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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…
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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…
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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…
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According to John: United by Love
This is a late announcement, but I will be doing my According to John study tonight. The Google+ Event page has details. The YouTube viewer is embedded below. I’ll be working from Chapter 20 of Herold Weiss’s book Meditations on According to John.
Scheduled Interview with Dr. C. Drew Smith
Drew has agreed to a retake of his interview. We had significant audio problems. The content was so good, however, that I was hoping to ask him some of those questions and get a clearer result. The interview will be on July 16, 2015, and will be via Google Hangout on Air. To get the…
Preaching from the Old Testament
No, I’m not going to do it, but I’m going to ask Dr. Bob Cornwall some questions about it. He’s currently preaching a series in his church from 1st & 2nd Samuel. Bob is one of my Energion authors (see his book list here), and is editor of the two book series we publish in…
Getting Literal, Eschatological, Apocalyptic, Even!
Well, last night my discussion of According to John covered a lot of other ground. In particular, I was looking at the eschatological use of “hour” and “now,” and I suggested that John has a fairly simple eschatology to go with his fairly simple soteriology. I’m not going to rehash all of this. The foundation…
According to John: We Must Work while It Is Day
Well, that and some additional news … Tonight (Thursday, June 25, 2015) via Google Hangout on Air I’ll be talking about chapter 19 of Dr. Herold Weiss’s book Meditations on According to John, title “We Must Work while It Is Day.” There’s a great deal of interesting material in this chapter, and I keep adding…
A Note on Sacraments and Sacramental Acts
I’ve generated a bit of surprise by my agreement with Dr. Herold Weiss (Meditations on According to John, chapter 18) in last Thursday’s video study from the gospel according to John (not to mention my Sunday School class), that the gospel is not attempting to institute or to teach sacraments. As a foundation to this…
How My Business – and My Marriage – Work
When Jody and I began our courtship we were treated to quite a lot of advice. One of the things we heard quite frequently was that we were too different to make a good couple. Just what those differences were, well, differed according to the observer. Underlying this type of advice was the assumption that…
From My Editing Work: The Cross and Resurrection
From Galations: A Participatory Study Guide, p. 9: Paul’s words gave the Galatians hope for transformation and they are hopeful to us, too. Jesus Christ frees us from bondage. The external world may not immediately change, but the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ frees us from guilt, fear, anxiety, and hopelessness. God acts in…
From My Editing Work: The Bible Comes Alive
From page xvii of Galatians: A Participatory Study Guide by Bruce Epperly — When we encounter scripture with heart, mind, and hands, the Bible comes alive and changes our lives and communities. We become the Galatians of our time, reveling in Christian freedom and living in the Spirit. We discover that God’s liberating Word, incarnate…
Doing Something
I’ve been trying to think of something useful to say about the nine people killed at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston and failing miserably. My wife beat me to it. What she said.
According to John: Clean by the Word
Again, I’m announcing this late, but you can get more information on the Google+ event page, and you can watch using the viewer below. Note that the Q&A app will be active and you can ask questions or make comments.
Would You Like a World that Was Perfectly Square?
Not sure? Tonight you can find out! On the Energion Hangout tonight I’ll be interviewing my friend Dr. Dolly Berthelot, author of PERFECTLY SQUARE: A Fantasy Fable for All Ages, and an all around great person. Let’s get the commercial part out of the way first. This book was first published in 1994, and its…
According to John: The Whole House Was Filled with the Fragrance
I’m late again. Check the Google+ event or use the viewer below. I really am going to catch up with my blogging, announce these things earlier, and post comments afterward. Really I am!
Hangout Tonight: Social Justice, Good or Bad?
I know this is late, but tonight I’ll be hosting the re-do of this hangout with Elgin Hushbeck, Jr. and Steve Kindle. You can get the details on the Google+ Event page, or view using the embedded viewer below.
According to John: Have I not Chosen You, the Twelve?
Tonight, internet permitting, I continue my study of the gospel according to John following Dr. Herold Weiss’s book Meditations on According to John. You can find more information at the Google+ Event Page, and view either there or via the embedded viewer below.
Discussion Tonight: Violence in the Bible
On the Energion Hangout tonight at 7:00 PM central time, we’ll be discussing the topic of violence in the Bible, with a particular emphasis on the Old Testament. But as participant Dr. Alden Thompson will doubtless remind us tonight, there’s violence in the New Testament as well. Alden Thompson is author of the very first…
Correction – According to John: Salvation is from the Jews
I posted this hangout incorrectly in my previous post. The Google+ link is now on my own page, and the correct YouTube viewer is below: I apologize for the confusion!
According to John: Salvation is from the Jews
Tonight I discuss the 15th chapter of Dr. Herold Weiss’s book Meditations on According to John, “Salvation is from the Jews.” You can find more details at the Google+ event, or watch using the embedded YouTube viewer below. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JR8ZRWFFVE
According to John: Remember My Words
Tonight’s study on According to John, based on Chapter 14 of Dr. Herold Weiss’s book Meditations on According to John, will have me going far afield from the gospel of John into a discussion of individual and community memory and the importance of a message transmitted by and shaped by a community. I will argue…
Who Are the Homeless?
I want to keep everyone thinking about social justice. In my view, if more people become more aware about what is going on and take action, whatever action they believe is best, we’ll be better off. Discussing this and related issues can only help. We have multiple Energion authors who have a variety of views…
Yet Again Hebrews Authorship
In September of 2013 I published a book titled The Authorship of Hebrews: The Case for Paul by David Alan Black. It has been interesting to read material on this topic since. I would note that while I believe Dave’s case is well presented, and was convinced by it to give more room to the…
Tomorrow Night: Pentecost and Your Ministry
You can find all the details on the Energion Publications news page.
The Bible and Social Justice
I’m going to shamelessly link to a post by Allan Bevere in order to publicize a hangout I’ll be hosting next month. Allan’s post is Once Again, The Civil Religion of the Religious Right AND the Religious Left, and I’m interested because I think Allan might well dispute both of my guests. We tried for…
According to John: It Is Not by Measure that God Gives the Spirit
I failed to post on this earlier, but in about 20 minutes I’ll be starting this study. Of course, there’s always the option to watch it later (or not!). YouTube viewer: