This is a plea for Christians to realize the significance of Isaiah 53 for their understanding of who Jesus was and what he did. I believe that he was motivated by love to take on the role of the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 53.
All atonement theories get it wrong by substituting beliefs about Jesus for the way (his virtues, values, and practices) of Jesus that he taught us by word and deed.
Jesus was not crucified for telling people to love God and our neighbors. He was killed for challenging the authorities of that time. He challenged the Jewish authorities, and he challenged the Roman authorities.
The central focus of Jesus’ message was to announce the imminent coming of the kingdom of God. This is what he was sent to do. (Luke 4: 43-44) This kingdom would be on earth for the people of Israel. (Matthew 10: 5-8) Although Jesus gives few details on how this kingdom would operate.
(Moving from “Ought” to “How To”)
So what about loving our enemies? What do we normally feel, what do others who have modeled destructive behavior and attitudes expect us to feel and what can we possibly feel? Why should we choose not to feel what virtually everyone expects us to feel?
A five-part fictional story
A five-part fictional story set in the early 1990s about Reverend Paul Graham and his congregation, Grace United Church of Christ.
A five-part fictional story
A five-part fictional story set in the early 1990s about Reverend Paul Graham and his congregation, Grace United Church of Christ.
A Critical Examination of the 'He Gets Us' Superbowl Commercial
The Superbowl Commercial "He Gets Us" misses the mark by presenting a narrow view of Christianity where narcissism is disguised as altruism.
A five-part fictional story
A five-part fictional story set in the early 1990s about Reverend Paul Graham and his congregation, Grace United Church of Christ.
I. Be completely humble and gentle, be patient forgiving one another in love
Jesus’ “Revolutionary” Teachings
In the context of the Christian faith tradition — is the “good news” that one might assert to be at the heart of the gospel message just too idealistic for what we might be able to instead empirically see happening all around us on a daily basis?
The church of the future must change to help its members develop further along their own spiritual journeys. Seminarians should spend less time studying the Bible, Church history, and Christian theology. Instead, the focus of their training should stress positive child-rearing strategies, meditation in its many forms, and psychological therapy.
Patriarchy probably started about 12,000 years ago. If you google the word, there’s a good chance that you will be more confused than before you started.
A five-part fictional story
A five-part fictional story set in the early 1990s about Reverend Paul Graham and his congregation, Grace United Church of Christ.
A five-part fictional story
A five-part fictional story set in the early 1990s about Reverend Paul Graham and his congregation, Grace United Church of Christ.
Lent is not about giving up chocolate. It’s about uncovering the blindness in our perception and being open to what others have to share with us.
The cross, the symbol of the Christian faith, has been the subject of much theological discussion through the ages.
As I’m writing this commentary, the news is filled with chatter about another anniversary observance of January sixth. It’s not about the liturgical religious observance known as the Epiphany, of course; but the third-year anniversary of those days surrounding the political insurrection in our nation’s Capital.
After sharing his story, Jason asked me his provocative question, “So, do you think I am still a Christian?” I wasn’t sure how to respond. I mulled it over for a long time. I finally said, “I guess it depends on how you define Christian.
The Second Coming of Christ is an erroneous idea that developed among Christians in the last third of the first century AD. It weakened the assurance that the first Christians had that the kingdom of God had come.
The Bible is a very human book with differing positions on who Jesus was and what he said. The result is you can find a passage in the Bible to support any political position you choose to take.
The second in the series that looks at the life of Jesus.
Some of the most important aspects of Jesus teachings were repressed from the beginning. The Hebrews started the repression. The Roman Catholic Church expanded it. And by and large the Protestants followed.
Getting the Story Straight
This is the first in a series that looks at the life of Jesus and contrasts the story that has come down through the ages with what probably really happened.
Too much of politics caters to our craving miracles; faith is often about finding some magical safe place. But mystical experiences are
Part One
How did the wealthy accrue the power to change the thinking of the church about who Jesus was and what he did? That, our four researchers discovered, is -up to now- a mystery hidden in history.
If Jesus had been asked to summarize the Prophets, as Hillel had done for the Torah, his reply would probably have been something like this: “Wake up, open your eyes and ears, repent, and start treating others with compassion and justice!”
Following his life in Nazareth that possibly included day trips to Sepphoris looking for work, the next training ground for Jesus was a brief time with this same John the Baptist in the wilderness, hearing again that injustice is not the way of the Lord.
So who is right? Did Jesus live and move in a society that was doing alright economically, or one mired in poverty? Or does the question not really matter?