FollowIn case you didn’t know, it’s time for the United Methodist Church’s General Conference 2016. And, just when I thought I’d seen it all, the followers of one of history’s most anal rententive religious figures, John Wesley (they don’t call it “Methodism” for nothing, y’all), have surprised me. It seems that the organizers of the conference had invited Rev. …
Tag Archives: church
ADHD and Church
Those of us who have ADHD often hear some version of “In my day we didn’t have ADHD. We had parents who weren’t afraid to discipline, and kids who were sent outside to play until the lights came on.” Yes, because ADHD isn’t an actual disorder and can be dealt with by letting your kids play …
Americans Becoming Less Religious
Recently, a friend posted a link to a Pew Research Center report titled “U.S. Public Becoming Less Religious” and asked “How do we reach people where they are at, without driving them away?” Not long before that, I heard a commercial for a church in Chapel Hill NC advertising an event to pack 20,000 meals for Stop …
NC’s Own Westboro Baptist Church?
Yesterday, after a great worship service and breakfast with my friends, I walked out of church to this: Yes, beloved, these people are protesting my church. Why? I’m not really sure; I wanted to ask, but they wouldn’t stop preaching at me long enough …
Church Discipline?
If there’s an upside to my growing up in a cult-ey environment, it’s that I was extremely turned off to organized religion through the 80’s, 90’s and part of the 00’s and missed out on the boom of fundamentalism/evangelicalism that occurred during that period. As a result, I often find myself scratching my head and wondering “What …
Pentecost Is Upon Us
Well, beloved, yet another Pentecost Sunday is upon us. For those of you poor, benighted, non-mainline souls who don’t know what I’m talking about, Pentecost is the Greek name for the Jewish Feast of Weeks which celebrates the giving of the Law on Mount Sinai. It is significant in the Christian world because it commemorates …
Celebrating Jesus?
This past Saturday, the Western Carroll County Ministerial Association in Eureka Springs, Arkansas put on its 3rd annual “Celebrate Jesus” parade. Lest you think I do nothing but sit around surfing the internet for interesting stuff to write about (I do, but I don’t want you think that), this one actually fell into my lap. …
Angels Without Wings
On occasion, the staff at College Park Baptist Church will ask members for stories about our lives. At the beginning of Advent, they did it again, this time asking stories about times we might have been visited by angels. Being that CPBC is a rather progressive church, these stories are about people who have come …
Spirit Or Letter?
Some days, finding a topic for a blog post is not easy. On those days, I spend as much time looking for a something to write about as much as I do actually writing about it. Other days, subject matter will just fall into my lap. Today is of those days; the good kind, I mean. This morning, …
I Hate That F**cking List
So, Listly’s “Christian Blogs You Should Be Reading” 2014 edition is out and, happily, the top 25 reads like a who’s who of progressive/emergent Christian bloggers. Rachel Held Evans is holding down the top spot, followed by Benjamin Corey’s Formerly Fundie, Nadia Bolz-Weber, Jamie, The Very Worst Missionary and, this one makes me particularly happy, …