What if more of us believed in and trusted in a more loving, gracious, inclusive God? What if more of us focused on this life rather than the afterlife and understood salvation in terms of healing, wholeness, reconciliation and liberation from the life diminishing forces that possess us and oppress us, so that we are free to truly love God and love others?
Ken Ham puts the fear into Halloween — and into the gospel
Used to be, it was the occasional apple or other healthy snack that ruined an otherwise perfect candy collection on Halloween night. But creationist Ken Ham has taken spoiling the holiday to a new level with “Halloween Learn & Share Kits” designed to scare children straight into the judging arms of Jesus.
The campaign to eliminate Hell
A new generation of evangelical scholars are challenging the idea that sinners are doomed to eternal torment — but traditionalists are pushing back.
Heaven is not “up there” somewhere
Almost two decades ago I went through a crisis in my faith. The conservative Christianity of my early training had left me dry, empty, and wondering if I had made a huge mistake with my life. Surprisingly, an evangelical philosopher…
let’s get apocalyptic, baby
These days it feels as if the only 2 things I’m seemingly very good at are: watching + evaluating. I watch TV, the rattling, odorous recycling truck every other Wednesday (YOU DIDN’T EMPTY THE CAN!), and my neighbors, through an…
Forever Changed #7: War is hell (or a great place to find heaven again)
Today I will let you pick the title you like: WAR IS HELL or A GREAT PLACE TO FIND HEAVEN AGAIN. During the American Civil War, U.S. Gen. Tecumseh Sherman commented while torching civilian population centers that “war is hell.”…
A graceless gospel
The moment started innocently enough. I was walking with my wife through an exhibition hall at the Oklahoma State Fair. We were on a date just enjoying our time together. Then a stranger raised his voice from his rather sad…
They lost me when they said this was not a letter about AIDS
Back in the 1980s when the world was still trying to figure out how to get a handle on the pandemic of AIDS, I came home from work one day and had a letter from the American Red Cross. I…