February 2009
3 posts
Void
Void is a dream I’ve been having for the past couple years. Each time the dream is a little different, but there have always been a few common elements: a place for those on the fringes of belief, a church that’s not a church, a truly open and non-evangelical space, a space that’s not dominated by any one person.
It appears those dreams may begin to come into reality. Of course, there’s...
January 2009
10 posts
New Sufjan Stevens Track
I’m very anxious for a new Sufjan album. This song is fantastic.
Gordon Atkinson's next book
Go check out Gordon Atkinson’s new book publishing project (Gordon Atkinson = Real Live Preacher = best blogger around). Basically, he is trying to fund the publication of a new book with advance copy purchases. Those who purchase advance copies not only get a discount, they become the publisher, voting on content, deciding the title, etc. Very cool - you get to help Gordon publish what...
Scandrette Howling
I love this pic of Mark Scandrette (and the pic name - scandrettehowling). He has really influenced me over the last year and a half - not just in my thought, but in the way I live my life.
Mark’s been blogging more often over the past six months or so - you should check it out. You should also read his book, Soul Graffiti. I think its the best book that’s come out of the...
Reading Scripture
I’m taking a class this semester on the first half of the Old Testament. From time to time I might reflect here on what I’m reading. So far I’ve only read Genesis 1-4, but here are a few thoughts. I’ve been quite struck by the humanness of God in these early chapters of Genesis. Of course chapter one is about the all powerful creator God, but starting in chapter two we are introduced to a very...
The Ordinary Radicals
I had the opportunity recently to see the documentary The Ordinary Radicals. It was excellent – I highly recommend that you check it out. For some reason I went in to the film with low expectations. I was expecting a low-budget, low-quality film. I was wrong. Jamie Moffett (director) and his crew working on the film did a great job. It may have been low-budget but it’s definitely...
Man on Wire
This past weekend I watched the documentary film Man on Wire, which is about Philippe Petit, a high wire artist, and his attempt to sneak into the World Trade Center Twin Towers, in order to attach a wire between the towers and perform his artistry. It’s a wonderful movie. I highly recommend it.
One image in particular has stuck with me after watching the film. Prior to the Twin Towers caper,...
Missions in the Third Millennium
On the back cover of Peter Rollins’ How (Not) to Speak of God, Phyllis Tickle uses the phrase “third millennium Christianity.” Ever since reading Tickle’s phrase, I’ve been certain that this is exactly what I am interested in. I am interested in where Christianity and the church is going, how it is changing and evolving, and the new forms it is taking. I don’t think these new forms are going to...
Mourning to Hope
In a recent post, Peter Rollins shares a stimulating story from the Buddhist tradition. He summarizes it as follows:
The story tells of a mother whose baby dies. She is so distraught that she carries the dead body strapped to her chest and travels around attempting to find someone who would be able to breathe life back into her beloved infant’s body. Eventually she finds a holy man who says...
Life With/out God
A little over a year ago I finished reading Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Letters and Papers from Prison, which I found to be quite profound and even moving. So much of what Bonhoeffer wrote in that prison cell during World War II seems perfectly relevant for today. And so much of what Bonhoeffer wrote resonates with my own struggle to forge a life of faith and faithfulness. Many passages caught my...