faith
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Not-So Secret Faith
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6 min read
How can we talk about always telling the truth and being honest, if we are also keeping secrets and refusing to share with one another? The love (without hypocrisy) Jesus longs for Ash Wednesday | Matthew 6:1-6,16-21 Secret Faith One of the historic battles around Ash Wednesday is based on this gospel passage. A church fight,…
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A more honest understanding of religion then is something involving tradition, community, and commitment. It expects more out of us and a commitment to be with one another. It is connection, not only to GOD and other people, but to the many people who came before. Religion and belief aren’t the same thing. Many of us…
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Personal Religion
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6 min read
The new American definition of religious freedom, and therefore religion itself, is total, personal faith. No one in their right mind would say that Kim Davis defines Christianity. They are, however, eager to say that she is practicing her faith. She is being a Christian. Yesterday I wrote about what we should mean when we talk about religion. Today I…
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Nicene Creed
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16 min read
The strangest moment in worship happens in the middle. For many of us it is sitting right in the center of our worship. And everything around it is far more worshipful and embodies the people at prayer. We open in prayer and we read scripture and we sing and pray a psalm and we proclaim…
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Trinity
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9 min read
The Trinity is the most important concept in the church. It is important in the way that things are important. It has this essential character, it is the source of great conflict, and it has some brilliance to it. And yet the doctrine of the Trinity is about as confusing, ill-defined, and poorly executed of…
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Gospel
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5 min read
I first really heard the gospel in school. I was in an undergrad Bible class on Paul; the kind of distributive requirement that seemed like a natural fit for me. English major; PK (priest’s kid). The professor was an Orthodox bishop, Makarios. And his thick Indian accent meant that we had to really listen. Listen…