Nothing gets me giddy like going to an academic conference. For those who are involved in the academic study of the bible/theology/religion like myself, the big event – “conference time” – takes place in mid-November with the annual meetings of ETS/IBR/SBL/AAR. It is always a blast to present and listen to papers, meet new people, connect with old friends, and do a bit of traveling too. But it’s this last part – traveling – that can make […]
On a recent visit to Reality San Francisco, I couldn’t help but feel that a large movement had begun throughout their community. Though there was over a thousand people in attendance, it was easy to feel the small community within the Mission District Middle School that Sunday morning. Usually Reality SF holds more services, but in January they are trying “slow church” – one service, the whole body, and lots of good vibes. As I […]
1. Women are Manly There is nothing like hearing a midwife say “push” at the beginning of a contraction, watching your wife scream like her leg is being cut off with a blunt saw and knowing that there is nothing you can do about it. Occasionally, I would hear my wife’s pain as she pushed and instinctively, “push” along with her. Luckily, I didn’t take this to the end all in which I just crap […]
As a student of the New Testament, I am one of those odd characters who enjoys the minutia of grammatical details in the original languages and especially their interpretative significance. Yet what motivates me in working through the details is primarily a genuine application of discipleship to Jesus. Today’s post comes primarily as a review/summary of an interesting chapter I recently read on discipleship by J. Ramsey Michaels entitled, “Going to Heaven with Jesus: From […]
A few days ago, I thought that this post you are now reading would be about Lance Armstrong. But today, there was a new story that capture America’s attention. A story that received more hype than a more threatening situation- the French deployment of troops to confront the uprising of Islamic militants in Mali. A tale more popular than the discussion that could actually affect the interpretation of your American right to property and self-protection […]
First there was Baseball cards. Then there was Pokémon. Now, thanks to Norman Jeune III and Zondervan, we have Theologian Trading Cards! Functioning more as a dictionary than as a true “trading card” set – there isn’t actually any ‘trading’ involved – the full set includes three hundred key figures from Church History (with more of an emphasis on Protestantism). Although there isn’t any ‘trading’ involved — which unfortunately removes any possible scenarios where 3 […]
As a student of medical social work, I oftentimes end my days with many serious stressors on my mind. My work involves situations of life and death, and other very heavy events. Because of this, I often find myself coming home and at the least watching one television show to get my mind focused on something funny and light-hearted. My friends and family enjoy giving me a hard time because some of my favorite shows […]
I recently got into my first Twitter battle – and it was epic. Sometimes, when I am done pouring through old books and ancient citations, I do searches in Twitter for various subjects that I had been reading about. A few days ago that subject was Apollonius of Tyana. I quickly found a tweet that simply read: “Jesus = Apollonius of Tyana” I decided that I would start a conversation. I don’t know about the […]
A pastor once told me that God’s people are simply pawns in his ultimate plan to glorify himself. Seriously. He said “pawns.” That would be a great metaphor if chess players actually loved their pawns, but they don’t. The world’s greatest chess player never loved his pawns, much less died for them. So when I asked him about his semantic mishap, he said perhaps it’s better to say we’re “incidental” to God’s plan. I’ve heard […]
I am notorious for listening to Christmas music at any time of year. This produces a gamut of responses from utter disparaging of the thought to confessions of similar behavior. My reason is never an attempt to sustain the festivities long past their due. Rather, I am deeply and profoundly encouraged by the gift we celebrate at Christmastime, the gift of the incarnation. God truly did so love the world that He gave His Son, […]
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