or realize those ends. In current political discourse we are endlessly focused on means even when we use the language of ends. If someone … Continue reading

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At the Movies, We’re All the Same?

The last few times I’ve gone to a movie at our local theater I’ve seen the ad with the punch line, “We’re All The Same When The Lights Go Down.”   I don’t understand this (and given the insipidness of … Continue reading

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Two Commissions Coming out of the 2016 General Conference

Anyone who has been following GC news knows about the commission that will be studying issues of “human sexuality.” In the post-GC letter from the Council of Bishops  this is referred to as “a way forward, postponing decisions about sexuality … Continue reading

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Christian Politics

We’re in a season where American Christians are thinking about politics. Well, maybe not. Maybe it’s truer to say we’re in a season where the politics of the current American polarizations have colonized Christian minds. Candidates and their flunkies are assuring … Continue reading

Posted in Bible, Church & State, Clash of Civilizations, Culture, Current events, Ecclesiology, Politics, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Kahneman’s WYSIATI and the American Church

I’ve known WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) for many years. Recently I read Kahneman’s Thinking, Fast and Slow and learned a related idea – WYSIATI (What You See Is All There Is). Kahneman is NOT arguing that … Continue reading

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Foreignness of Christianity

In a recent article, Nathan Sanders addressed the question, “Has Christianity Become Foreign to the Western World?” He sees a bidirectional strangeness: the Christian faith is strange to outsiders and the outside world is strange to Christians. This strangeness lies … Continue reading

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