All posts filed under: Religion

the “God we want” and the “God we have”

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Religion

There’s an old saying that goes something like this: God created us in his image… and we returned the favor. Most of the time when we humans contemplate the Divine, we find ourselves mentally conjuring up a glorified projection of ourselves. Oh, this projection is bigger than us, for sure. This projection is omnipotent, and omnipresent, and omniscient. As Aladdin’s Genie said it so aptly, Phenomenal cosmic power!… But, this vision of God sees the […]

advent 3a: chucking the wrench

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Advent / Christology / Gospels / Jesus / Lectionary / New Testament / Religion / Year A

It’s a Saturday in the middle of winter, and the heating system in your church breaks down. It’s cold outside, and somehow seems even colder inside. The air stings, and the pews are frigid. You can’t imagine having sweet little old ladies sitting on them tomorrow, but you don’t want to cancel church again. It’s been a snowy winter. The HVAC company van rolls into the church driveway, and the technician gets out with a clipboard […]

advent 2a: a turn of repentance

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Advent / Gospels / New Testament / Religion / Status / Temple / Year A

But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit worthy of repentance. Do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; […]

Putting Away Childish Things

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Religion / Theology

I listened to Rob Bell’s interview of Peter Rollins on God once while taking a walk on the beach. And then I listened to it almost twenty times more. It’s THAT good. And, it got me thinking. So, the above video is a short summary of Pete’s work, and then some thoughts of my own which build on top of that.

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book review / Religion / Science

I’m on sabbatical right now, and one of the books I’ve read is How God Changes Your Brain by Andrew Newborn, MD and Mark Robert Waldman. Reading it was a paradigm-shifting experience. And, it was so good that I immediately bought their new book How Enlightenment Changes Your Brain! This is my third short video on this book, and this video is summary of their findings on anger.

Summary: What Does God Look Like?

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book review / Religion / Science

I’m on sabbatical right now, and one of the books I’ve read is How God Changes Your Brain by Andrew Newborn, MD and Mark Robert Waldman. Reading it was a paradigm-shifting experience. And, it was so good that I immediately bought their new book How Enlightenment Changes Your Brain! This is my second short video on this book, and this video is summary of chapter five. Look for subsequent short videos on aspects of this important work.

Introduction: How God Changes Your Brain

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book review / Religion / Science

I’m on sabbatical right now, and one of the books I’ve read is How God Changes Your Brain by Andrew Newborn, MD and Mark Robert Waldman. Reading it was a paradigm-shifting experience. And, it was so good that I immediately bought their new book How Enlightenment Changes Your Brain! Check out my short video intro to the book, and look for subsequent short videos on aspects of this important work.

a day of rest: an infographic on the 4th commandment

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infographic / Lectionary / ministry resources / Old Testament / Pentateuch / Religion / sabbath / Year A

This Sunday (Proper 22a) we have the 10 Commandments in Exodus 20. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about Sabbath these days…particularly in the sense that as a culture we don’t get any…. and I’m going to be preaching on that this Sunday. Walter Brueggeman’s recent book “Sabbath as Resistance” is amazing, and I recommend it highly. A hi-def version of the infographic below can be downloaded in PDF form here.