In this series, I am identifying various ways that particular Christian beliefs can be distorted within Christian communities, often in subtle yet devastating ways that increase the likelihood of abuse and exploitation. We begin in this first article with what is arguably the central doctrine that defines the Christian life: the call to take up […]
Kingdom of God
Open Our Eyes to the Saints in Our Midst
The Book of Hebrews refers to “a great cloud of witnesses”, faithful servants who have gone before us and who can offer inspiration and direction. The fact is, however, that the quiet and faithful service of these saints is often carried out far from the spotlight. And as a result, we might miss them even […]
Omran and the Angels of Aleppo
The other day I came across this image via Peter S. Williams’ Twitter feed. Very moved by this amazing picture by the artist Judith Mehr, who wanted to depict Omran from Aleppo in the care of angels. pic.twitter.com/heDO12Y7x5 — Paula Gooder (@paulargooder) December 16, 2016 This is a fascinating picture which juxtaposes a contemporary viral […]
Songs Jesus Would Sing: The birth of a new series
In this post I am launching a new series titled “Songs Jesus Would Sing.” This series is borne of my general sense of alienation from contemporary Christian music coupled with my deep affinity for music played “out there in the world” and a recognition that much of that “worldly” music conveys themes which are profoundly […]
69. Danielle Strickland on the Gospel and Kingdom
Christians are people of the Gospel. But what is the gospel, exactly? Like many evangelicals, I grew up thinking that the gospel was the claim that Jesus died for our sins, full stop. That description is correct in what it affirms but wrong in what it leaves out, for the Gospel is so much more. […]
Sodomy and the Kingdom of God
In “Why do conservative Christians think everything is getting worse?” I made the point that conservative Christians often interpret the world around them in accord with a particular set of premillennial assumptions that society is expected on the whole to get worse over time. But the data suggests something quite different. If anything, over time […]
Why it pays to be an ‘unstrategic’ Christian
In “Christians and the sin of hating homosexuals” I laid out some examples where Christians express an indefensible hatred against homosexuals. Robert Fischer objected to the post, saying that “it is unhelpful to offer up these anecdotal incidents of hate.” And why is that? He went on to explain as follows: These may be used […]
