Priorities Around the Sequester….
Couldn’t have said it better. Continue reading Priorities Around the Sequester….
Month: April 2013
Living The Message….
Emergent congregations are especially well equipped to live creatively in the newly post-Western Christianity. They are careful not to confuse the life and message of Jesus with the “Western” elements in which it has been packaged. They try to assign equal weight to both the message and the context so that a new version of the old story can take shape. They strongly underline “living the message” rather than simply proclaiming it. They experiment with settings, like cafes, in which two-way exchange rather than one-way preaching is possible The Future of Faith (Cox, Harvey) The words above are one of … Continue reading Living The Message….
Tread on Me, Please….
We’re often told that our liberties are under assault. The right warns that our Big Government nanny state is plotting to seize our guns and our Big Gulps, while strangling our economic freedom with taxes and regulations. The left rails against our Big Government security state—the drone warfare, indefinite detention and electronic surveillance that make the war on terror sound like an Orwellian nightmare. The National Rifle Association had just finished bellowing about background checks violating our Second Amendment rights when the American Civil Liberties Union started shrieking about the FBI violating the Boston bombing suspect’s Miranda rights…. In the … Continue reading Tread on Me, Please….
The Gasoline Conspiracy…..
NEW YORK — A sharp decline in the price of oil this month is making gasoline cheaper at a time of year when it typically gets more expensive. It’s a relief to motorists and business owners and a positive development for the economy. Source: Drivers benefit as oil prices drop sharply – Business on NBCNews.com. I don’t know about where you come from but it seems that gasoline prices around here jump $0.30 a gallon in an afternoon. Most of the times that happens in Friday mornings. Friday is one of the mornings I drive 40 miles round trip … Continue reading The Gasoline Conspiracy…..
Abraham Lincoln’s God…..
I never behold the heavens filled with stars that I do not feel I am looking in the face of God. I can see how it might be possible for a man to look down upon the earth and be an atheist. but I cannot conceive how he could lie looking up into the heavens and say there is no God. When any church will inscribe over its altar, as its sole qualification for membership, the Saviour’s condensed statement of the substance of both law and Gospel. “‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and … Continue reading Abraham Lincoln’s God…..
Those Who Use Jesus’ Name….
They had turned the way of Jesus, I felt, into the club of the Pharisees, and they didn’t speak for me, even though their spokesmen dominated the dialogue night after night on cable TV. The terms “Evangelical” and even “Christian” had become like discredited brands through their energetic but misguided work. I increasingly understood why more and more of my friends winced when the name “Jesus” was mentioned in public. It wasn’t due to a loss of respect for Jesus, but for those who most used his name. In spite of all this, few of my fellow pastors and leaders … Continue reading Those Who Use Jesus’ Name….
Artsy….
June 1989 – This is a picture of a long time friend taken at the Indy Zoo. Of course it has been “artified” by me. I am trying to get into this type of thing again. Continue reading Artsy….
The Golden Rule….
A new golden rule BY CHUCK JAFFE, MARKETWATCH It has long been a rule of thumb that typical investors should have 5-10% of their portfolios in gold. But watching gold’s swoon on Monday had to make you wonder: Really? Source: Online Trading, ETFs, Mutual Funds, IRAs & Retirement – Fidelity. Leave it up to the financial gurus to pollute the golden rule with things about money. I really got a kick out of this one. It seems Mr. Jaffe has a very short term memory. Yeah the price of gold dropped significantly on Monday but year over year it is … Continue reading The Golden Rule….
The Old vs. The New….
For example, let’s say we approach the Bible with this question: How should we treat our enemies? Matthew 5:44 tells us to love them. Romans 12:17–21 tells us to do good to them and never seek revenge against them. First Peter 3:13–17 tells us to suffer at their hands and set an example for them. Psalm 137:9 says we should joyfully dash their infants against a rock. Psalm 139:19 says we should hate them. Deuteronomy 7:1–6 says we should destroy them utterly and show them no mercy. If we want to call down fire on them, we can reference 1 … Continue reading The Old vs. The New….
Finally Some Sanity???
In his first major policy speech Wednesday, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel signaled he will be taking a hard look at the way the Pentagon spends its money and at whether the US military needs quite so many officers…. That’s because too often the weapons systems that Pentagon officials buy “are vastly more expensive and technologically risky than what was promised or budgeted for.” And the hard truth is that the most pressing problems the world faces “do not necessarily lend themselves to being resolved by conventional military strength,” he said. “Indeed the most destructive and horrific attack ever on the United … Continue reading Finally Some Sanity???
Too Much Celebration….
Staying away from the news feeds today. Too much celebration of the Bush years. I am just not ready for that yet. Too many young lives lost and too many retirement pensions ruined during those years. Maybe when I am old and senile I can look upon them differently….. Continue reading Too Much Celebration….
Discover Your Passion: Know Who You Are
I had to discover a passion for retirement because I had worked all my life at something that I was not passionate about. I understood that in order to discover a passion I had to understand who I am. Figuring out who I am was not complicated, but it required time and effort. It took a lot of mental work, the hardest kind of work. It took a lot of experimenting and trial and error, the scariest kind of work. But almost anyone can do it. You don’t have to be a monk, priest, philosopher or psychologist. You don’t … Continue reading Discover Your Passion: Know Who You Are
Loss of Life….
I try not to post about the events like the Boston bombing until more of the facts are known but there is one related thing that always bothers me about such events. While I along with most mourn the four lives lost in this tragic event I wonder why we don’t also mourn the 150 or so lives also lost that day and every day to violence around our obsession with guns? I wonder why don’t we also mourn the 3,000 or so lives lost each day to hunger? Were those four lives more precious than the 150 or the … Continue reading Loss of Life….
Silence is Complicity….
I am only now beginning a serious but somewhat sporadic study of church history but even at this point in my study it is clear that the church has remained silent about many moral wrongs of the times. The most notable in recent history is the holocaust. Millions of Jews were being sent off to their deaths by Hitler and the church for the most part remained silent. By their silence they were indirectly condoning the moral wrongs. When there is hatred and moral wrong being committed on any in our society the church of Jesus Christ must speak out … Continue reading Silence is Complicity….
Disability: the ‘de facto welfare program’
Every month, 14 million people now get a disability check from the government. The federal government spends more money each year on cash payments for disabled former workers than it spends on food stamps and welfare combined. […] [And] story of these programs — who goes on them, and why, and what happens after that — is, to a large extent, the story of the U.S. economy. It’s the story not only of an aging workforce, but also of a hidden, increasingly expensive safety net. Source: Has disability become a ‘de facto welfare program’? – In Plain Sight. I hate … Continue reading Disability: the ‘de facto welfare program’
Prosperity…
“There is nothing that sets a nation back as far in civilization as prosperity.” – Will Rogers, 2 April 1933 Yeah Will, prosperity does seem to bring out the animal in many of us. Just look at the Robber Barons of the early 20th century for evidence of that. Heck, you don’t even have to look that far back, just look at the 1%ers now who will do just about anything to maintain their wealth. Prosperity brings out the best in a few but the worst in others. Continue reading Prosperity…
Pope — CEO Or Spiritual Leader???
I spent my first fourteen years in the Catholic church but really haven’t kept up with the details except for an occasional theology study. I know the picture here is a once in an era event. It has been centuries since a pope has resigned from office. The first thought that came to mind when I saw the picture here is that of two very old men embracing each other. I wish the new Pope Francis a successful reign, or whatever his term is called, no matter how many years it is. He was a Jesuit and I know they … Continue reading Pope — CEO Or Spiritual Leader???
Congress Ignores America’s Poverty Crisis
“The Ryan budget kicks 12 to 13 million people off of nutrition assistance, cuts off pathways to opportunity, slashes job training and education, and makes draconian cuts to Medicare, which serves a majority of the disabled and the elderly,” said Boteach. “That’s how House Republicans have outlined their priorities.” Among those who voted for Ryan’s budget: Rep. Hal Rogers (R-Ky.), the chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, whose district has a roughly 28 percent poverty rate and 38 percent child poverty rate; Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-La.), whose district has a roughly 26 percent poverty rate and 37 percent child poverty … Continue reading Congress Ignores America’s Poverty Crisis
What it means to be a Christian…
“The gospel is absurd and the life of Jesus is meaningless unless we believe that He lived, died, and rose again with but one purpose in mind: to make brand-new creation. via What it means to be a Christian…. These words come from Rachel Held Evans blog but are the words of Brennan Manning. Until I had read them I was unaware of who he was. He had a very robust life and was a prolific writer for a former Jesuit priest. He passed on to the Lord recently. Here is an additional inspiring quote from Wikipedia. “The greatest single … Continue reading What it means to be a Christian…
Aristocracy…
For all men being originally equals, no one by birth could have a right to set up his own family in perpetual preferences to all others forever, and though himself might deserve some decent degree of honors of his contemporaries, yet his descendants might be far too unworthy to inherit them. – Tom Paine in Common Sense, 1776 I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations which dare already to challenge our government to a trial by strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country. — Thomas Jefferson But, you know, we … Continue reading Aristocracy…
The Significance Of Universal Salvation…. A Wrap-Up
Here we are at the end of my study into universal salvation as presented by Philip Gulley in his book “If Grace Is True”. It took a lot longer to get here than I originally thought but this is a very serious subject so I shouldn’t be surprised. I am still not totally in the camp of universal salvation but I am definitely leaning pretty severely that way. I guess the lingering doubt has to do with all the years that it was drilled into my head that Jesus’ sole purpose for coming was to die for me a sinner. … Continue reading The Significance Of Universal Salvation…. A Wrap-Up
RJ's Corner - Having My Say 