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
Category: Life Notes
Spiritual, not Religious, Part 6
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
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
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
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
Spiritual, not Religious, Part 2
Spiritual, not Religious, Part 2 Let those of us then who are mature be of the same mind; and if you think differently about anything, this too God will reveal to you. Only let us hold fast to what we have attained. Philippians 3:15-16 Last week I made the general and stereotypical observation that most … Continue reading Spiritual, not Religious, Part 2
Spiritual, not Religious
Spiritual, not Religious Buddhist meditation…seeks not to explain but to pay attention, to become aware, to be mindful, in other words to develop a certain kind of consciousness that is above and beyond deception by verbal formulas… Thomas Merton[1] One of the underlying components differentiating Churchianity from Christianity is the distinction between religion and spirituality. … Continue reading Spiritual, not Religious
Jesus and the Christ, Part 5
Our life is intimately connected to that, whatever that is...
Jesus and the Christ, Part 4
Humans are the only part of creation that wrestle with who they are.
Jesus and the Christ, Part 3
Jesus and the Christ, Part 3 “Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.”. Matthew 1:23, quoting from Isaiah 7:14 If Jesus attempted to lead us to the realization that we can and should follow him by becoming like him, what then … Continue reading Jesus and the Christ, Part 3
