Christian Universalism- The Beautiful Heresy

My King

Yesterday, Annie and I were talking about G-d (nothing new) and about the election (again nothing new).  Annie and others on the board are comfortable enough with the sovreignty of G-d to say whoever is elected will be G-d's choice (I paraphrase).  I don't see it that way.  Annie further explained her position and in doing so made the comment that no matter who wins G-d will still be on his throne.

That language doesn't really work for me anymore, the king language.  I know it's used quite extensively in the Bible because a monarchy is the only form of government they knew.  Anyway, this isn't really about that.  Our conversation reminded me of a sermon that I just love.  I first heard it remixed into a song. I don't love it so much for its theological correctness as I do for the passion it shows the preacher has about G-d and the style takes me back to the good memories I have of listening to some great old Penecostal preachers who really knew how to break it down. 

Wright is Wrong

Ironically, just yesterday, I was going to write a post titled "Wright is Right".  IMO, Reverend Jeremiah Wright has been right on target with a number of things, including the sermons that were so controversial.   When I heard Reverend Wright was going to be on Bill Moyers' show on Friday night, I waited with bated breath.  Would we see the Jeremiah Wright who is so well respected as a community activist and prophet?  Or would we see the insolent angry man that I saw on a conservative talk show interview a while back?  I was pleased with the interview.  I thought Reverend Wright and Billy Moyers did a wonderful job.  My defense of him was well-earned, I thought.  Then, Reverend Wright opened his mouth again...

Islam- A Religion of Peace?

Yesterday at church we had a speaker from the Islamic Center of Cincinnati visit us to talk to us about Islam and the relationship between the Christian church and the Muslim community.  Dr. Durrani did a fantastic job of explaining the origins of Islam and the similarities and differences between Islam and Christianity.  As a person who was raised in a Catholic school, he knows both Islam and Christianity better than most Christians know Christianity (and I'm guessing he knows Islam better than most Muslims know Islam).  I will give you a brief overview of some of the topics he talked about.  But, I want to encourage you to ask your church to reach out to the Islamic center near you and see if you can put together one of these dialogs.  Update:  Gregg (our pastor) recorded Dr. Durrani.  Here's a link to the talk.  Dr. Durrani's Talk

Five Minute Course on Black Liberation Theology

This is the best five minute explanation I've seen concerning Black Liberation Theology. 

http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/us/2008/03/24/intv.hopkins.trinity.church.cnn

Radical Acceptance

I want to share a Buddhist lecture with you that I found to be just completely beautiful  It is so full of wisdom, love and compassion that as I listened to it, I found myself feeling almost overwhelmed.  You know how when you're listening to some talks/sermons/lectures, you just can't wait for them to end because you're bored out of your mind?   And there rare ones when it ends just as it seems it was getting started?  This was different from either of those.  There was so much wisdom in this talk, I kind of wished she'd stop and save some for later because it was almost too much to absorb in one sitting.  The lecture is titled "Radical Acceptance".  You can find it here:  Radical Acceptance

Return to Innocence

It's wonderful to be able to study "progressive" or emerging Christianity with people face-to-face finally.  After four or five years of searching on my own or only with people on the Internet, I finally have the opportunity to discuss these "deep" things with real life flesh and blood people.  But, there is a concern that some of us have about this "new brand" of Christianity.  Why is it progressive Christianity is so "intellectual"?  Do you have to have a degree in theology to grasp the "deep" truths some of us struggling to root out?  These thoughts are troubling.  Obviously Jesus didn't appeal solely to the intelligencia.  If anything, it was the opposite.  He appealed to the common man.  So why the emphasis on book learning in emerging Christianity?  Well, I think I know the answer...

Foolishness

The wisdom the world is foolish.  I've heard this a million times from Christian promoting the idea that the more outrageous a doctrine, the more it must be true.  If you don't understand something they're trying to get across to you, all the better.  Its foolish.  You're not supposed to understand it.  If you could understand it, it wouldn't be from G-d.

 

Sum, Ergo Deus Est

How'd you like my attempt at Latin?  I'll explain it later.  I promise.  Last Thursday I was at the "She Who Is" meeting on feminist theology (yes, me at a meeting on feminist theology).  We were talking about feminine versus masculine images of  G-d.  It was a very good conversation. It's the first time I've really been able to talk about this with anyone since reading "Is It Okay To Call God Mother?" and being laughed at by Mark and Scott. (you can continue reading after scrolling past the picture)

Forget ECT, what about TCT?- Why Does G-d Allow Evil?

Byron asked a great question on my message board.  He  said "Forget about Eternal Conscious Torment?"  why does G-d allow "Temporary Conscious Torment"?- IOW all the suffering we experience in this world.

Here's my attempt at an answer.

The Transcended Christian- A Book Review

Daniel A. Helminiak has done it again.  He's written another brilliant book on Christianity/Spirituality; giving us who have "outgrown" the faith of our fathers something  to cling to.   The Transcended Christian (Spiritual Lessons for the Twenty-First Century) is the third of his books that I have read, the other two being Meditation Without Myth and What the Bible Really Says About Homosexuality.  Meditation Without Myth was reviewed here earlier.  I only have a two minor criticisms to make about his book, the first of which is I wish it had been called the "Transcending Christian".  As I've outgrown the simple label "Christian" and struggled to redefine myself, I've toyed with emergent Christian, Zen Christian, dropping labels all together and a number of other things.  I really like Transcended Christian, except it makes it sound as if I've already completed the process.  Nothing could be further from the truth.   But, Transcending Christian- that works.  The book opens with this:

What do you do when you've outgrown your religion?  When your life experience exceeds that of your clergy?  When the learning that life forced on you challenges your religious beliefs?  When you can no longer deny that something new is afoot and your church is out of touch?