Reflections of an Undeconstructed Pentecostal
“Remember the days of old, consider the years of all generations. Ask your father, and he will inform you, your elders, and they will tell you” (Deuteronomy 32:7).
This morning I watched the events of September 11. The emotions overwhelmed me. I wept. I sat in my chair and remembered.
We are all aware of the atrocities committed by the Islamist terrorist known as the Islamic State (aka ISIS, ISIL). Two American journalists have been beheaded. Thousands of Iraqi Christians have been displaced; many have been crucified, beheaded, and tortured. In my judgment, it is only a matter of time before ISIS targets American interest throughout the world. War seems inevitable. Fear and hate abound.
Continue reading ““Convert them or kill them!””
The problem of post-baptismal sin was an issue of great concern in the early church. The baptismal doctrine of the early church taught that water baptism was the initial act of Christian confession which cleansed the human soul of original sin and all sins committed up to the point of baptism.
Continue reading “Footwashing & Confession of Sin”
The dysfunction of any community is generational. Edwin Friedman says, “the problem with parents, after all, is that they had parents.” According to Friedman’s “systems theory,” dysfunction is structured into an emotional triangle involving three persons, groups, or issues. The emotional triangle serves to maintain a sense of fragile stability, or homeostasis.
Continue reading “The System that is Ferguson”
One of the harshest statements to come from Jesus was “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs” (Matthew 15:26). When we realize that these words were spoken to a widow in distress they seem to defy the virtues of love and mercy. How can we properly understand these harsh words? What is the significance of this narrative?
Continue reading “Dogs at the Table”
Some Christians live in fear and suspicion of science as if scientific discovery and theological truth are natural and mortal enemies. This is especially true of Christians whose intellectual formation is primarily based in the 20th century conflict between modernism and fundamentalism. Most fundamentalists require a literal reading of Genesis 1 that insists on a six day creation and a young earth. Any other interpretation is considered heretical. As I wrote in my previous blog, a literal interpretation of Genesis 1 is not only unnecessary, but it also defies the original context of the creation narrative. To my mind, for Christians to reject scientific discovery is to reduce faith to mere superstition.
Continue reading “Scientific Discovery & Theological Reflection”