Issues-based Christianity

Recently Theo Hobson wrote an article in the Guardian, “My quest for an authentic liberal Christianity.” He asks the question, “ Is [liberal Christianity] the attempt to do Christianity in an honest, modern way; or is it an attempt to dodge the hard bits of this faith?” His answer: “The conclusion I have come to is…

Seeing God in People with Intellectual Disabilities

People with intellectual disabilities represent perhaps the most vulnerable population on the planet. The nature of their disability can make it far more difficult for them to advocate for themselves. One of their great advocates, and one of the true saints of the church, is Jean Vanier. He founded the L’Arch Community in 1964. His…

Becoming a Humble Church

The Church is the Body of Christ. This is one of the most widely acknowledged claims in the Christian world. Yet how often to we take the time really to think through the implications of this claim? To be the Body of Christ, when we think about it, is a pretty tall order. If the…

We believe in the Holy Spirit…

The Lord and giver of life. This is how the third article of the Nicene Creed begins. We confess belief in the Holy Spirit, who is not only our Lord, but the one who gives life to all creation, including the Church. This claim, of course, stands in stark contrast to much of the rhetoric…

Mike Slaughter on Socioeconomic Healing

Divine healing is not just about the healing of physical ailments. It’s also about healing a broken and sinful world. In this video, Mike Slaughter talks about the work of the Holy Spirit in socioeconomic healing–the Spirit’s work in bringing an end to issues of poverty and all forms of economic injustice. 

Easter is about living

Easter is about living, in the present and forever. In Charles Wesley’s masterful hymn “Christ The Lord is Risen Today,” the fourth stanza reads, Soar we now where Christ hath led, Alleluia!Foll’wing our exalted Head, Alleluia! Made like Him, like Him we rise, Alleluia! Ours the cross, the grave, the skies, Alleluia! We are made…

Jonah and three days in the tomb

In the earliest Christian art, the most popular representation is the Good Shepherd, a David-like figure carrying a lamb over his shoulders. After the Good Shepherd, the most popular figure is… wait for it…. Jonah. Really? Yep, Jonah. Images of Moses, Daniel, the three Hebrew young men protected within the furnace, and many other Old…

Atonement

Good Friday is a holy day that we associate with atonement. This is the day that marks Christ’s death on the cross that makes atonement for the sins of humankind. As we read in Ephesians, in Christ Jesus, we who once were far off have been brought near to God by the blood of Christ…

Beings of Sacred Worth

March 21 is World Down Syndrome Day. Why do we need a World Down Syndrome Day? People with Down Syndrome represent one of the most misunderstood people groups in the world. They are commonly stereotyped, labeled, and marginalized. Until a generation ago, they were routinely institutionalized. Today, pregnancies in which the child is identified as…