violence
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Casting the Second Stone
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6 min read
“Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” That’s how we remember the line. The passage from John actually says: “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Close, right? Still totally recognizable. So easy to turn into an aphorism, a saying. Jesus is trying…
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Rob Bell on Politics and Guns: “We don’t do despair”
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2 min read
In a series of episodes on The RobCast called simply “Politics and Guns,” Rob Bell deals with many of the issues surrounding the politics of guns in the United States. He begins with perhaps the most important starting place: politics. [bctt tweet=”‘Don’t pretend that nothing can be done.’” nofollow=”yes”] Through the arc of the series, Bell…
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The word terrorism should not be useful
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6 min read
It is descriptive. We can define terrorism as “The deliberate commission of an act of violence to create an emotional response through the suffering of the victims in the furtherance of a political or social agenda.” The textbook definition doesn’t say anything about Islam. [bctt tweet=”‘If we are to speak of terrorism as a useful…
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Why I Won’t Debate You
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5 min read
We have had a lovely time debating here on Facebook/Twitter/social media. And I have enjoyed this conversation immensely, what with all the reading and responding. I can honestly say that you have caused me to think more thoroughly about my own positions and to honestly consider yours as well. But now I’m going to have to…
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Optimistic
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2 min read
I have the most optimistic friends. Despite all evidence to the contrary, they believe that so much is possible! It’s inspiring, truly. I’m not sure how. Every time, they just keep believing: cutting taxes will make them wealthier moving will make them happier keeping out refugees will make them safer money can fix their problems…
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In the Midst of Chaos: GOD
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10 min read
We’re arguing about all these other things, while Jesus is literally saying that this road leads to his death. We’re all just following along with a “eh, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.” But now Jesus is saying that bridge is toast. It’ll be thrown down and we are woken from our…