Last week I heard a conversation among three pastors about theological diversity in the context of the two Lutheran denominations, ELCA and LCMS. The first pastor was troubled by his denomination’s increasing emphasis on defending theological purity at the expense of personal relationships. He was fond of the Anthony Thiselton quote, “Too often we attack …
Paul Evdokimov defined asceticism as a practice of self-discipline which heals the effects of the Fall and inaugurates a new relationship of the human person with the material creation: “[t]he word ‘asceticism’ comes from the Greek askesis and means exercise, effort, exploit. One can speak of athletic asceticism when it seeks to render the body …
Front Porch Republic posted on article on Jan 8 by Casey Spinks entitled, Petroleum and Me, that said what I’ve been trying to put into words for a long time. A meditation on escaping “the consumptive way of life” it’s a fairly long essay, but worth the read. Spinks notes, “Of course, petroleum is not …
Theophany (Jan 6) has become one of my favorite feasts of the church. It’sthe feast of water, the baptism of Jesus by John in the Jordan. TheBible text is quite mundane (if a heavenly voice can be consideredmundane). Jesus demands that John baptize him “to fulfill allrighteousness.” After the baptism a voice from heaven says, …
November and December are typically early winter in this part of the world, but aside from a few cold days, highs during these two months were in the 50s and 60s, turning these two months into late autumn rather than winter. That changed on Christmas Eve when temperatures dropped into the teens and have not …
Just Another Jim 