Faith - Frosted Echoes

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Faith

Christianity as counterculture.

Last Known Good

Last Known Good

I've been working on my blog design lately. Occasionally, a situation will arise in which I do something that totally messes things up, and I wish for the option to roll back to a "last known good" configuration. I used to love this option on Windows. If you (or a

Rooted In Place

Rooted In Place

In a worship service recently, our pastor explored the genealogy of Jesus as presented in the book of Matthew. It was a thought-provoking homily about family ties. Alastair Roberts writes for Plough magazine about how we fit our own lives into the continuum of people that have come before us.

Ignoring The Big Fish In The Room

Ignoring The Big Fish In The Room

Finishing the book of Jonah for insight into God’s love for humanity.

The Ghost of Jehovah

The Ghost of Jehovah

What does it do to Christian thought when even Jesus is considered "problematic?"

Friday Night Video

🎵 Matthew 7:7

This week's Friday Night Video is a bit of a departure from other recent entries in the series. There's no electroclash or spunky cover reworkings. It's a new track from Welcome Wagon. Welcome Wagon are label mates of Sufjan Stevens and purveyors of a similar religiously-tinged folky aesthetic. With lyrics

Institutions Absorb Anxiety

Institutions Absorb Anxiety

Thinking about the role institutions play in buffering against uncertainty.

Sch-Sch-Sch-Schism

Sch-Sch-Sch-Schism

Experiencing a Christianity that doesn't crack at every fault line.

To The Holy

Worship in the ancient way.

Why, As A Christian, I Can Sympathize With Some Prayer Shaming

Why, As A Christian, I Can Sympathize With Some Prayer Shaming

In the wake of any gun-related tragedy in the US, political actors offer insincere thoughts and prayers in order to avoid taking real action.

Orthodox Christianity, The Far Right and the Green-Eyed Christ

Orthodox Christianity, The Far Right and the Green-Eyed Christ

A new book traces a trickle of far-right Christians moving to the Orthodox Russian church seemingly to chase authoritarianism but is there more to the story?

Smashing Political Binaries

Smashing Political Binaries

Elizabeth Bruenig is a journalist who doesn’t conform to expectations. Some people have a problem with that.

Eastertide

I look at Easter not just as a day, but as a kickoff, if you will, for Eastertide. I see it as somewhat analogous to New Year's Day. Resolutions start then, and don't end when the day is over. Eastertide is a time to look at renewal in your life.

The Slide from Epistemic Bubble to Echo Chamber

The Slide from Epistemic Bubble to Echo Chamber

We are trees rooted alongside each other, and tearing up the roots of one tree threatens to encroach on the rootedness of another.

Populations In The Lurch

Populations In The Lurch

The common bonds that held us together are dissolving and this is having a huge effect on population growth and mental health.

Imprecatory Prayer

Imprecatory Prayer

I had never come across the phrase "imprecatory prayer" until recently, even if I knew well what it meant. In fact, I have struggled with the concept. The Got Questions site begins to answer the question of what imprecatory prayer is by defining imprecatory. To imprecate means “to invoke evil

A cross against a blue sky.

Beating Monsters With The Cross

A trip back to church and a new book convinced me to spend more time teaching my son about Christ.

A hand-drawn diagram of how Stephen Colber's faith overlaps with comedy.

Elevator Pitch Beliefs

Steven Colbert does an amazing job summarizing the foundations of his belief in two minutes, but that doesn’t satisfy everyone.

Repairing the Cracks (kintsugi style)

Repairing the Cracks (kintsugi style)

Sometimes, I feel like I need to stop ruminating on the "deep cleavages in American society," as this piece from the Bush Institute refers to them. I wonder if it would be helpful to remember the turbulence of the sixties, just to have some frame of reference for comparison, but

Exchanging the Truth For Lies

Exchanging the Truth For Lies

When people admit they want to be lied to just to have a counter-narrative, it makes me scratch my head.

Learning Prayer From Cartoon Bears

Learning Prayer From Cartoon Bears

When my oldest was younger, we used to read a Berenstain Bears book about prayer. While the books about these anthropomorphic bears are designed to be simple lessons for kids, the particular angles in this book struck me deeply. The take on prayer was nuanced and mature. In the book

You Are Not Your Own

You Are Not Your Own

The radio started when I turned on the ignition. NPR had been playing from when my wife drove the car before me. A guy was shrilly complaining about filling out paperwork for getting a vasectomy and being told that his wife also had to sign. He was livid and kept

The Resemblance is Uncanny

The Resemblance is Uncanny

A couple of years ago, I compared contemporary Christians who expressed their desire for an authoritarian ruler to the ancient Islrealites who wished for a king. In both instances, the groups had lost faith in God to protect them and wanted to rely on a strong man. In the biblical

Tough Love

Mars Hill Church reveled in being Christian the manly way.

Fear and Loathing In These United States

Fear and Loathing In These United States

By most accounts, evangelical Christians are concerned about the path this country is taking and encroaching restrictions on religious liberty. This is usually cited as their main reason for supporting the former president, despite the fact that he possessed almost every character trait they had vocally opposed in past leaders.

Vinyl Church

Jonas Ellison writes about wanting to attend a vinyl church, and I’m here for it. What does he mean by a vinyl church? He is using vinyl as a reference for older traditions that are slower and more thought out. Vinyl church’s don’t try so hard to