This is a revisit of a post I wrote here in 2012. It still applies today. Once I saw this guy on a bridge about to jump. I said, “Dont do it!”  He said, “Nobody loves me.”  I said, “God loves you. Do you believe in God?”  He said, “Yes.”  I said, “Are you a Christian or a Jew?”  He said, “A Christian.”  I said, “Me, too! Protestant or Catholic?”  He said, “Protestant.”  I said, “Me, too! What franchise?”  He said, “Baptist.” I said, “Me, too! Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?”  He said, “Northern Baptist.” I said, “Me, too! Northern Conservative … Continue reading The best God joke ever … Revisited

There is nothing wrong with myth, as it is an ingrained part of a cultural and religious traditions. Here is a little about mythology from Wikipedia: As a collection of such stories, mythology is a vital feature of every culture. Various origins for myths have been proposed, ranging from personification of nature, personification of natural phenomena to truthful or hyperbolic accounts of historical events, to explanations of existing ritual. …  A culture’s collective mythology helps convey belonging, shared and religious experience, behavioral models, and moral and practical lessons. Lets look at a couple of ways that myth is created: There … Continue reading There Is Nothing Wrong With Myth….

Many organized faith groups are wringing their hands over the growing category of “nones” and wondering how to attract young people, especially, back to the fold. What words of wisdom would you give them? Listen, listen, listen. Listen again. Don’t think that stuff like beer nights and church meeting in a coffee shop and pastors in flannel and skinny jeans is going to be enough: it’s not, and many people see right through it. Meet people where they arrive rather than drawing a line and expecting them to cross it. Be present to people’s doubts and questions in honest ways. … Continue reading Listen Up….

It’s healthy to question expertise, but we need actual experts. The brilliance of the Fox News motto, “We report, you decide,” is that it encourages our vanity that we can know as much as anyone else, we can be experts, given a stream of carefully curated facts and opinion. MSNBC, which has a similar business/editorial model, is stuck with the less-empowering “Lean Forward.” There are a number of ways forward for expertise in America. We can become increasingly mistrustful of scientists, doctors, professors, bureaucrats, bankers, and other experts in their fields; or we can find a better way to filter … Continue reading America doesn’t trust its experts anymore

People say that professional sports fuel what is worst in us. Our greed, our impatience, our willingness to ruin our bodies for the sake of fame. Our glorification of the worst human impulses, our blindness to the crimes these athletes sometimes commit…. It’s been said that sports are America’s religion and that this idolatry is our downfall. SOURCE: These Royals Make You Believe in God | Angela Denker | Red Letter Christians. I suspect that there are many more who will be sitting around their TV sets this Sunday afternoon watching  a football game than there are sitting in a church pew. … Continue reading America’s Religion…

I didn’t consider this for many years. I actually thought my experiences rare. I was one of the chosen. I was special. Now I know the truth. God whispers his love in every ear. He isn’t interested in declaring his love to a select few. He doesn’t limit his presence to Vatican City, to the halls of seminaries, to the offices of preachers, or to church altars. God doesn’t restrict his communication to the Bible. He doesn’t confine his presence to any single denomination or religion. God speaks to all people, even when they’re not inclined to listen. Gulley, Philip; … Continue reading If Grace Is True…..

Being Pessimistic … Today’s Christians have a bad habit of seeing the worst in everybody and everything: A natural disaster is surely a sign of the end times. An MTV show reflects our hideous moral decline. A particular nation (obviously not one of our political allies) is being used as the Anti-Christ’s puppet to eventually invade and destroy the United States. The apocalyptic and hopeless assessments about our world—and Christianity—propagated by Christians themselves are pathetic and worrisome. Do we have nothing to be thankful for? We treat our faith as if it’s in a rapid decline, as if the “glory … Continue reading Six Things Continued…

This is going to be one of those posts that jerks at my soul. I remember hearing the title phrase pretty frequently when I was growing up. It usually meant that the speaker was surprised at what I had done and usually disapproved of it. Today it seems so many people are doing things, abominable things, in the name of God. Almost every war in my lifetime has been in the name of God. So much hatred is spewed in his name. If God is really paying attention to all of us puny human beings I wonder if he is … Continue reading What In The Name Of God Did You Do?????

Hancock, MA – Hancock Shaker Village Hancock Shaker Village is one of the original Shaker communities so it has much more history than the one I visit most often near Lexington KY.  The round barn as show above is their most distinctive feature. America is great because it allow so much religious diversity.  We are all seeking God in one manner or another.  To be tolerant of diverse religious views is uniquely American… Continue reading Shake, Rattle, & Roll…

My religious belief strongly oppose war. I think our military budgets are totally outrageous! We, 5% of the world’s population, spend more on our war machine than the rest of the world combined.  With the latest ruling SCOTUS (Supreme Court Of The United States) tells us that religious groups can pick and choose which laws they choose to obey. Thanks to you my tax bill just got smaller. Thanks Mr Scalia and your co-conspirators for making it happen. You guys never fail to amaze me as to how far you are willing to go to reshape this country to your … Continue reading SCOTUS Said So…

Pleasant Hill is one of my favorite living history sites. I have been there probably a dozen time and stayed overnight in one of the restored common dwelling building on four or five occasions.  I am just fascinated with religious communities of the past. I seek them out whenever we travel. Pleasant Hill is located near Lexington Kentucky. It is a restored Shaker community. Being a lifelong fan of Shaker furniture is what originally attracted me to this site but the story behind the village and its past inhabitants is what keeps me coming back.  That and the totally serene … Continue reading Shaker Village…

Young and old, rich and poor, and people from every social, economic, political and cultural background are starting to rethink their faith. A fresh movement is happening, and in its purest form is about one thing: following Christ. This transformation is reshaping the Christian landscape. Believers are starting to simplify their faith in order to exemplify Christ—a simple yet profound way to live out the gospel. This has become a revolutionary concept. This “new” Christianity is sick of culture wars, political agendas, hypocrisy and legalistic doctrines. They prefer inclusion over restriction, dialogue over debate, practice over preaching, and love over … Continue reading Revolution….

This is a continuation about Jefferson and religion. As stated before, there are many especially in evangelical circles that say that Jefferson meant for our country to be founded on Christian principles. My posts on the blog are to show that although Jefferson was a follower of Jesus Christ at one level he was by no means saying the U.S. should be a Christian nation. In fact much of his writing said exactly the opposite.  Here are some of his words about Christian clergy: They [the clergy] believe that any portion of power confided to me, will be exerted in … Continue reading Jefferson And The Clergy….