So says Methodist Pastor Sky McCracken: Changing the stance on homosexuality in the United Methodist Church will not stop the loss of membership in the denomination. It's at best a red herring and at worst a lie to espouse otherwise. The Southern Baptist Church continues to lose membership; they are in their fifth year of decline,... Continue Reading →
Hospitality: Still at the Starting Line
I've been an avid reader of Frederick Schmidt's blog for nearly a year now. I've really enjoyed his columns which urge us to ask what it truly means to follow Jesus in our modern world. Today he takes on some proposed changes in the Episcopal Church. One such proposal asks that communion "ought to be... Continue Reading →
Ceasar and the Pill
So, I'm going to treat into the waters of the birth control vs. religious liberty debate that has been going on for a while. I've been wondering how Christians should handle this issue. Now, I tend think birth control is a good idea. Teenage pregnancy is not a good thing and well, women should be... Continue Reading →
The Numbers Game
If you're the pastor of a mainline Protestant congregation, one of the things that you do a lot of is obesess over numbers. We are always paying attention to the attendance on Sunday mornings during worship. We wonder how many folks will attend Christmas Eve or Maundy Thursday. We wonder how many will come... Continue Reading →
The Numbers Game
If you're the pastor of a mainline Protestant congregation, one of the things that you do a lot of is obesess over numbers. We are always paying attention to the attendance on Sunday mornings during worship. We wonder how many folks will attend Christmas Eve or Maundy Thursday. We wonder how many will come... Continue Reading →
Personal Jesus
One thing that I've noticed over the years is that mainline Protestants don't seem to take God very personally. Growing up as I did in the evangelical world, God and Jesus was up close and personal. A lot of the songs we sung in college intentionally changed the words of some songs from something like,... Continue Reading →
Inclusion and Discipleship
A post by Methodist blogger Alan Bevere has stayed with me since it was originally published back in June of this year. The post, "So, Just How Inclusive Was Jesus?" muses on the modern value of inclusion and how it does and doesn't square with Jesus. I agree with Tom Wright that modern notions of... Continue Reading →
Inclusion and Discipleship
A post by Methodist blogger Alan Bevere has stayed with me since it was originally published back in June of this year. The post, "So, Just How Inclusive Was Jesus?" muses on the modern value of inclusion and how it does and doesn't square with Jesus. I agree with Tom Wright that modern notions of... Continue Reading →
Is It a Sin to Live in the Suburbs?
I've always been a city kid and for the most part have always lived in a city. As kids growing up in Michigan, I grew up with the belief that the 'burbs were somehow not a good place to be. They were filled with white people who fled the cities to escape people who look... Continue Reading →
Is It a Sin to Live in the Suburbs?
I've always been a city kid and for the most part have always lived in a city. As kids growing up in Michigan, I grew up with the belief that the 'burbs were somehow not a good place to be. They were filled with white people who fled the cities to escape people who look... Continue Reading →
The Clockwork Pastor 