For the first time in my life, I decided it was time to find out firsthand what the mega-church experience was all about. That’s mega, not maga. I half expected that the two might have merged into one, but was pleasantly surprised that politics was not mentioned at all.
Today’s “Ask a Progressive Christian” with ProgressiveChristianity.org Co-Executive Director Rev. Dr. Caleb J. Lines: What do Progressive Christians Think about Divorce?
For Classroom and/or Home Schooling
In A Joyful Path, Year Two, we focused on some of the main tenets of Progressive Christianity and Spirituality, giving our children the foundation they need to understand the basics of this path, to clarify their own personal beliefs and be able to discuss those with others, while at the same time showing what it means to walk the path of Jesus in today’s world.
For Classroom and/or Home Schooling
Year Two focuses on some of the main tenets of Progressive Christianity and Spirituality, giving our children the foundation they need to understand the basics of this path, to clarify their own personal beliefs and be able to discuss those with others, while at the same time showing what it means to walk the path of Jesus in today’s world.
For Classroom and/or Home Schooling
Spiritual Curriculum for Young Hearts and Minds
For Classroom and/or Home Schooling
Spiritual Curriculum for Young Hearts and Minds
For Classroom and/or Home Schooling
Year Two focuses on some of the main tenets of Progressive Christianity and Spirituality, giving our children the foundation they need to understand the basics of this path, to clarify their own personal beliefs and be able to discuss those with others, while at the same time showing what it means to walk the path of Jesus in today’s world.
For Classroom and/or Home Schooling
Compassionate, Intelligent, Inter-Spiritual, Non-Dogmatic
For Classroom and/or Home Schooling
Compassionate, Intelligent, Inter-Spiritual, Non-Dogmatic
For Classroom and/or Home Schooling
Compassionate, Intelligent, Inter-Spiritual, Non-Dogmatic
Did you grow up in the world of Christian fundamentalism or evangelicalism? Have you grown uncomfortable in those traditions?
Maybe my evangelical kin — who believed themselves to be reformers of lukewarm or dead faith — wouldn’t have welcomed a real Reformer in their midst. Because they were already right. They didn’t need reform. They certainly wouldn’t have embraced anyone who challenged their worship, theology, or leaders.
It ends with this sentence: “Even on the days when I’m not sure I can believe it wholeheartedly, this is the story I’m willing to be wrong about.” And that humility suffuses the whole book.
Embracing Social Media for Church Growth and Transformation
Attendance in US churches continues to sharply decline. As church leaders struggle to identify both root causes and possible responses, they often feel a sense of despair... but there is hope!
In a recent article in progressivechristianity.org Jim Burklo wrote about the possibility, if not likelihood, that there will be a flood of disaffected folks leaving the evangelical churches and that progressive congregations should be ready “to attract them by making changes in our styles of worship and congregational life that are necessary to seize this remarkable moment.”
Change is inevitable. Make it transformational. Find transformation in unexpected changes, in your life and your congregation
I want to be a Christian and I want to show my daughter who God is and can be, but I’m at a loss. Do I stay where I am or do I join a less Christian church? Either way I will feel like an outsider.
There emerged out of the 2016 election a conspiracy theory that has been a catalyst for a growing and coalescing far right movement that is mainstreaming radical authoritarian nationalists, neo-Fascists, white supremacists, and anti-Semites in the United States.
(and everyone else!)
Every so often, I put out a "musing" that is a guide to my writings and videos. It's that time when churches make plans for their program year, so this is a good moment to share links to my materials for worship, study, and spiritual practice. Use freely. All I ask is attribution!
By United Nations Environment Programme
Around the world, there are an estimated 37 million churches, 4 million mosques, 20,000 synagogues and hundreds of millions of temples. Experts say many of these houses of faith could become models of sustainability by practicing eco-friendly worship, embracing green buildings, and offering environmentally-friendly sermons.
The Save-A-Seat Tool is timely software from https://UMC.PastorsToolbox.com. It allows faith leaders to control, measure, and communicate capacity. Learn more at https://UMC.PastorsToolbox.com.
When we realized because of COVID19 we couldn’t sing together, we refused to give up the use of music in our Gatherings; it is just too important. So we turned to the only source of music we thought could offer the same experience even if it didn’t involve singing along: YouTube.
During this time of unprecedented change, how can we create maintain and create greater financial sustainability?
In this controversial and thought-provoking book, McLaren explores the questions that will determine the shape of Christianity for the next 500 years.
Created by Rev. Caleb J. Lines
It is extremely unfortunate that the coronavirus is negatively impacting so many (especially those who are elderly or living in poverty) and disrupting our day-to-day lives, however, one valuable insight that may result from this disastrous virus is congregational awareness about the necessity of technology.
“At the center of the Christmas story is hope…hope which comes to us in the form of a vulnerable, poor baby. A child, not a king, changes the world. God appears to us as a marginalized, Afro-Semitic, Jewish child from Nazareth in Palestine. A child who grows up to teach us to welcome the stranger. How would our world be different if we loved our neighbors as ourselves?” asks the Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis, senior minister of Middle Collegiate Church.
Jacqueline Bussie knows that too many Christians live according to unspoken "laws" that govern the Christian life: #1: Never get angry at God; #2: Never doubt; #3: Never question; #4: Never tell your real story; #5: Always speak in clichés about evil and suffering; and #6: Always believe hope comes easy for those who truly love God.
Escaping Belief through Catch-22s
In "ZeroTheology", John Tucker argues that not only can one be a Christian without holding any traditional beliefs but that one can only be a Christian by getting out of religious belief altogether.
If you want to build a progressive congregation; if you're going to enliven love and wisdom in your congregation, don’t even think about trying to change people’s minds.