The Reverend Dr. Frederick W. Schmidt, Jr is an Episcopal priest who serves as Director of Spiritual Formation and Associate Professor of Christian Spirituality at Southern Methodist University, Perkins School of Theology in Dallas, TX. Recently he wrote about the need for better intergenerational relations. Toward that end, he offers a proposed intergenerational covenant, which includes these words: For Older Generations You are old enough to be "stuck Read More …
Discipleship
Review of Erasing Hell (#0428)
Meet the Authors Francis Chan is a pastor, international speaker, and best-selling author. He founded Cornerstone Church in 1994 and served as its lead pastor until stepping down to focus on his writing and speaking. Chan currently serves at Cornerstone as a non-staff elder. In 2004, he launched Eternity Bible College. Chan is the author of several books including Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God (2008); Forgotten God: Reversing Our Read More …
Restoring the Mainline’s Prophetic Voice (#0426)
After 23 years at the Cathedral of Hope (UCC) in Dallas, TX, Michael Piazza accepted a call to the Virginia-Highland Church (UCC) earlier this year. Piazza has been an important voice in the progressive Christian movement for many years and currently serves as Co-Executive Director of The Center for Progressive Renewal. In theSpring/Summer edition of the Center's bi-annual publication, New Times, Piazza offers these challenging words: The time is overdue for Read More …
Review of Not a Fan (#0425)
Meet the Author Kyle Idleman is the teaching pastor at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, KY, which is the fifth largest church in America. After attending Ozark Christian College, he did an internship at Southeast Christian, planted Real Life Church in Southern California, and then returned to Southeast Christian in 2002. Idleman is the author and presenter of the award winning video curriculum H2O: A Journey of Faith and The Easter Experience. His first book, Read More …
How Americans Interpret the Bible (#0424)
According to the latest research by Gallup, within "most major U.S. subgroups, a plurality or majority holds the view that the Bible is the inspired word of God, rather than the actual word of God or a book of fables, legends, history, and moral precepts." The chart below illustrates how views of the Bible have changed over time. So What? Currently, 3 in 10 Americans are biblical literalists who believe that the Bible is the actual word of God. Preference for the literal Read More …
The UCC, General Synod, and the Trinity (#0422)
Earlier this month, Terry Mattingly wrote a misguided and poorly researched article, "Got News? Adios to God the Father?" suggesting that the United Church of Christ was about to move away from being a fully Trinitarian denomination. This kind of journalism is not what one would expect from Mattingly who writes the nationally syndicated "On Religion" column for the Scripps Howard News Service in Washington, D.C., and is director of the Washington Journalism Read More …
Review of The World’s Christians (#0421)
Meet the Author Douglas Jacobsen has taught at Messiah College in Grantham, PA since 1984. Currently he serves as Distinguished Professor of Church History and Theology. Jacobsen is a member of the United Church of Christ and serves on the Theological Commission of the UCC Penn Central Conference. Jacobsen is the author of several books including Scholarship and Christian Faith: Enlarging the Conversation (with Rhonda Hustedt Jacobsen, 2004) and The World's Read More …
Christian Witness in a Multi-Religious World (#0417)
The world in which we now live is multi-religious. For the last five years, the World Council of Churches, the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, and the World Evangelical Alliance have worked together to craft "Christian Witness in a Multi-Religious World: Recommendations for Conduct," which provides recommendations for "conduct on Christian witness around the world." The document recommends the authoring bodies: study the issues set out in this Read More …
How Much Patriotism is Too Much? (#0416)
Matthew Kelley, pastor of Arlington United Methodist Church in Nashville, TN, recently wrote an article about the difficult situation many pastors face on Independence Day weekend regarding just how much celebration of that national holiday is appropriate in worship. He relates an experience he had while serving as pastor of a church in a town with a military base. On a regular Lenten Sunday, not near any national holiday, a guest "sang Lee Greenwood’s “Proud to be an Read More …
You Might Be a Progressive Christian If . . . (#0415)
Bruce Reyes-Chow is a consultant who served as founding pastor of Mission Bay Community Church, until May of this year, and was the former moderator of the General Assembly of the 2.3 million member PCUSA. He recently wrote a piece about what Progressive Christianity is for Patheos' new Progressive Christian portal. In the article, he suggests: “You might be a progressive Christian if . . .” You can be described, but not defined . . . The Progressive Christian Read More …