A Weblog Dedicated to the Discussion of the Christian Faith and 21st Century Life

A Weblog Dedicated to the Discussion of the Christian Faith and 21st Century Life
___
I do not seek to understand that I may believe, but I believe in order to understand. For this also I believe, –that unless I believed, I should not understand.-- St. Anselm of Canterbury (1033-1109)

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Some Randomly Not Necessarily Connected Thoughts

Some say that preaching is a thing of the past in a postmodern context. The suggestion is that perhaps it should instead give way to a weekly discussion/focus group. I'm all for discussion, but it seems to me that the act of preaching is one of the few events that reminds us that the authority of Scripture is found in the One (God) who gives the Word and not in the personal preferences of the hearer.

I remain convinced that the biggest doctrinal deficiency in the Protestant Church in America is not Christological but ecclesiological. Nowhere is this more clearly seen of late than in the HHS Conscience Clause controversy.

Why is it that some Christians are so interested in attempting to read the so-called signs of the Second Coming of Christ? Are we not content to leave the end in the hands of God? Do we not trust God? And do we really want to know when everything will end anyway? To me that's like wanting to know the time and day of one's death.

I love lobster. I wish it wasn't so expensive. In colonial America in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries lobster was cheap, plentiful, and was often consumed by the poor. I sure wish that were true today. I say, "Let them eat liver!"

Apparently CNN has cancelled its next scheduled Republican Presidential Debate due to the fact that Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum have said they are done debating. This is a good thing. How much more can be said than what has been said already? It's reminiscent of the church meeting that goes longer than an hour. Nothing new gets said after that; it's all repetition. Moreover, if the Republican contenders are tired of it all who can blame them?

President Obama recently revealed his singing ability at a speaking engagement. He sounded pretty good. You know, Mr. President, even if you win re-election, after four more years your political career will be done. After all, where can you go from the White House? If I were you, I'd be negotiating recording contracts right now. You need to do something in retirement.

I love the theology of Søren Kiekegaard. He is one of my favorite theologians. If he were here today, I suspect that neither Christians on the political left or the right would be very happy with him.

Speaking of theology, Martin Luther said that after theology, music was God's greatest gift. I admire those who put the great theological claims of the church to melody and harmony. Their work is indispensable.

I dislike the negative connotations now associated with the term "rhetoric" as in "political rhetoric" or "tone down the rhetoric." Traditionally rhetoric refers to the art of writing and speaking effectively. In that sense rhetoric is not the term I would use to refer to today's political discourse.

I must confess, I have never thought much of the idea of being well-rounded, as in we want to expose our children to all kinds of experiences so they can be well-rounded.That sounds to me like psychological-ese for making our children compliant to the status quo. Jesus was not well-rounded. The Apostle Paul was not well-rounded. Well-rounded people don't get executed by the authorities.

The biggest threat to the church in the West is materialism. The more Christians have a stake in their stuff and the powers that be that ensure they can keep their stuff, the more the radical claims of the gospel are perceived by believers as... well... radical.

To finish on a lighter note, years ago I saw on the sign of a certain Cash Baptist Church that read, "God takes credit." Hmmm....

2 comments:

Dennis Sanders said...

I remain convinced that the biggest doctrinal deficiency in the Protestant Church in America is not Christological but ecclesiological. Nowhere is this more clearly seen of late than in the HHS Conscience Clause controversy.

So, are you going to expound more on this? I've been waiting for that second post. :)

Allan R. Bevere said...

Dennis,

I will expound on it this next week.

Thanks for asking.