We are going waaay back on this one to 2005. In the mail today, I recieved a mailing from the Disciples Peace Fellowship, the peace and justice caucus within my denomination, The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). The newsletter had a quote that struck me. It said: "No amount of theology about God and the... Continue Reading →
A Theology of Inclusion, Part One
The church where I serve as Associate Pastor is discerning becoming and Open and Affirming congregation. As we talk about this, I have been grappling with how to view this theologically. I don't consider myself the greatest bible scholar or theologian, but I do think that as Christians we have to give a clear response... Continue Reading →
Cross and Kingdom
I just finished Scot McKnight's great book called the King Jesus Gospel and I've started reading N.T. Wright's book How God Became King. Both deal with what the Gospels are really all about though from different theological traditions; McKnight from an evangelical perspective and Wright from a more Mainline Protestant view. McKnight has some good... Continue Reading →
Called, Gathered and Sent (Or, Why Mainline Protestants Suck at Church Planting)
I've been what could be considered a Mainline Protestant for 20 years. In those 20 years, I've learned something about mainliners: We really suck at planting churches. Let me back up a moment. I started attending Calvary Baptist Church in located in the Chinatown area of Washington, DC in the fall of 1992. It was... Continue Reading →
Called, Gathered and Sent (Or, Why Mainline Protestants Suck at Church Planting)
I've been what could be considered a Mainline Protestant for 20 years. In those 20 years, I've learned something about mainliners: We really suck at planting churches. Let me back up a moment. I started attending Calvary Baptist Church in located in the Chinatown area of Washington, DC in the fall of 1992. It was... Continue Reading →
The Spiritual Discipline of Giving
A few weeks ago, I stopped by the children's Sunday School class before Sunday worship. After a few minutes, Mason and his brother Fletcher showed up. Little Mason was clutching a dollar bill. Being a little kid, he was running around the room doing various things, but he never let go of that dollar. In... Continue Reading →
Being Jewish, Being Autistic
Rachel Cohen-Rottenberg, who blogs at Journeys with Autism, has a very good post linking the misperceptions people have with being Jewish and being autistic. The whole thing is worth a read, but this part struck me: In the larger, mainly Christian culture in which I’ve lived my life, the view seems to be that the... Continue Reading →
Why Church Planting Matters
As First Christian plans its future, a constant among the plans is to leave some money aside for to plant new churches. Both the Senior Pastor and I have made this a priority in what ever decisions are made. That has been met with some resistance. One person wondered why we weren't spending some of... Continue Reading →
The Clockwork Pastor 