Holy Character

Today's audio sermon from Exodus 3:1-15

A Prayer for the Second Sunday in Lent

O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Book of Common Prayer

The Methodist Blogs Weekly Roundup 2010.5.216

Submit your post to umweeklyroundup@yahoo.com by noon EST on Saturday to guarantee that your post is included.

Thanks to all for their email submissions!

The week in review in the Methoblogosphere:

Andrew Stoddard posts on budgets, churches, and change.

Dale Tedder introduces us to The Baxter Fellowship.

Going away wishes and Dave Nichol's 2010 Ash Wednesday sermon.

Pat L. writes on praying the Psalms during Lent.

It's almost spring and education is on the mind of Tony Mitchell.

Should churches have a worship leader or a lead worshiper? Read Brian Vinson.

John Meunier reflects on the church's failure to make disciples.

Craig L. Adams reminds us that we have been rescued and transferred.

Will Grady posts on John Wesley's preachers in North Lancashire.

Reflections on the ministry of women in North Alabama from Bishop William H. Willimon.

Bishop Robert Schnase writes on training inwardly.

Mitch Lewis "blames" Bishop Willimon for becoming a confessional Christian of sorts.

Graham Peacock says "It's the weekend; pause for awhile."

Thoughts on membership maps and Emmaus from Jeremy Smith.

What holds us together as a church? Lauren Porter asks the question.

Dave Camphouse posts his Valentine's Day youth group program.

Sally Coleman on developing a vision for two rural churches.

Mark Winter invites us to come and receive.

A draft sermon from Brian Russell on Luke 14:25-33.

Andy Bryan tells his "Here I am, Lord" story.

David Hallam is reading between the lines on the Methodist future.

God: new evidence, posted by Dave Faulkner.

Kim Matthews thinks that the first chapter of the Book of Esther is ridiculous.

Greg Hazelrig posts his thought for the day on Psalm 32:6-7.

Steve Heyduck hates the blame game.

Richard Heyduck is addicted.

On Becoming One of Them-- a narrative from Questing Parson.

Joseph Yoo reflects on a Bible that is falling apart.

Angela Shier-Jones ponders bad theology.

Did David Gamble misspeak on Methodist extinction? Jay Voorhees ponders the matter. Best of the Methoblogosphere!

Joseph Slife on Harry Denman.

Contextualism, coffee shops, and the church according to Dan Dick.

Beth Quick preaches on "Beyond the Veil."

Matt Kelley cogitates on Ash Wednesday.

Pam BG comments on other languages and different words.

There are temptations wherever we are-- a reminder from Ken Carter.

Deb Spaulding posts a devotional on missing the message.

Betty Newman is learning lessons from the fast.

Some thoughts from Ken Hagler on childlike faith vs. a childish world.

Olive Morgan says, "What a wedding!"

Jim Parsons offers a lesson in church leadership.

Youth gone wild according to Gavin Richardson.

Joel Betow writes on the dishonest truth.

Chris Roberts is reflecting on the first week of Lent.

Dave Perry counsels us to rest awhile.

A report from Katie M. Ladd on the ecumenical response to the Haiti health kits.

Dave Morris ponders the temptation of whatever it takes.

Pam Webster on the truth that God is not finished yet.

Henry Neufeld wonders if he is a complementarian. Best of the Methoblogosphere!

Come, let us use the grace divine-- reflections from Daniel McLain Hixon.

Michael Daniel writes on checks an (im)balances in government.

Truth is Stranger than Fiction 2010.5

Cops: Fla. thieves overheard after misdialing 911

Associated Press

Updated 8:27 a.m. ET, Wed., Feb. 24, 2010

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Police say two Florida teenagers are facing charges after 911 dispatchers heard them talking about breaking into cars when one teen's cell phone accidentally called 911 during the heist.

Daytona Beach police say 19-year-old Stefanie Vargas and a 13-year-old are charged with burglary to a conveyance.

Police spokesman Jimmie Flynt says dispatchers listened as the pair discussed what was worth taking while rummaging though a vehicle parked near a Daytona Beach nightclub early Sunday.

Officers went to the area and spotted the 13-year-old inside a vehicle. A police report says the teen tried to flee in a sport utility vehicle driven by Vargas. The report says both admitted to the robbery.

It's unclear how the number got dialed.

Mission/Evangelism Is a False Distinction

At the end of October, I and several other UM pastors are going to be leading a work mission trip to Haiti. What we will be doing we do not yet know, but there will be plenty of work for years to come. Whether we are clearing away debris or building something, we will be doing what we can to assist people in great need. I am looking forward to the trip. I have been to Haiti, though it has been some years, but I love mission. It is is my blood, and frankly it should be in the blood of every follower of Jesus.

One of the interesting discussions that gets going in Christian circles from time to time is whether or not work mission should also be seen as a time for evangelism. After all, it is reasoned, if we are going to help people in need primarily in the hope that they will "come to Jesus" are we not viewing people as means to an end instead of ends in and of themselves? Shouldn't mission work teams be limited simply to doing the job that needs to be done and save evangelism for another day?

I think the mission/evangelism distinction is quite unfortunate, and quite unbiblical.

For Christians, mission and evangelism should be intrinsically related to one another. I am going to Haiti in October as an expression of service to Jesus Christ. Whether I am digging a well or sharing my faith in conversation with someone at the work site, both are motivated by my belief that Jesus is the Savior and Lord of all the world. When I am digging a well I am embodying my faith in Jesus and when I am speaking of Jesus, I am presenting the reason for why I am digging the well-- to assist whomever I can in need because Jesus, who is Lord of the World, would do no less. The mission/evangelism distinction assumes that mission is something other than evangelism and that evangelism is something other than mission. Mission is only doing and evangelism is only speaking. Can anyone who reads the Bible seriously believe this? Why can't mission also be speaking and evangelism also be doing?

Jesus himself, who saw people as ends, nevertheless called people to follow him. The general scholarly consensus is that Jesus' basic message is summarized in Mark 1:15, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news." Jesus did not separate his deeds of mercy from his preaching. Indeed, his entire ministry was an expression of the arrival of the kingdom. When we separate mission from evangelism we unwittingly undermine the New Testament notion that deeds of mercy are not signs of the kingdom come. In addition we lose sight of the fact that the resurrection of Jesus is not a provincial event meant to effect only a limited number of persons. Resurrection is a sign of God's desire to transform the world.

I think what some Christians rightly object to and why they find the mission/evangelism distinction helpful is that some Christian groups can make "evangelism" a requirement to receive "mission." I know of some churches who have soup kitchens, but make listening to the "come to Jesus" speech a requirement to get a hot meal. Other Christians will stop helping certain persons if they have not converted within a certain period of time. Such an approach to mission and evangelism, does view people as a means to an end. While every Christian should hope that all persons accept Christ as Lord and Savior (and I do mean that), that should never be a precondition for the ministry of the church. We must minister in the name of Jesus, and let the Holy Spirit do the rest. If Christians are to see people with the eyes of Jesus, they must have compassion on them in their need and act accordingly regardless of the faith commitment or the lack thereof of the recipients. At the same time, the kingdom of God has come in Jesus Christ, and every kingdom citizen should want others to become kingdom citizens too.

Finally, the last command Jesus gave to his followers before his Ascension was to make disciples of all nations. It is not always easy to know how to follow Jesus' instructions, but we must follow them. Whether or not we should take Jesus seriously should not be up for debate. Jesus said make disciples; we must make disciples. I sometimes wonder if "mainline" Christians emphasize the mission/evangelism distinction as a way of avoiding calling people to conversion, and if evangelical Christians emphasize the same distinction as a way of not having to do manual labor along with having to come up with the expense involved. Of course, I am speaking in over-generalized fashion, but sometimes overgeneralization helps advance the discussion.

Mission must be more than glorified relief work. Evangelism must be more than simply presenting information.

It is high time we discard the mission/evangelism distinction in the church. It distorts both mission and evangelism.

Lenten Reflections from C.S. Lewis

We say a great many things in church (and out of church too) without thinking of what we are saying. For instance, we say in the Creed "I believe in the forgiveness of sins." I had been saying it for several years before I asked myself why it was in the Creed. At first sight it seems hardly worth putting in. "If one is a Christian," I thought, "of course one believes in the forgiveness of sins. It goes without saying." But the people who compiled the Creed apparently thought that this was a part of our belief which we needed to be reminded of every time we went to church. And I have begun to see that, as far as I am concerned, they were right. To believe in the forgiveness of sins is not nearly so easy as I thought. Real belief in it is the sort of thing that very easily slips away if we don't keep on polishing it up.

We believe that God forgives us our sins; but also that He will not do so unless we forgive other people their sins against us. There is no doubt about the second part of this statement. It is in the Lord's Prayer, emphatically stated by our Lord. If you don't forgive you will not be forgiven. No part of His teaching is clearer; and there are no exceptions to it. He doesn't say that we are to forgive other people's sins provided they are not too frightful, or provided there are extenuating circumstances, or anything of that sort. We are to forgive them all, however spiteful, however mean, however often they are repeated. If we don't, we shall be forgiven none of our own."

--The Weight of Glory

Character Is Complicated

If we human beings are honest, we will admit that often our dissatisfaction in life is a matter of who we are. As C.S. Lewis rightly notes, the problem with people is not that they desire, but that they desire the wrong things. The Apostle Paul may have found that he was content in every situation (Philippians 4:10-13), but few other individuals can honestly say the same. Christians know all too well that while St. Augustine's dictum that our hearts are restless until they find rest in God is true, even in the midst of finding rest in relationship with the divine, there is still plenty of discontent as believers journey toward perfection. We are discontented because we lack, and often we are not sure what we lack nor where to find what we truly need. Indeed, too often what we think we need is not what we truly need. Character is not something Christians receive instantaneously at conversion; it takes a lifetime of forming and shaping as God works to restore his image in us. We may be in the image of God, but that image is cracked. Jesus wants his followers to become what they are, but the becoming is not easy.

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An excerpt from my latest book, The Character of Our Discontent: Old Testament Portraits for Contemporary Times, scheduled to be published April 10, 2010.

Question of the Day???

Is it acceptable for preachers to bring politics into the pulpit? Why or why not?

Galileo and the Scientific Revolution #5: The Closed Universe

Contemporary social sciences challenged Christian anthropology by trying to provide an account of human existence that did not need to appeal to divine, biblical, or ecclesiastical authorities. It is important to note that the social sciences were not by necessity antithetical to Christianity. Indeed, there were many social scientists that identified themselves as Christians. In fact, the social sciences have increased our understanding of human life and Christians should welcome such things.

However, in providing an anthropology that does not need to appeal to revelation, the issues that are important in Christian anthropology have become irrelevant in the modern view. Sin, atonement, life after death, are understood as somehow beside the point insofar as they help humanity understand the behavior of a particular group of people. To ask whether such Christian theological notions are true is not even a proper question.

In modernity, the primary question about religion is not whether the claims made are true, but what impact upon humanity does religion have? It seemed inevitable, therefore, that over time a patronizing attitude toward religion developed among more than a few social scientists. Since humanity was in the process of growing up (so they said), religion was valuable as it provided a sense of security for those who still needed to explain the world in supernatural terms. Religious faith was a positive thing for immature humanity. Now that humanity has matured, religion is no longer needed as a crutch. Others, such as Freud and Feuerbach went even further arguing that religion was neurotic, preventing humanity from reaching its full potential.

It is no wonder, therefore, that the discipline of theology is no longer given the same respect as other disciplines in the modern university. It has a different, and by the standards of modernity, an outmoded methodology.

Of course, modernity does not get the last word....

Opinion Central Poll 2010.5: Final Results

Did you watch President Obama's State of the Union Address?

Caption Contest 2010.2... And the Winner Is...

I forgot to post the winner of the last caption contest... Sorry...

PamBG: "Sprinkle! I said, Sprinkle!"

Daddy of the Universe

Today's audio sermon from Romans 8:1-17.

A Prayer for the First Sunday in Lent

Almighty God, whose blessed Son was led by the Spirit to be tempted by Satan; Come quickly to help us who are assaulted by many temptations; and, as you know the weaknesses of each of us, let each one find you mighty to save; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The Book of Common Prayer

All Is Not As It Seems

Thanks to Ted Gossard for his gracious review of my book, All Is Not As It Seems: Random Reflections on Faith, Ethics, and Politics.

If you are not a regular reader of Jesus Community you should be. Ted's blog is one of the best!

The Methodist Blogs Weekly Roundup

I cannot believe that I am unable to post the MBWR again this week, but I am officiating at a funeral tomorrow for a relative who died unexpectedly Tuesday night, and the funeral is out of town.

Next weekend I plan to post an extended Weekly Roundup that will cover the previous two weeks of posts, so if you have already sent me an email, I will plan to use that post unless you decide to send me a link to a more recent post.

I apologize. We will get the MBWR back up and running shortly.

Ash Wednesday Roundup

Check out the CCblogs Ash Wednesday Roundup from around the network. Lots of good stuff to read.

Change the World

Here is an opportunity not simply to think about changing the world, but to actually make it happen.

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Check out the website: Rethink Church-- Change the World and this great article from UM Communications.

Gosh!... I Don't Want to Die!

"Remember that you are dust..." With those words we speak the truth about ourselves on Ash Wednesday. It is shorthand for saying, "Remember that one day you are going to die. People will take you to the funeral home, dress up your dead body in an attempt to make it look like you are only sleeping, and people will stare at your lifeless shell knowing that you are not going to sit up in the casket." Yes, remember that you are dust. You nor anyone else in this world is going to get out of life alive. The odds are the same for everyone-- 100% of us die-- 1 out of 1 goes to the grave.

Ash Wednesday is a reminder to me that I am dust. At the moment I may be living, breathing dust, but in the future there will come a point where only the dust will remain. The ashen cross on my forehead is a mark I will wash off after the service, but the meaning of the mark remains. I am dust. I will not get out of this life alive.

Gosh!... I don't want to die! I love my life. I love my wife and children. I love being a pastor and a professor and a writer. I love gardening and going fishing. I love reading a great book while drinking a cup of Earl Grey Tea. I enjoy sitting on my deck at the crack of dawn in the summer drinking a cup of coffee and watching the sun climb over the horizon with the mist low to the ground rising into a dissipating nonexistence. I love good food and fellowship with great friends. God meant for life to be good and my life is good! Gosh!... I don't want to die!"

"Remember that you are dust... but Christ has redeemed you." If the only truth about Ash Wednesday is that we are dust, then Ash Wednesday would only be an occasion for pondering the meaninglessness of it all. All we would be able to say about this life is that we wander aimlessly toward nothingness. We are like that morning mist in the summer rising into a dissipating nonexistence. Such language may be poetic in reference to vapor, but it is meaningless and ungrammatical prose if it speaks the truth about the human condition.

"Christ has redeemed you." With those words, we speak the truth about God on Ash Wednesday. We can do nothing to change the fact that we are dust, but Ash Wednesday also reminds us that Christ can do something about our life. Death does not have the last word. The grave is not our final fate. The ashes on our foreheads remind us of our mortality; the shape of the ashen cross affirms our hope in the God who, in the death and resurrection of Jesus, has reached into the jaws of death and pulled its teeth.

One day I will die. I am dust,... but Christ has redeemed me. My life may be the mist rising, but the light of the Son will keep my life from ending as nothing but dissipating nonexistence.

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Thanks be to God!

The Character of Our Discontent

The publication of my next book has been announced. It is currently scheduled to be published in April with advance copies available for reviewers in early March.

Yes, I know this post is an example of shameless self-promotion, but in fairness I have tried to work up a little embarassment-- I really have.

Darwin Trumps Jesus

This last Sunday was Transfiguration Sunday. It was also Darwin (or Evolution) Sunday. On Transfiguration Sunday we remember Jesus' glorification before his disciples Peter, James, and John-- a preview of his resurrection. On Darwin Sunday churches all over America focus on Darwin's theory of evolution which has forever changed the scientific and religious landscape.

I have hesitated to write this post because I have good friends who really get into Darwin Sunday. I also have good friends who reject evolutionary theory. I do not believe that the former have rejected the faith nor do I believe that the latter are dumb knuckle-dragging neanderthals (pardon the pun). In writing this post I risk offending both sides, but what I would rather see happen is some great discussion.

Before I comment on specifically on Evolution Sunday, let me set before you where I stand: I believe in macro-evolution because I think that is where the scientific evidence clearly leads us. It is a logical fallacy to assert as some atheists and Christians do that evolution denies the existence of God. Evolution is a process which God set forward and in which God participates. I do not think that evolution undermines the biblical texts, particularly the early chapters of Genesis. Indeed, I believe that those persons who read Genesis as a report of the "how" of creation misread those texts. Their hermeneutic is too restrictive and ill-informed of how the early Christians and Jews read Genesis specifically and biblical texts in general. I also believe that Christianity and science are not incompatible and those who believe so misconstrue both. My scientific interests are not so much in the areas of biology and paleontology, but astronomy and physics. The latter two disciplines also clearly indicate that the universe is quite old. We must never forget that many of the early scientists who provided the foundation of our current scientific disciplines were people of faith. One does not have to choose between Christianity and science, faith and reason. Indeed, those who draw a sharp line between faith and reason misunderstand the nature of both.

Now having said that, I must say that I am truly puzzled as to why a church would devote a Sunday worship service to Darwin and evolutionary theory? I have no problem recognizing Charles Darwin's birthday and remembering the huge contribution he has made to our understanding of ourselves and our world, but why devote a worship service to it?

I think Shane Raynor of The Wesley Report gets to the heart of the matter in reference to such motivation:

It's the religious liberal equivalent of evangelism. It's almost like they're saying, "Hey, we're one of you! We're not ignorant and intolerant like those other Christians. By the way, we also listen to NPR, shop at Whole Foods and drive hybrids. Please be our friend!

How true. I would also suggest that a fair number of pastors who so relish Darwin Sunday are former fundamentalists who have never been able to come to grips with their so-called "oppressive past," and Evolution Sunday is a cathartic experience which also serves as a way for them to "stick their finger in the eye" of a past they can no longer embrace.

I suppose what bothers me the most is that this past Sunday was also Transfiguration Sunday, a theologically rich event with much meaning for today's church. Instead of dwelling on that, some churches chose instead to use Darwin to trump Jesus. Evolution Sunday is one more example in the history of Protestantism in the twentieth, and now twenty-first century West, of relegating the liturgical calendar to the background in favor of pet issues. It is about time the church recover the liturgical calendar so that in worship the greatest story ever told will be told again and again in worship.

Fundamentalists may have lost sight of sound scientific evidence, but Mainline Protestants seem to have lost sight of the central character in the telling of the Gospel and in the church's worship. We do not need any more special or awareness Sundays, which are nothing more than special interest group politics working its way into the worship of the church. What we need is worship that clearly proclaims that Jesus is Lord by intentionally keeping Jesus at the center of our Sunday morning praise and preaching. I do not oppose dealing with evolution or any other controversial topic in various church venues. Neither am I unconcerned to raise the church's awareness over issues that have been neglected. I simply believe that worship is not the place for such matters. The church's worship needs to be reserved for the heart of the matter. In worship I do not want Charles Darwin, nor any other individual for that matter, trumping Jesus.

By the way, just because many Christians believe in evolution does not mean that religious sceptics and antagonists will all of a sudden find the gospel attractive. In my experience it just means for them that there is one less thing for us religious folk to be irrational about.

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Cross-Posted at RedBlueChristian

Will You Make It Easy for Someone to Preach Your Funeral?

In over 25 years in pastoral ministry I have officiated at many funerals. I have done funerals for people I did not know, others I knew a little, and the rest I knew very well. When I have had the opportunity to officiate at the funeral for a great saint of the church, afterward people will say to me how much my words meant to them and how well I captured that person's life in just a few moments. My response is always the same-- "It was easy. I had good material."

When I have to offer a eulogy for a faithful believer, I find that the problem is not finding words to say, but limiting them. Here was a person who embodied Jesus Christ to those around her or him. It is not difficult to find nice things to say. Indeed, the words that come forth are more than kind; they become important expressions of our collective Christian faith that was put into practice by the deceased, who has now entered the church triumphant. Even in the midst of mourning and grief, I find such services to be profoundly meaningful.

One day someone is going to preach my funeral service. One day someone is going to preach your funeral service. Are we living our lives in such a way, that when that day comes, and people gather together in one place to worship God and remember our lives, will we have been faithful with our days in such a way that we will make it easy for the pastor to preach our funeral?

Will we have given the preacher good material in preparing our eulogy?

A Prayer for Transfiguration Sunday

Holy God, upon the mountain you revealed our Messiah, who by his death and resurrection would fill both the law and the prophets. By his Transfiguration enlighten our path that we may dare to suffer with him in the service of humanity and so share in the everlasting glory of him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, One God, forever. Amen.

The Book of Worship (UMC)

The Methodist Blogs Weekly Roundup

Actually there is no MBWR this weekend due to serious lack of submissions. I do not mind going through the Methoblogs and linking blogs that do not send in email submissions, as I do every week. I link many blogs that do not submit anything; but most weeks I receive a fair amount of email submissions. This week I have received only one, and I just do not have the time to make up that ground.

Please remember to submit a post you want included by 12:00 pm EST on Saturday to umweeklyroundup(at)yahoo(dot)com. I will see to it that your submission is posted in the Weekly Roundup.

Hopefully, the MBWR will return next weekend. That is my plan anyway.

Ben Witherington on the Four Gospels as Four Portraits of Jesus

Truth is Stranger than Fiction 2010.4

30 pounds of pot found inside pictures of Jesus

February 10, 2010 8:46 p.m. EST

(CNN) -- A marijuana bust along the U.S.-Mexico border revealed 30 pounds of the drug stuffed into framed pictures of Jesus Christ, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency said Wednesday.

"This is not the first time we have seen smugglers attempt to use religious figures and articles of faith to further their criminal enterprise," said William Molaski, port director of the agency's office in El Paso, Texas, in a statement.

"What some might find offensive or sacrilegious has unfortunately become a standard operating procedure for drug smugglers. This would include using religious symbols, children and senior citizens in their attempts to defeat the CBP inspection process."

Authorities said a 22-year-old woman in a Jeep from Juarez, Mexico, told federal border patrol officers that she had nothing to declare besides the framed art. The officers checked out the vehicle with Cesar, a federal drug-sniffing dog, who alerted them to three framed pictures of Jesus in the vehicle.

The officers pulled the backing of the pictures and found numerous bundles, authorities said. The woman was arrested.

The bust was one of three marijuana seizures made Tuesday at the El Paso point of entry. Officers said they seized 214 pounds of marijuana in the two other busts.

How Do We Assess Vitality in the Church?

This week I am teaching a Doctor of Ministry intensive at Ashland Theological Seminary on "Leadership in the Twenty-First Century," subtitled, "Theology and Ministry in a Postmodern World." One of the discussions we have had is on how we assess a vital church.

One of the questions that has been raised is whether or not pastors and congregations are too focused on Sunday morning worship attendance as the major indicator of vitality. Shouldn't we also look at Sunday School (which I think is actually a more significant indicator)? How about the Bible studies during the week, the ministry in the community, and the time individual parishioners volunteer in various ministries?

The point is not that worship attendance is unimportant, but are we too focused on it? I suspect that I am like most pastors-- on a Sunday when attendance is down, I am down about it. The next Sunday when attendance is great, I am quite pleased. But without suggesting that worship attendance is irrelevant, is it really the be all and end all of assessing the vitality of an individual congregation?

What do you think?

Opinion Central Poll 2010.4: Final Results

Now that Democrats do not have a 60 vote majority in the Senate, should they still pass healthcare reform in any way possible?

Caption Contest 2010.2

A Prayer for the Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany

Set us free, O God, from the bondage of our sins, and give us the liberty of that abundant life which you have made known to us in your Son our Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The Methodist Blogs Weekly Roundup 2010.4.215

Submit your post to umweeklyroundup@yahoo.com by noon EST on Saturday to guarantee that your post is included.

The week in review in the Methoblogosphere:

Why is the crown of a Roman emperor hanging in a Christian Cathedral? Read Mitch Lewis.

Dave Nichols writes on the funeral that went bad.

Dale Tedder posts on covenantal repentance.

Great expectations from Graham Peacock.

Bishop William Willimon's Episcopal Report for 2009.

Bishop Robert Schnase reminds us that when one member of the Body of Christ suffers, all of us suffer.

What song would you sing? Bishop Sally Dyck asks the question.

Jeremy Smith ponders children's sermons on the Haitian earthquake.

Craig L. Adams is tired of John Wesley being misquoted on Twitter.

Lauren Porter questions whether we really need another songbook.

Blessing through obedience-- a post from Michael Ledbetter.

Dave Camphouse has a heavy heart for connecting discipleship.

Brian Vinson posts on a Bible reading challenge.

Sally Coleman is having her theology stretched by children.

Are you looking for a unique gift? Mark Winter has it.

Brian Russell on implementing a missional hermeneutic.

The way through is closer than we think according to Dave Perry.

Andy Bryan is feeling kind of broken hearted.

Dave Warnock reflects on wives.

David Hallam writes on examining homeopathy.

"Qualities of Discipleship"-- a sermon by Dave Faulkner.

Andrew Stoddard posts reflections on Genesis 22:1-18, Hebrews 11:23-31, and John 6:52-59.

Homiletical reflections from Tony Mitchell on the right place and the right time.

Kim Mathews ponders love unimaginable.

Greg Hazelrig posts his thought for the day on Matthew 7:1-2.

Steve Heyduck comments on civil rights and gray areas. Best of the Methoblogosphere!

Thoughts on mission and the mission field from Richard Heyduck.

Questing Parson ponders... what story to write?

Joseph Yoo writes on the roads not taken... thankfully.

Angela Shier-Jones reflects on questioning grace.

A report from Joseph Slife on Lifewatch's letter to Senator Ben Nelson to "do no harm."

Dan Dick cogitates on thinking our way out of church.

"Filled-- With the Spirit"-- a sermon by Beth Quick.

John Meunier asks the church, "What if we've all been punk'd?"

Matt Kelley was a witness to love.

Pam BG comments on when nice is not so nice. Best of the Methoblogosphere!

Ken Carter writes on the church as One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic.

Deb Spaulding is sewing on!

Blogging and time for every purpose under heaven-- personal reflections from Andrew Thompson.

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Betty Newman posts on the prayer of immersion.

Ken Hagler reminds us that our spiritual story starts somewhere.

Rick Mang pays tribute to a friend.

Silent auctions work wonders writes Olive Morgan.

Jim Parsons preaches on grown up love.

Gavin Richardson counsels us to give to who was there because they will continue to be there.

Richard Hall posts on global warming scepticism.

Galileo and the Scientific Revolution #4: Implications

This new scientific method caused a reversal of the role of science in relation to philosophy and theology. For centuries, theology had set the ground rules. Philosophy had to follow the lead of theology and science had to follow the lead of both theology and philosophy. Now the situation was reversed. The findings of science were setting the problems for philosophy which, in turn, was beginning to define new rules for theology. Theologians found themselves having to play the game of "catch up" in their work.

Theologians suddenly had to begin explaining their assumptions in light of the assumptions of science. This was true at the most basic level, because of the new cosmology which saw the operation of the universe in mechanical terms. If the world was running according to the laws of nature then how did God operate within the world? Were miracles possible? How did God intervene in a revelatory way? While many early scientists and philosophers (Galileo and Descartes among them) were faithful Christians and affirmed the validity of revelation, their method began to edge God out from acting within the everyday world. Reason and experience became the principle instrument of knowledge, not revelation. Revelation was "thrown under the bus."

In actuality, the natural sciences would not land the most powerful blow against theological inquiry; the so-called "social sciences" would. As the scientific method gained popularity, many began to believe that a new era had dawned upon humanity. (Think about the ominous assumptions human beings would have to hold about themselves in order to call their particular period of history the "Enlightenment".) People began to embrace the notion that human beings were getting better and better. The scientific method was helping men and women understand the world as it truly was. Modern medicine, which developed out of the new methodology, began to make great strides against illness and disease. Many came to believe that humanity had finally grown up and left superstition (classical expressions of religion) behind.

Since this new methodology had been so successful in helping to understand the world in which we live, maybe it could be employed in helping us to understand human beings in the societies in which they lived? Maybe the new method could help eradicate social ills in the same way it was helping medicine to abolish physical illness? Hence, the modern social sciences were born.

A representative of this enterprise was Auguste Comte-- pictured above (1798-1857). A French philosopher, he is considered to be the father of positivism (a child of empiricism) Comte was a pioneer in the field of sociology and an advocate of a "religion of humanity."

Comte divided history into three periods. The first period was the "theological" in which events were explained by the intervention and control of deities and spirits. The world was defined in supernatural terms. The second period was the "metaphysical" in which events were explained by such abstractions as causes, and "inner principles" and substances. These abstractions replaced supernatural explanations. The third period Comte called the "positive." This current period is the final and highest stage in humanity's development. It is characterized by scientific description which does not attempt to go beyond observable facts. Humanity, in this stage, gives up its desire to know the causes, the nature, and destiny of things. If there is anything beyond this world, it is of no concern. Human beings must confine their attention to this world alone. Positivism is the final stage of human thought and the task of science is to make the present world safe for humanity.

It is important to say that most contemporary social scientists would not accept the label "positivist." The early positivists were caught up in the moment and had grandiose visions of what the scientific method applied to society was going to accomplish. Most contemporary social scientists are more modest in such areas.

But Comte's analysis of history here is crucial because it was (and still is in many quarters) typical of an Enlightenment view of human history. Now that humanity has learned to trust in something "objective" (the scientific method) human beings can put away superstition built upon tradition and rely on reason, a faculty common to all human beings. In other words, humanity had finally growing up and did not need the traditional dogmas of Protestantism, and in particular, Catholicism, which were prejudiced and produced nothing but quarrels.

Not to Beat a Dead Horse on the Recent Supreme Court Decision... But...

In a Q & A at a law school in Florida, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas gives his take on why the Court was right in its recent decision on corporations and free speech. What I find interesting is Thomas gives a little history on how the limiting of speech by corporations started in the first place. He states,

"...the history of Congressional regulation of corporate involvement in politics had a dark side, pointing to the Tillman Act, which banned corporate contributions to federal candidates in 1907."

"Go back and read why Tillman introduced that legislation," Justice Thomas said, referring to Senator Benjamin Tillman. "Tillman was from South Carolina, and as I hear the story he was concerned that the corporations, Republican corporations, were favorable toward blacks and he felt that there was a need to regulate them."

It is thus a mistake, the justice said, to applaud the regulation of corporate speech as "some sort of beatific action."

Interesting, isn't it? In the fear over the corrupting influence of lots of money, some folk haven't even considered the corrupting influence of regulating speech.

I welcome all comments on Justice Thomas' comments. No ad hominem arguments are allowed. Substance only please.

You can read the full story here.

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Cross-Posted at RedBlueChristian

The Quotable C.S. Lewis #28: Why? Pain?

"The possibility of pain is inherent in the very existence of a world where souls can meet. When souls become wicked they will certainly use this possibility to hurt one another; and this, perhaps, accounts for four-fifths of the suffering of men. It is men, not God, who have produced racks, whips, prisons, slavery, guns, bayonets, and bombs; it is by human avarice or human stupidity, not by the churlishness of nature, that we have poverty and overwork. But there remains, none the less, much suffering which cannot thus be traced to ourselves. Even if all suffering were man-made, we should like to know the reason for the enormous permission to torture their fellows which God gives to the worst of men. To say....that good, for such creatures as we now are, means primarily corrective or remedial good, is an incomplete answer. Not all medicine tastes nasty: or if it did, that is itself one of the unpleasant facts for which we should like to know the reason"

--The Problem of Pain

A Rational Perspective on the Supreme Court and Corporate Campaign Money

The latest decision by the Supreme Court on allowing corporations to pay for campaign advertising directly out of their treasuries instead of from their political action committees, has generated more heat than light in the debate. I have linked below what I think is a sane response from law professor Jonathan Turley, who indicates that either way this decision was not a no-brainer. Turley indicates that Justice Kennedy's majority opinion and Justice Steven's dissent are both excellent and convincing arguments.



Moreover, in an editorial in The New York Times, Linda Greenhouse rightly points out that President Obama was not right when he said in his State of the Union address that the SCOTUS overturned a century of law. (Frankly, that Mr. Obama would take a shot at the Court when they could only sit there mute, and knowing that the court would not respond publicly, was a small and immature moment for the President.) The issue in reality was a statute that was obtuse and complex. The other important point to make is that while corporations and unions can spend unlimited amounts of money on elections, they are still prohibited from directly contributing to politicians.

As I said in a post last week on this issue, I do not know what the right decision is here constitutionally, but Turley is right that it is quite a difficult decision, and that perhaps the answer here does not lie in going after the money, but in going after how campaigns and elections are run in the first place.

In a free society we are all able to express our views in reference to decisions of law even though few of us truly know it well, but let's stop all the talk about a corrupt court turning back a century of precedent. The only time anyone brings up precedent, they do so when it suits their argument. The same people feel free to discard it when they don't like the nature of what has preceded.

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Cross-Posted at RedBlueChristian

You Must Check Out GodFilms

Produced by the UMC General Board of Discipleship, GodFilms is an excellent resource for churches and small groups to explore faith. Each film is short (10-12 minutes) and features an "introspective journey" on faith in life. Three videos are available for online viewing here. I have watched them. They are engaging and should prove to be a valuable resource in the small group setting.

You must check out GodFilms.