So how will you spend Christmas afternoon? The one thing I don’t miss now that I’m no longer serving as a congregation’s pastor, is the way I used to spend Christmas afternoons.
Many a story, many a poem, many a carol has been written about the experience of Mary and Joseph finding “no room in the inn.” For them it was no mere sentimentality that they had to eat, sleep and give birth in a smelly stable-cave. And that happened in their family’s hometown.
Piety – bad word: places greater emphasis upon religious experiences than on Biblical theology; evokes images ranging from holy rollers to self-righteous Pharisees.
Hallelujah. The General Assembly Mission Council is going to meet its budget without cutting staff (see p. 7). Now that we’re not in a state of crisis, let’s talk turkey about our giving. Let’s think theologically about our financial management. Let’s handle our money like the Presbyterian and Reformed – P&R – believers we claim to be.
Telling the truth is a hard thing to do. The preliminary report of the Special Committee to Study Issues of Civil Union and Christian Marriage (S.C.) tells the truth with stunning, spectacular clarity.
Holy Spirit revival breaks out on campus. Students descend upon the chapel for worship services that last for days. Classes are suspended for a fortnight to make room for this spontaneous divine visitation.
So what about the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s Washington Office (WO)? What’s ahead for the program heralded by some as a bright light on Capitol Hill and excoriated by others as a black hole?
We now interrupt the Presbyterians’ celebration of John Calvin’s 500th birthday to listen into our Baptist neighbors’ celebration of their 400th birthday.
As a charter member of a brand new non-denominational church — fresh out of college with a B.A. in religion and philosophy — I held high hopes of becoming the church’s pastor.
We had just begun to unload the U-haul in the manse driveway — in anticipation of beginning our first ministerial call — when an older gentleman rolled up in his car.
Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. (John 12:24)
“There is a new wind blowing through the sometimes musty halls of American Christian churches, and it is sweeping away the hypocrisy, lack of social concern, and unnecessary cultural baggage accumulated by the mainstream churches through the years.
In years past, national news magazines have published holy week cover articles announcing the death of Jesus and the death of God. This year, God and Jesus survived, but Christian America died.
