In the pursuit of ‘Truth-Telling’, I believe the church has some difficult ‘Truth-Telling’ to do about our past particularly regarding our sacred book, the Bible.  Why the Bible?  Because it comes to us from our somewhat distant church past.  This ‘Truth-Telling’ is not absent but I believe it has to be far more obvious to the general public and also needs to be given more voice within the church to help our members confront the issues this ancient book raises.  By this, I believe the church may gain again some credibility in our world today.

In Romans 7:15, the Apostle Paul wrote, “For that which I do, I allow not: for what I would, that I do not; but what I hate, that do I.” Many people have pondered over these verses, but everyone who has tried to break a bad habit knows exactly what he’s talking about. There seems to be a part of us that knows what we should do, but that part just gets swept away when making decisions in our everyday lives. Why do these contradictions exist within ourselves? The psychology of Carl G. Jung provides some answers.

The Bible is a human creation.  The Bible is a human product and creation.  It was not written by God.  God is the great MORE of the universe–more than anything we can say, think, imagine, or conceptualize about God.  Indeed, God is Spirit, infinite love and energy, abiding presence, and endless mystery.  Still, God doesn’t write things.  While I do believe God was a source of tremendous inspiration to the biblical writers (and editors), I do not believe God authored the Bible.

“God works with the world as it is in order to bring it to where it can be. Prayer changes the way the world is, and therefore changes what the world can be. Prayer opens the world to its own transformation.”  

First we have to talk about the elephant in the room – though that might not be the
most polite term for Jesus!  For many millions of people around the world, Jesus is the
Son of God, the divine source of their salvation, his story told in the familiar four
gospels of the Bible, and any tampering with that story understandably will be met
with suspicion, distrust, even hostility.

Traditionally, the last Sunday of the Church year is celebrated as Christ the King or the Reign of Christ Sunday. But we here at Holy Cross, we are a progressive bunch, and we are accustomed to looking beyond images of kings or rulers to imagine the wonders of CHRIST who has cosmic dimensions.

I don’t feel too comfortable in Episcopalian services because it feels like that same old, literal view again being pushed onto the parishioners. I don’t know what my faith can be anymore and a part of me wants to give up.

Confronting the crisis facing Christianity, this anthology of post-modern, progressive Christian poems, with a rebellious tone, demythologizes Christian theology. Poems, Piety and Psyche is a brave departure from literal Christian dogma and challenges the outdated ideas of doctrine and Scripture to disclose hidden truths still valid today.

John 8:44 has always been problematic for me.  For example, in 8:44 Jesus tells the Jews who don’t believe in him that they are children of the devil.  What is the Progressive commentary on this passage?

In this episode, we talk about: The blessings and burdens of looking into the future (strategic foresight) * Does contemplative practice and spirituality (mysticism) represent the future of faith? Why or why not? * The promise of permaculture in re-wilding our lives * A look into The Divine Dance: The Trinity and Your Transformation

Blaise Pascal wagered that it is better to believe in God as if God existed than not believe as if God didn’t. He argued that if God exists and we believe, then we are positioned by our beliefs to gain eternal happiness; whereas if we don’t believe, then we might have positioned ourselves for eternal torment in hell for not believing. The gains or losses are therefore infinite if God exists.

Decompress. Share. Feel seen. Be real. Stay as anonymous as you wish. Your parishioners, congregants, local colleagues, subordinates, and superiors needn’t know that you are cracking around the edges, losing hope, etc.

I would be interested to learn if you think people will return to church and prayer – in a time of chaos and crisis? Do you think people need something to “cling to?”

Why all the suffering? In conversations on belief in God, perhaps the greatest conundrum is the timeless problem of human suffering. Forever, this has been a weighty problem. Now and then, in religious circles, we hear that a minister, theologian, or biblical scholar has decided they are an atheist. When asked why, the answer usually has something to do with the problem of human suffering.

The above news items are summaries taken from the Religion News Service. Readers interested in pursuing a news item further should consult the RNS website by using the link listed at the end of the summary…

The Psalm introduces, but barely describes, the way of the wicked vs. the way of the righteous. The psalmist surely sings of non-believers and believers, but today I think the division is appropriate for paths that begin with and defend different interpretations of the same Word. Can they possibly end up at the same place?

Do you treat the world, the universe, reality as a partner with whom you’ve been in a long term relationship?

Julian of Norwich lived through the dreadful bubonic plague that killed close to 50% of Europeans. Being an anchoress, she ‘sheltered in place’ and developed a deep wisdom that she shared in her book, Showings, which was the first book in English by a woman. A theologian way ahead of her time, Julian develops a feminist understanding of God as mother at the heart of nature’s goodness. Fox shares her teachings in this powerful and timely and inspiring book.