Math Atheism

4 things

1) As long as we think that 'success' is the same as 'popularity', we will fail.
2) As soon as we forget the cross and what it means, we will make Jesus (and Christianity, for that matter) a means to our own ends.
3) We will think that 'being in positions of influence' will be the only way for real change when we forget who Jesus was.
4) Most of us read the Bible thinly and without a proper understanding of the context from which Jesus comes from and into which Jesus speaks. Therefore we fail to see the counter-cultural (read: subversive) nature of the Gospel, of Jesus, and of Paul (and the whole Bible, really). If this is the case, we will always be 'chaplains to power' and affirm the status quo.

To be an artist in world of dirt...

Thanks to AYT for this post:

Gandhi, Graffiti, and Christian Ethics

Rugged Individualism

"Every man for himself" is a doctrine for a feeding frenzy or for a panic in a burning nightclub, appropriate for sharks or hogs or perhaps a cascade of lemmings. A society wishing to endure must speak the language of caretaking, faith-keeping, kindness, neighborliness, and peace. That language is another precious resource that cannot be "privatized."

A quote from "Rugged Individualism," in The Way of Ignorance, by Wendell Berry.

John Yates & The Falls Church in the NY Times

Episcopalians Reach Point of Revolt
by Laurie Goodstein

"For about 30 years, the Episcopal Church has been one big unhappy family. Under one roof there were female bishops and male bishops who would not ordain women. There were parishes that celebrated gay weddings and parishes that denounced them; theologians sure that Jesus was the only route to salvation, and theologians who disagreed.

Now, after years of threats, the family is breaking up.

As many as eight conservative Episcopal churches in Virginia are expected to announce today that their parishioners have voted to cut their ties with the Episcopal Church. Two are large, historic congregations that minister to the Washington elite and occupy real estate worth a combined $27 million, which could result in a legal battle over who keeps the property.

In a twist, these wealthy American congregations are essentially putting themselves up for adoption by Anglican archbishops in poorer dioceses in Africa, Asia and Latin America who share conservative theological views about homosexuality and the interpretation of Scripture with the breakaway Americans."

Read the rest of the article here.

2 in a row!

What are the chances...

You scored as Moltmannian Eschatology. Jürgen Moltmann is one of the key eschatological thinkers of the 20th Century. Eschatology is not only about heaven and hell, but God's plan to make all things new. This should spur us on to political and social action in the present.

What's your eschatology?
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Which Theologian Are You?

Ironically, I started reading Moltmann about 2 weeks ago for some unknown reason. I don't know much about him at all.

You scored as Jürgen Moltmann. The problem of evil is central to your thought, and only a crucified God can show that God is not indifferent to human suffering. Christian discipleship means identifying with suffering but also anticipating the new creation of all things that God will bring about. Jürgen Moltmann 73% John Calvin 53% Karl Barth 47% Martin Luther 40% Friedrich Schleiermacher 40% Paul Tillich 40% Charles Finney 33% Anselm 33% Augustine 27% Jonathan Edwards 7% Which theologian are you? created with QuizFarm.com

Does Hope Cheat Man of the Happiness of the Present?

We do not rest satisfied with the present. We anticipate the future as too slow in coming, as if in order to hasten its course; or we recall the past, to stop its too rapid flight. So imprudent are we that we wander in times which are not ours, and do not think of the only one which belongs to us; and so idle are we that we dream of those times which are no more, and thoughtlessly overlook that which alone exists....We scarcely ever think of the present; and if we think of it, it is only to take light from it to arrange the future. The present is never our end. The past and the present are our means; the future alone is our end. So we never live, but we hope to live; and, as we are always preparing to be happy, it is inevitable we should never be so.

--Blaise Pascal, Pensées, No. 172 as quoted in Jürgen Moltmann, Theology of Hope

New Member of the Family!

Welcome the newest member of the Flynn family: Ellie. That is one cute dog.

Donny--were you listening to the Dude's story?

Me (with chocolate syrup spilled on my shirt), Donny, Meghan, and Zach.

Donny was a good bowler, and a good man. He was one of us. He was a man who loved the outdoors... and bowling, and as a surfer he explored the beaches of Southern California, from La Jolla to Leo Carrillo and... up to... Pismo. He resigned, like so many young men of his generation, he resigned before his time. In your wisdom, Lord, you took him, as you took so many bright flowering young men at Khe Sanh, at Langdok, at Hill 364. These young men gave their lives. And so would Donny. Donny, who loved bowling. And so, Donald Rumsfeld, in accordance with what we think your retiring wishes might well have been, we commit your final mortal remains to the bosom of the Pacific Ocean, which you loved so well. Good night, sweet prince.