Theolog

Blogging toward Sunday: About face

2010-03-15T07:55:00.000-05:00

Fifth Sunday in LentIsaiah 43:16-21; Philippians 3:4b-14; John 12:1-8by David P. GusheeIn this week’s epistle reading, Paul demonstrates that mix of humility and pride that so definitively marks off his writing from any other voice in the Bible.Paul is proud of the fact that if anyone wants to get in some kind of macho contest over the marks of righteousness in Jewish tradition, he would win. He’

I'm with Stupak redux

2010-03-12T11:48:00.006-06:00

by Steve ThorngateWill Rep. Bart Stupak and his gang of anti-abortion House Democrats derail health-insurance reform?Stupak’s been talking tough and pushing for a deal that would go farther in restricting abortion funding than the current language of the Senate bill does. But the House leadership concluded that it can’t change the Senate’s abortion language via budget reconciliation, the only

Faith-based council submits recommendations

2010-03-12T08:23:00.000-06:00

by Steve ThorngateThis week the President’s Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships delivered its recommendations to the federal government—164 pages of them. While the council’s role is purely advisory, Adelle Banks quotes Health and Human Services secretary Kathleen Sebelius as promising the recommendations “won’t just be a document on a shelf” but will form an “active

The prodigal and the unreligious

2010-03-11T11:04:00.000-06:00

by Tom JohnsonIn response to the religious leaders' concern that Jesus was welcoming and associating with clearly unreligious people, Jesus told stories about God's attitude toward such wayward folk, as we find in Luke 15, from which this week's Gospel reading comes. God sees such people as lost and won't give up until God finds them and brings them home. They also apparently must want to be

Theology After Google

2010-03-10T13:47:00.005-06:00

by Steve ThorngateToday begins Theology After Google, a conference on progressive Christianity and communications technology held at Claremont School of Theology in southern California. Several Century contributors will be leading sessions—Bruce Epperly, Bob Cornwall, Glen Stassen, John Franke—as will CCblogger Tripp Fuller, who with Philip Clayton teaches a Claremont course with the same

In the current issue

2010-03-10T07:41:00.000-06:00

by Steve ThorngateThe current issue of the Century is available in part here, or subscribe to read it all in print.Editor/publisher John Buchanan writes about Harvey Cox, while the unsigned editorial highlights the textbook controversy at the Texas State Board of Education. Stephanie Paulsell’s column revisits Pilgrim’s Progess; Rodney Clapp’s considers the technological innovation of the

Back to the moral case

2010-03-09T13:02:00.001-06:00

by Anthony B. RobinsonPerhaps you too have noticed a seemingly AWOL subject in the health-care debate: morality, right and wrong, the kind of people/nation we are and seek to be, stuff like that.It seems instead that it all comes down to this: will I have to pay more, or will I get less? While President Obama has recently touched on the moral case for reform, for the most part he's been reduced

Like most Americans, I forgot about International Women's Day

2010-03-08T12:21:00.005-06:00

by Steve ThorngateToday is International Women’s Day.Economist Nancy Folbre discusses ways to measure and compare gender equality in various nations, and CCblogger Julie Clawson makes the case for the U.S. joining other countries in doing more to observe the occasion.

Blogging toward Sunday: Home

2010-03-08T07:15:00.001-06:00

Fourth Sunday in LentJoshua 5:9-12; Psalm 32; 2 Corinthians 5:16-21; Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32by David P. GusheeI puzzled over this week’s Old Testament passage for a long time. It is hard to see its connection to the other readings. But if we read this ancient story through a lens refracted by the forgiveness and celebration themes highlighted in the other lectionary texts, there are at least

No, Governor, you have the power here

2010-03-05T11:49:00.000-06:00

by Steve ThorngateLike other likely 2012 presidential candidates, Tim Pawlenty—the Republican governor of Minnesota—is courting his party’s major constituencies. At last month’s Conservative Political Action Conference, Pawlenty offered a list of core conservative principles—including the idea that “God’s in charge,” not government.This week, Minnesota clergy gathered in support of preserving a

You want equality? Here you go.

2010-03-04T09:14:00.001-06:00

by Steve ThorngateIn a recent post, I highlighted the decision some pro-LGBT pastors have made to get out of the civil marriage business entirely—what they can’t do for same-sex couples they won’t do for anyone.It seems the logic works in both directions: you can also avoid doing something for same-sex couples by refusing to do it for anyone. The Catholic Archdiocese of Washington has long been

Our neighbors in Haiti?

2010-03-03T12:34:00.000-06:00

by David HensonIn the film The Incredibles, a young superhero bemoans the fact that he must hide his superior speed when he's with his peers—he believes it’s the one thing that makes him special. His mother, also endowed with supernatural abilities, tries to placate him: “Everyone’s special, Dash.”To which Dash mumbles, “That’s just another way of saying no one is.”Sometimes I wonder if a similar

On the shelf: You Are Not a Gadget by Jaron Lanier

2010-03-02T15:34:00.005-06:00

by Debra BendisYou may or may not want to wade through this book, with its incomplete thoughts, computer jargon and frustratingly incoherent efforts to define the value of a human being. I did, and even though I left some pages unread, I found myself rereading other parts. I’m fascinated because Lanier gives me insights into the foreign language of the Web and its designers, and because his book

Blogging toward Sunday: Behind "repent or perish"

2010-03-01T07:21:00.000-06:00

Third Sunday in LentIsaiah 55:1-9; 1 Corinthians 10:1-13; Luke 13:1-9by Kae EvensenHad there been a vote on the subject in my church youth group, my peers would have decided without much debate that I was the least likely person to become a pastor. Due to some kind of inverted sense of personal integrity, I rejected what I considered to be any overly pious songs—“They’ll Know We Are Christians By

Peddling power

2010-02-26T07:28:00.000-06:00

by Robert D. FrancisOver the weekend, a congressman reminded me that the two things that elected officials respond to are dollars and votes. Unseemly as it sounds, this is conventional wisdom in Washington.The faith community tends to be short on cash to throw around, so we’re most often left with the power of the ballot box. That’s why, on the eve of yesterday’s health-care summit, a letter (pdf

Riveting television

2010-02-25T10:58:00.006-06:00

by Steve ThorngateFaith-based groups and others keep pushing hard for health-insurance reform. Meanwhile, President Obama and congressional leaders are at Blair House right now staging a media circus having a serious conversation about health care.If six hours of wonkiness alternating with talking-point posturing sounds fun to you, head to C-Span and watch it live. Ezra Klein offers a helpful

Now here's an interesting Lenten project

2010-02-24T11:46:00.000-06:00

by Steve ThorngateDuring Lent, new CCblogger Maria Evans is writing her own stations of the cross liturgy, one station at a time. She’s posted the first three:Jesus is condemned to deathJesus takes up his crossJesus falls a first time

On the shelf: The Bathers by Jennette Williams

2010-02-23T08:46:00.000-06:00

by Amy FrykholmAfter the birth of her daughter, photographer Jennette Williams found herself looking for new ways to understand her femininity. Her quest took her to traditional women’s baths in Hungary and Turkey, where she spent more than a decade working in extremely hot conditions with 35- millimeter film. Over time, she earned the trust of her subjects, collaborating with them on photographs

Blogging toward Sunday: Stories that speak for themselves

2010-02-22T07:58:00.000-06:00

Second Sunday in LentGenesis 15:1-12, 17-18; Philippians 3:17-4:1; Luke 13:31-35by Kae EvensenRecently I spent a week on retreat with my book club. It’s a smart and kind and diverse group of people. But one of the greatest pleasures of their company is that only two members are Christian—and very different Christians in terms of theology and tradition. One woman, a psychologist, laughs out loud

How about "Justice of the Peace Billy" instead?

2010-02-19T11:40:00.020-06:00

by Steve ThorngateA few years ago, a pastor acquaintance of mine made headlines when, in an act of solidarity with gays and lesbians, he renounced his state-granted authority to perform weddings. Other pastors have made similar moves. This strikes me as an elegant and sensible approach: couples, whether same- or different-sex, are free to have a commitment ceremony at the church, but if they want

Rick Steves on marijuana

2010-02-18T09:34:00.000-06:00

by Amy FrykholmRecently I spoke with travel guru Rick Steves for the Century. Steves is a Lutheran and speaks openly about the role his faith plays in his travel philosophy. In his latest book, Travel as a Political Act, Steves also writes about why he thinks the U.S. needs to be smarter about its war on drugs. He has been a visible figure in the drive to decriminalize marijuana. In a section of

Ash Wednesday around the CCblogs network

2010-02-17T14:04:00.010-06:00

by Steve ThorngateIt’s Ash Wednesday, and the CCblogs network is filled with thought-provoking posts.Ashes are dirty, says Debra Dean Murphy, like coal dust. They get under Pamela Fickenscher's fingernails, and they get Roger Lovette thinking of other smudges. They take to some foreheads more readily than others, as Darren Cushman Wood details, and we bring them out on what Maria Evans points out

Trust-fund Christians

2010-02-17T07:46:00.000-06:00

by Kate MurphyThe world barely noticed when Casey Johnson died. The 30-year-old heiress’s death wasn't news; it was a foregone conclusion.A recovering addict, Johnson had lost custody of her daughter and was awaiting trial on charges of burglarizing an ex-girlfriend's home. Her parents had shut off her trust fund. Her death didn't surprise or even interest most of us; if anything, there was a

Singing at mass

2010-02-16T15:06:00.001-06:00

by Steve ThorngateMy wife’s family is Catholic. When I go to mass with them, as I did this past weekend, I stand out. I’ve learned to wait for the priest to talk between “deliver us from evil” and “for thine is the kingdom,” and I’ve stopped putting the kneeler back up prematurely. But I still feel awkward during the songs: I always feel as if I'm singing louder than all the rest of the

Everywhere at once

2010-02-16T07:09:00.001-06:00

by Debra BendisAs I settled in to write this post, I first took a second to check e-mail. Then I Googled some headlines on the topic I’d chosen, and I took a moment to check the latest snow forecast. (I could have just looked out the window.) Meanwhile, the blank page—the author’s scourge—loomed just behind the other screens.I could justify my roaming mind and say that I was multitasking. That’s