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Full-time pastor. Erstwhile author. Would-be mountaineer
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- Satan and Empire
Satan and Empire When asked to identify the origin of Satan we are commonly directed to Isaiah 14. This is the passage where the King of Babylon is called Lucifer (Day Star) and described as “fallen from heaven” after coveting the throne of God. But what should be readily apparent is that Isaiah is giving [...]
- Leaving Country and Kin
Leaving Country and Kin Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred…” And Abram went. (Genesis 12:1, 4) In the story the Bible tells it’s Abraham who sends the narrative in a new direction—from a steady migration away from God, to a journey into the Unknown and toward God. Prior [...]
- The Advent of Imagination
___________________________________________________________ The Advent of Imagination by Brian Zahnd Are we lacking in imagination, we children of Cain We of the ancient, worn-out myopic Idea (Long since unworthy of that noble name) The horrid idea born a bastard east of Eden— Kill Abel and pretend we don’t know he’s our brother Kill Abel and pretend we [...]
- Journey of the Magi
Journey of the Magi by T.S. Eliot A cold coming we had of it, Just the worst time of the year For a journey, and such a long journey: The ways deep and the weather sharp, The very dead of winter. And the camels galled, sore-footed, refractory, Lying down in the melting snow. There were [...]
- Advent Scripture Reading Guide
Advent and the start of the Christian calendar begins on Sunday, November 27. I love the Christian calendar! It enables us to re-tell, re-live, and re-enter the Jesus Story — from the crowded stable to the empty tomb. We are a peculiar people and we have a peculiar calendar. We live in a secular world [...]
- Rhythm (Redo)
I’ve been thinking about Advent today. It starts Sunday, you know. (For those of us at Word of Life it really starts Friday night with our Thanksgiving Communion Service and Christmas Tree Lighting.) Anyway, alert reader Gerald Lewis reminded me of this four and half year old post and it seems apropos. So with a [...]
- A (Troubling) Parable
A Parable by Lee C. Camp From his book Who Is My Enemy? A king went out to conquer, amassing great wealth and power. There came to him a people who asserted that some other was king, whom they called “Lord of Lords.” The king replied: you may freely worship this one you call “lord,” [...]
- The Moral Theology of the Devil
Tonight I watched part two of the Ken Burn’ film “Prohibition” on PBS—a brilliant documentary on America’s fourteen year ill-fated war on alcohol. It’s a classic study in good intentions gone wrong. It’s a penetrating look at the fallacy of thinking, “If we can just pass this or that legislation, we can produce a righteous [...]
- Hints and Guesses
Hints and Guesses My favorite thought is the Incarnation. My favorite poet (after Dylan) is T.S. Eliot. Here is a snippet of T.S. Eliot poetry that touches on Incarnation. ____________________________________________ Men’s curiosity searches past and future And clings to that dimension. But to apprehend The point of intersection of the timeless With time, is [...]
- That Preacher of Peace
That Preacher of Peace by Brian Zahnd In his bizarre and surrealistic novel, The Master and Margarita, the critically acclaimed 20th century Russian writer Mikhail Bulgakov creates a fascinating conversation between the Roman governor Pontius Pilate and the Galilean preacher Yeshua. When asked about his views on government, Bulgakov’s Yeshua says, “All power is a [...]
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