Contemplating Grace

Is the Church Canceling Christianity?, Part 3 The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit. John 3:8 Last week I noted that Jesus divided his waking … Continue reading Is the Church Canceling Christianity?, Part 3

Is the Church Canceling Christianity?, Part 2 …strive first for the kingdom of God and (God’s) righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:33 Last week I suggested the church may be canceling Christianity by the practices and teachings it has adopted as standard church fare. What I mean … Continue reading Is the Church Canceling Christianity?, Part 2

Is the Church Canceling Christianity? Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Matthew 7:15-16a Wikipedia defines cancel culture as “a form of ostracism in which someone is thrust out of social or professional circles.”[1] I began this series of Life … Continue reading Is the Church Canceling Christianity?

Reborn into Ordinariness “I was reborn into ordinariness, but what more could one ask for?” Kevin Kelly[1] The annual Christian celebration of Easter is over. Easter Sunday, even in the post-pandemic days, is one of the few times that people flock to church in unprecedented numbers (the other being Christmas Eve). Easter is an unusual … Continue reading Reborn into Ordinariness

Guns ‘n Moses, Part 2 You have heard that it was said, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue you and take … Continue reading Guns ‘n Moses, Part 2

Exclusivity, Part 3 I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6 Prior to concluding my thoughts about the exclusivity that has become an identifying characteristic of churchianity under the guise of Christianity, I wish to reflect upon why exclusivity has become so … Continue reading Exclusivity, Part 3

Exclusivity, Part 2 As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us. John 17:22 One of the reasons I do not believe Jesus’ seemingly exclusive statements like “No one comes to the Father except through me” are as exclusive as many believe (other than them being inconsistent … Continue reading Exclusivity, Part 2

Exclusivity Whoever is not against us is for us. Mark 9:40 Arguably, the most egregious sin of Churchianity is in its professed exclusivity, by which I mean the portrayal of Christianity, as understood and practiced by certain churches, as the only path to truth, the only hope for salvation, and the only way to God. … Continue reading Exclusivity

Russia, Ukraine, and Lent Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.” Matthew 16:24-25 Contemplative author … Continue reading Russia, Ukraine, and Lent

God as Being, Part 4 Once the wave realizes she is the ocean her fear dissipates. Thich Nhat Hanh[1] In the past few weeks I have explored the concepts of God as a being, as a non-being, and as love. Another imperfect analogy for God’s nature, one I find intriguing, if not difficult to wrap … Continue reading God as Being, Part 4

God as Being, Part 3 God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. 1 John 4:16 While I find it problematic to picture God as a being, particularly as a human being, I find imagining God as a form of attracting, influencing energy and/or relationship to … Continue reading God as Being, Part 3

God as Being, Part 2 Once Jesus was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, and he answered, “The kingdom of God is not coming with things that can be observed…” Luke 17:20 If we cannot accurately liken God to a human being, what sort of being is God? Is God … Continue reading God as Being, Part 2

God as Being I used to believe that prayer changes things, but now I believe that prayer changes us and we change things. Mother Teresa[1] Perhaps the most egregious outcome of anthropomorphizing God is in our imagining of God as a human being. Our patriarchal societies since biblical times have portrayed God as a man … Continue reading God as Being

Anthropomorphosis, Part 4 As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God’s works might be revealed in him.. John 9:1-3 … Continue reading Anthropomorphosis, Part 4

Anthropomorphosis, Part 3 Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourself that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, … Continue reading Anthropomorphosis, Part 3

Anthropomorphosis, Part 2 For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard…  Matthew 20:1 When we anthropomorphize God – attribute human characteristics to God – we not only create God in our own image, but we also mislead ourselves and others about … Continue reading Anthropomorphosis, Part 2

Anthropomorphosis But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding? Mortals do not know the way to it, and it is not found in the land of the living.  Job 28:12-13 When we anthropomorphize something, we attribute human qualities to it and judge it based on human values, experiences, and understandings. … Continue reading Anthropomorphosis

Savior She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. Matthew 1:21 One of life’s puzzling mysteries – on par with how Santa makes it to every house in the world in a single night – is the claim that Jesus came to … Continue reading Savior

An Extraordinary, Ordinary Christmas Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight. Luke 12:6 Our challenge at Christmas, as every day, is to stop discounting the ordinary in search of the miraculous so we can see the miraculous in the ordinary. The Christmas stories of … Continue reading An Extraordinary, Ordinary Christmas

The Church vs The Christ, Part 4 No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known. John 1:18 The words in today’s epigraph close what is known as the Prologue to the Gospel of John. The verse is often mistakenly … Continue reading The Church vs the Christ, Part 4

The Church vs The Christ, Part 3 So we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members of one another. Romans 12:5 In last week’s Life Note I attempted to clarify that Jesus and the Christ are one, but not the same. This is difficult to understand and accept because … Continue reading The Church vs The Christ, Part 3

The Church vs The Christ, Part 2 “Christ is not Jesus’s last name.” Richard Rohr[1] Assuming the church to be synonymous with God has led to a deceptively limited perception and portrayal of God, both for church and non-church people. When our pastors remind us of the importance of supporting the “work of God,” it … Continue reading The Church vs the Christ, Part 2

The Church vs The Christ “In the first century in Palestine, Christianity was a community of believers. Then Christianity moved to Greece and became a philosophy. Then it moved to Rome and became an institution. Then it moved to Europe and became a culture. And then it moved to America and became a business.” Priscilla … Continue reading The Church vs the Christ

Paulianity, Part 6 Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 1 Corinthians 13:4,6 For all that I find bothersome about the writings of Paul, I confess that many of his writings are truly … Continue reading Paulianity, Part 6

Paulianity, Part 5 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. Matthew 16:18 As is recorded in the book of Acts, Peter served as the de facto leader of the early followers of Jesus after the crucifixion. … Continue reading Paulianity, Part 5

Paulianity, Part 4 Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be free. Are you free from a wife? Do not seek a wife. But if you marry, you do not sin…Yet those who marry will experience distress in this life, and I would spare you that. 1 Corinthians 7:27-28 The “books” of … Continue reading Paulianity, Part 4

Paulianity, Part 3 For we know that the law is spiritual; but I am of the flesh, sold into slavery under sin. I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from … Continue reading Paulianity, Part 3

Paulianity, Part 2 But Saul was ravaging the church by entering house after house,; dragging off both men and women, he committed them to prison. Acts 8:3 Before I continue this series about the teachings of the apostle Paul, I wish to issue a clarification from last week’s Life Note. I stated my belief that … Continue reading Paulianity, Part 2

Paulianity Paul an apostle – sent neither by human commission nor from human authorities, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead – and all members of God’s family who are with me… Galatians 1:1-2a The apostle Paul wrote many of the books of the New Testament. An important … Continue reading Paulianity

Good vs Bad, Part 4 There are not sacred and profane things, places, and moments. There are only sacred and desecrated things, places, and moments – and it is we alone who desecrate them by our lack of insight and reverence. Fr. Richard Rohr[1] In my early adulthood I worked as a landscape designer. I … Continue reading Good vs Bad, Part 4

Good vs Bad, Part 2 We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28 Last week I suggested we have an inaccurate understanding of good and bad. Specifically, we limit the full nature of what is good by condemning certain things … Continue reading Good vs Bad, Part 2

Good vs Bad You’d better watch out, you’d better not cry, You’d better not shout I’m telling you why, Santa Claus is coming to town.[1] Many of us developed an image of God based more on Santa Claus than on anything biblical. That image, born in childhood and perpetuated by many churches, persists long beyond … Continue reading Good vs bad

Questions vs Answers, Part 2 “You insist on explaining everything as if the whole world were composed of things that can be explained…Has it ever occurred to you that only a few things in this world can be explained your way?” Don Juan Matus[1] Our desire for clear-cut answers to deep and difficult questions, and … Continue reading Questions vs Answers, Part 2

Questions vs Answers Of course you don’t understand it. If you understood it, it wouldn’t be what you’re looking for. It would just be one more thing you understand. James Finley[1] One of the significant points of distinction between Christianity and churchianity has to do with the degree to which one believes we can be … Continue reading Questions vs Answers

Reconciliation vs Retribution, Part 4 Grace is what we call what is left over after the scouring of the self, the dying to the self…Grace comes to us in the flesh, through the spaces and forms and contents of our human life…Grace is so mixed up in the stuff of human life that it cannot … Continue reading Reconciliation vs Retribution, Part 4

Reconciliation vs Retribution, Part 3 The term “heresy” is used with derogatory connotations by evangelicals & their apologists, yet all it means is belief contrary to orthodoxy. The religious elite of western Christianity have rarely been on the right side of history, so finding myself out of alignment with what they have determined to be … Continue reading Reconciliation vs Retribution, Part 3

Reconciliation vs Retribution, Part 2 We need to bury once and for all those fear-and-punishment scenarios that got programmed into so many of us during our childhood. There is no monster out there; only love waiting to set us free. Cynthia Bourgeault[1] In order to feel better about ourselves and our own perceived shortcomings, we … Continue reading Reconciliation vs Retribution, Part 2

Reconciliation vs Retribution And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Matthew 6:5 Many believe the institutional church today is faltering because too many people know too little about Christianity … Continue reading Reconciliation vs Retribution

Spiritual, not Religious, Part 6 I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than I is coming after me…He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. Matthew 3:11 The term spirituality is derived from the concept of Spirit, generally meaning not physical. In broad terms, spirituality seeks to … Continue reading Spiritual, not Religious, Part 6

Spiritual, not Religious, Part 5 What if (Jesus) didn’t come to start a new religion – but rather came to start a political, social, religious, artistic, economic, intellectual, and spiritual revolution that would give birth to a new world? Brian McLaren[1] As we ponder why increasing numbers of people consider themselves spiritual but not religious, … Continue reading Spiritual, not Religious, Part 5

Spiritual, not Religious, Part 4 Where you have absolute solutions, however, you have no need of faith. Faith is what you have in the absence of knowledge. Flannery O’Conner[1] Various studies confirm that roughly a quarter of all Americans do not identify with a religious tradition, Christian or otherwise. The numbers are even more striking … Continue reading Spiritual, Not Religious, Part 4

Spiritual, not Religious, Part 3 …in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church. Colossians 1:24b A few months ago I wrote about my belief that the church has hijacked Jesus, prayer, God, and the Bible from non-churched spiritual seekers, largely unintentionally, … Continue reading Spiritual, not Religious, Part 3