So forgiveness pre-requires understanding the mistakes of the past? here hear re this opposing this me-first, America-first, white-first, male-first approach>…
Weekly lessons in theology and public life • Since 2011
Tag: featured
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Lesson 15: Community Beyond Family
Read MORE: Lesson 15: Community Beyond FamilyIt is obvious one difference between Jesus’ community and the modern Church has to do with his band treating its members with the intimacy usually associated with the biological family. They shared their money and loved unconditionally as would be…
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Lesson 14: Love Enemies
Read MORE: Lesson 14: Love EnemiesMy intention was to draw up marks of a gospel community, intending to come up with characteristics of a community that followed Christ Jesus. It seemed simply common sense to begin with accounts of what Jesus himself identified as his…
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Lesson 13: Sharing Wealth
Read MORE: Lesson 13: Sharing WealthAfter reading the gospels, you realize the early church understood their relationship with the Risen Christ meant they could continue enjoying the community they shared with Jesus of Nazareth. Even a casual reading of the first chapters of Acts indicates…
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Lesson 12: Now
Read MORE: Lesson 12: NowI suspect most people think the role of the Church is to offer the means of grace made available by Christ Jesus. They associate this primarily with local gatherings where people worship but also with the larger, even international institutions…
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Lesson 11: The Gospel Community in History
Read MORE: Lesson 11: The Gospel Community in HistoryLast week, I suggested there is a subversive aspect to the Gospel. “Counterculture” might be a better word as it conveys promoting values that are counter to those of the establishment but not necessarily working actively for its overthrow. Even…
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Lesson 10: Community in the Gospel
Read MORE: Lesson 10: Community in the GospelLet’s get back to defining the Gospel in preparation for thinking about what a Gospel Community might be in our time and place. I started doing that by trying to identify the common features in the four gospels and Paul.…
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Lesson 9: More on Heaven
Read MORE: Lesson 9: More on HeavenI was surprised when last week’s diversion brought even more comments about heaven. After sharing them in conversation with friends, I‘ve decided this is a bigger issue than I thought. I was chided good-naturedly for not realizing there are plenty…
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Lesson 8: The Gospel
Read MORE: Lesson 8: The GospelThis one is late because I was caught off guard. I thought it would be easy to dash something off quickly, then I sent last week’s short essay to a list of people with a paragraph that included “Remember all…
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Lesson 7: The Gospel According to John
Read MORE: Lesson 7: The Gospel According to JohnRemember I am looking at the four gospels, one at a time. Doing that with John, you quickly see quite a difference from the other three. John offers intellectual reflection. If the others express Jesus’ oneness with God by proclaiming…
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Lesson 6: The Gospel According to Luke
Read MORE: Lesson 6: The Gospel According to LukeIf Matthew adds mercy to Mark’s power, Luke goes a step further and presents the Gospel as grace. Right from the beginning, the message is a gift to those regarded at the far end of God’s care. It is good…
Recent Comments
An extremely timely topic. Thanks, Fritz!
yes we need to forgive our leaders yet make sure they do the right thing – which they aren’t.