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essays
History ain't on your side
Wed, 07/28/2010 - 09:30 — Marvin LindsayMy next contribution to the peace, unity and purity of the church will be to teach a course on early Christian sexuality. If we're condemned to fight over sex ad infinitum, I want both liberals and conservatives to know that neither has history on its side.
Imagine a time when substantial numbers of Christians regarded procreation as a great evil. Imagine a time when the counter-cultural "left" practiced sexual renunciation. It's not some science fiction future. We've been there and done that.... READ MORE.
Can there be diversity in baptism?
Wed, 07/28/2010 - 09:26 — Thom TurnerThe theological systems of believer’s baptism and infant baptism seem to conflict in irreconcilable ways. The theological implications of infant baptism are too much, too soon for those who favor believer’s baptism, while those who practice believer’s baptism can appear to focus too much on a person’s decision to join God’s family and not on God’s action toward the person since they were born.
Navigating the waters between the two views, as I have in both study and my own spiritual journey, has been a confusing and divisive experience... READ MORE.
One hundred sermons
Thu, 07/22/2010 - 15:01 — Adam CopelandA few weeks ago, thankfully without any fanfare, I preached my 100th sermon. I know this number not because I carefully keep track, but because there are 100 files in my computer’s “Sermon” folder. Many of you more seasoned pastors might scoff at a piddly number like 100, but I’m guessing that, of those who graduated from Columbia Seminary with me in 2009, I’m one of the fastest to reach 100. Many others, even most, won’t get there for years. Why?
Many of my seminary classmates are serving as associate pastors at larger churches.... READ MORE.
Yikes RCL!
Tue, 07/20/2010 - 11:19 — Steve PankeyPart of me wants to send a quick survey out to my congregation; a survey of only one question, "How many of you have actually read the book of Hosea?"
I get what the RCL is trying to do. They want to to experience more of the Bible - its women, its laments, its tough spots. I get it, and I applaud their work. But Hosea 1? Really?
Oh God, if you can find 5 faithful people at St. Paul's, please don't let this be read.... READ MORE.
Psalm 23 for a funeral
Fri, 07/16/2010 - 10:56 — Rachel HackenbergA walk "through the valley of the shadow of death" has poetic beauty
that does not resonate with my soul
and I resent being here.
I resist the chasm that is this heartache,
this devastation,
this loss.
I can only assume that the Shepherd's staff supports me
because I haven't fallen face-first
into any pools of still water.... READ MORE.
Sacred space
Tue, 07/13/2010 - 13:17 — Julie ClawsonIn my Having Fun in Church post from a couple of weeks ago, Patti left the following comment that has been gnawing at my brain for the past few days –
I think fun is great for church. I also think that activities like roller skating and rodeos (a big church in Nashville had a rodeo in church for July 4) don’t belong in the sanctuary. Hold them in the gym, the grounds, the activity center, the parking lot–maybe even in lieu of “regular” services sometimes, but not in the sanctuary. Keep this place apart for the decorum and solemnity that some activates need, i.e. communion, weddings, christenings, confirmations, funerals/memorial services, etc. Individual, personal introspective reflection is needed for enlightenment to occur.
I’ll be honest, I flat out disagree with her perspective, but I really appreciated the comment because of how it illustrates different conceptions of what the purpose of church is.... READ MORE.
Man in the box
Tue, 07/13/2010 - 13:15 — Chad HoltzMy dad had been in surgery for nearly 5 hours when my grandpa’s pastor, who was from out of town, dropped in for a visit. Introductions were made and I was impressed that he came all this way to show support not just for my dad, whom he hardly knew, but for members of dad’s family. Pastor Dominic sat down in the only open seat left and like in most surgery waiting rooms a nervous silence ensued.
That is, until Pastor Dominic spoke.
“Did you know evolution cannot account for human emotion?” ... READ MORE.
My last funeral
Wed, 07/07/2010 - 15:07 — Diane RothDuring the past few days I've been thinking about the last funeral where I was the officiant, on a Saturday at about the middle of June.
A. was a gracious, lively, cultured woman who had struggled with cancer for the last several years. I visited her in her home and then at the nursing home where she spent the last couple of years of her life. When she was feeling well, she was a lively conversationalist, well-read, with thoughtful opinions on many of the events of the day.... READ MORE.
Do
Wed, 07/07/2010 - 15:05 — Steve PankeyI try not to be too culturally relevant in my sermons these days. During the sermon, my congregation is made up of people aged as young as 12 months to as old as 88 (plus or minus). It is hard to make a reference to a movie or TV show and have everybody get it. Two and a half years ago, I preached Ricky Bobby's Baby Jesus Prayer, and a lot of people were clueless (though when I repeated *most* of the prayer from the pulpit, laughter came from many generations.
Anyway, all that to say, that I'm thinking about Yoda's wisdom, "do or do not, there is no try" this morning as I read Jesus' Parable of the Good Samaritan. Twice in the interaction with the lawyer Jesus uses that scary, two-letter word, "do."... READ MORE.
Parables
Tue, 07/06/2010 - 11:39 — Wayne StacyPreachers who take their sermon texts from the Revised Common Lectionary are in for a treat over the next few months. This is Year C in the Lectionary cycle, and that means that the Gospel lessons come from Luke. While all of the Gospels (save John) preserve and pass on to their respective audiences some of Jesus’ parables, Luke’s parables are among the most unique and beloved: The Parable of the Good Samaritan; The Parable of the Prodigal Son; The Parable of the Pharisee and the Publican, to name a few. And so, I thought it might be helpful here to say a few words about the nature, character, and purpose of Jesus’ parables in order to provide the preacher with a bit of context and framework to facilitate the weekly exploration into these surprising stories.
It is often said that the parables are “earthly stories with heavenly meanings.” That’s true enough as far as it goes, but it doesn’t go quite far enough.... READ MORE.
