Featured Posts
-
What Is Biblical Literacy?
We complain about it, write about it, claim it’s important or even critical, design programs to create it, but what is it? I don’t mean that none of us know what we mean when we say “biblically literate” or “biblically illiterate,” but do we all mean the same thing? I don’t think we do, and…
-
Fences: Mending or Rending
The following is a sermon I presented at the Unitarian-Universalist Church of Pensacola on September 11,2005 and originally posted here on September 13, 2005. I’m reposting it because when I went to look for it, I found that the original post had somehow been truncated, and also because there is a one word at a…
-
Experiencing the (Baptism of the) Holy Spirit
This is a topic where I tend to make just about everyone uncomfortable. Long time readers may recall a previous discussion of speaking in tongues, and my own experience of it. Those who expect me to be intellectually oriented and rational are uncomfortable with mystical experiences, and many who are comfortable with the mystical experiences…
Social Notes (see all)
All Posts
Interpreting the Bible VII – Christians Contribute to Confusion
In reality I’m going to discuss framing the questions on the test passages I quoted last time, but in doing so, I need to highlight the way Christians contribute to a misunderstanding of one another, and by non-Christians who don’t understand how many of us use the Bible. There is, of course, that vocal group…
Leviticus 4:1-5:13
It is not entirely helpful to include these two sections under the same heading, but there is certainly a break between 5:13 and 5:14, so the division is understandable as Baker does it. We’re moving here to sacrifices that are required, first for inadvertent acts in chapter 4, and then for acts of omission that…
Missing from Lent 2B
One thing that always interests me in the lectionary is the passages we don’t read. Often these are signaled by commas indicating a number of verses left out. At other times it may be interesting portions before and after. I see three interesting cases in the lectionary for Lent 2B. The first is in Genesis…
Interpreting the Bible VI – Introducing some Test Passages
I’ve been delinquent on this series since January 24, but here goes again. My major point has been to show first that there is no obvious interpretation which one should take from the Bible, but rather that how one applies the Bible to one’s life, if at all, is based on an interpretive framework. It’s…
Christian Carnival CCLXVI Posted
… at C.Orthodoxy.
A Faith that is not Silent (Psalm 22:23-31, Lent 2B)
Psalm 22:23-31 is an interesting passage of praise. It’s easy to read these praise passages as kind of interchangeable–which Psalm shall we use to praise God today. But there are generally some special features of each passage. I believe that we are to focus on God when we worship and praise him. But at the…
Lent 2B – Preliminary Thoughts
I’m going to try to write something daily, even though I never intended this site to be blog-like. I link to my blogs from here which have shorter thoughts on various passages, but I rarely get into the themes and the relationships between the passages in the lectionary in my blogging. Over the last few…
Leviticus 3: Fellowship Offering
I’m moving through this fairly quickly, paced by the Cornerstone Biblical Commentary: Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. (See the last entry.) The pace of reading is an interesting issue. In order to study Leviticus with Milgrom’s Anchor Bible commentary, I spent time nearly daily for more than a year. Now I’m covering about a chapter a…
Leviticus 2 – Offering Food
There’s a bit of a change of gears in the second chapter of Leviticus, which contains only food sacrifices. (See Leviticus 1. Abbreviations at the end of the post.) These sacrifices are most commonly not offered because of some sin or impurity, but rather as sacrifices of thanksgiving or for some celebration. I think that…
Worship: Few Words, Boy Friends, and Girl Friends
David Ker is complaining about modern worship songs (since the 90s), and Peter Kirk has partially taken him to task about it, wondering about the air down in Mozambique and whether it causes David to rant. (Personally I suspect it’s looking at too many hippos, but in non-essentials charity, I say!) David continues with a…
Biblical Studies Carnival XXXIX Posted
… at Dr. Platypus. There’s always good stuff in this carnival, though I never get around to reading everything I intend to!
What He Said
Troy Britain has it absolutely right on freedom of speech, with the added bonus that I get to agree with Christopher Hitchens at the same time, which doesn’t happen nearly as often.
Moving Bright Kids Forward
The U. S. News Blog reports that schools in some states, including my home state of Florida, are making it possible for Middle School students to take advanced courses that might normally only be available in High School. My reaction to this is positive. Anything that improves education is a good thing. As I remember…
I Don’t Understand This
From CBS News: Eighty percent of speech watchers approve of President Obamas plans for dealing with the economic crisis. Before the speech, 63 percent approved. Fifty-one percent of speech watchers think the president’s economic plans will help them personally. Thirty-six thought so before the speech. I have mixed emotions about President Obama’s economic policies, and…
Christian Carnival CCLXV Posted
… at Chasing the Wind.
100 Enlightening Bible Study Blogs
According to ChristianColleges.com (link removed due to odd request by linked site), and since they include this blog, how could I argue? Well, besides including me, there are a number of others on the list that are on my blogroll, and several other sites that I use regularly in study. If I have time, I’ll…
Thoughts on Leviticus 1
I’ve now read through the first chapter of Leviticus using the Cornerstone Biblical Commentary on Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. I want to caution readers that I’m reflecting on and responding to the text of the commentary, and not just repeating it. If I don’t identify a thought as coming from Baker (David W. Baker, author…
Rewarding Incompetence
There was quite a stir recently over a rant by Rick Santelli of CNBC on the mortgage plan produced by the Obama administration. One of the claims made was that this plan was “rewarding incompetence.” Now without regard to context, I wouldn’t have a problem with that. Where I do have a problem is with…
Speaking the Truth is News
… when the Secretary of State does it. I thought many of these things were so obvious they hardly needed said, but apparently the obvious can be offensive. Perhaps a little truth will help diplomacy. Or not…
Starting Leviticus in the Tyndale Cornerstone Biblical Commentary
I recently received my copy of this good looking volume from Tyndale for review, and I have summarized its features here. I noted there that this is not a book I will read once and then write a short review. Rather, I’m going to blog through it, which also means that I will be blogging…
But Did It Help?
Read: Mark 9:2-9 Reading the gospel lesson for today–and I’m writing this on Sunday morning before going to teach Sunday School–I was struck by the parallel to a question I commonly get from Bible study classes. “Why can’t God just make it clearer, unmistakable? Why all this variety and human stuff?” I can imagine the…
Ten Beliefs of (some) Progressive Christians
John Shuck (Shuck and Jive) found this list here, and as I’m teaching a Sunday School class this morning precisely on who will be saved and how, I find it rather interesting. I would suggest that a group has to have something substantial that is both distinctive and held in common to be cohesive and…
Dan Wallace Reposts on Post Cartoon
You can find his further thoughts again at Reclaiming the Mind. If you read the first one, you should read this one as well.
Cornerstone Biblical Commentary on Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy: A First Look
This is a first look, before I have read or used the book extensively. I have simply looked through it, read the preface and some introductions, and laid out a plan for reading and study using the volume. I intend to “blog through” rather than simply read and review this volume. See the end of…