In response to Damon Linker’s essay Why do so many liberals despise Christianity?: First off, it’s ludicrous to posit that all, or even many, liberals hate Christianity, simply because there are so many liberal Christians. From what I can tell, for every annoying, conservative, evangelical Christian, there are two liberal, mainstream Christians who simply don’t […]
Irrational Animus
October 9th, 2014 · Comments Off on Irrational Animus · christianity, culture, media
Tags: faith·persecution·politics
Fellowship: sketching a calendar
September 20th, 2014 · Comments Off on Fellowship: sketching a calendar · fellowship, intentional communities, ritual
Continuing from the previous post, I am working further on plans for an “event” in a few months. Step one is gathering together the calendar information relevant to the cycles of Venus and Mercury. This is done and available here. Based on the current date and the upcoming events, I see two particularly good dates […]
Tags: faith·paganism·post-modernism·practice·sustainable living·theology
Fellowship: Mysteries of Venus and Hermes
January 4th, 2012 · Comments Off on Fellowship: Mysteries of Venus and Hermes · fellowship
The educational organization (the Fellowship) described in the previous post would necessarily be included within the context of an organization that modeled its principles. This outer, or sister, organization would be the Temple, providing a regular calendar of celebratory events, workshops, meditation settings, and frequent opportunities to commune with the spirits of community and place. […]
Tags: concepts·faith·post-modernism·venus
Fellowship: Fundamental Idea and Principles
November 1st, 2011 · Comments Off on Fellowship: Fundamental Idea and Principles · fellowship
I would like to start something big and ambitious, something that just might save the world. Before I go into detail about what I’m visualizing as the full fruition of the idea, I will first share the fundamental reasons for even considering going down this path. The Principles Between my personal explorations and the work […]
Tags: concepts·faith·post-modernism
Evolution and Faith
August 25th, 2011 · Comments Off on Evolution and Faith · christianity, culture, media
Normally, this is a topic I wouldn’t touch with a ten-foot pole. I also don’t get into arguments with people who claim the world is flat, doomed to end, or cursed by demons. It’s simply not worth the bother: folks don’t come to these conclusions through logic, so logic isn’t going to dislodge them. Evolution, […]
Tags: bible·concepts·creation mythos·critical review·faith·heresy·literalism·theology
Assertions
October 11th, 2008 · Comments Off on Assertions · christianity, culture, history
Following are the assertions I currently use regarding the origin of Christianity. These will likely each be expanded upon over time. 1. Evidence: There is no physical evidence for the existence of a single, rapidly developed mystery cult whose theology or structure singularly informed the post 4th-century Christian church. There is no art, architecture, ritual […]
Tags: anachronisms·constantine·early church·faith·roman empire·theology
True Believers
September 20th, 2008 · Comments Off on True Believers · christianity, culture, history
At first, I could never understand the True Believers. My first encounters with them was in Christian churches. My own, initially pedantic, attempts at Bible study repeatedly failed to illuminate the motivations or goals of True Believers. I could never understand just what was so exciting in the faith as I had ever seen it […]
Tags: atheism·constantine·faith·heresy·politics·post-modernism·roman empire·theology
Second and Third Derivations
July 31st, 2008 · Comments Off on Second and Third Derivations · christianity, history
Since discovery of PRF Brown’s site[1], I have burned a good many hours both reading and thinking. It’s clear that the “Eusebian Fiction Postulate”[2] has forced me to re-examine what I thought I understood about early church history. I have been relatively pleased, so far, to find that it seems to make more sense, given […]
Tags: bible·constantine·early church·eusebius·faith·greeks·judaism·paideia·paul·persecution·politics·roman empire
The Gnostic Calling of Jesus
July 12th, 2008 · Comments Off on The Gnostic Calling of Jesus · christianity, history
In reviewing some historical material, specifically the Prophets of the Old Testament, something new occurred to me. On one level, the Prophets of Ancient Israel and Judah were the real standard bearers for the Yah cult. Some of the kings seemed to like it, perhaps because they imagined that they could somehow politically reunite the […]
Tags: baptism·bible·faith·gnostic·jesus traditions
Dobson vs. Obama
June 24th, 2008 · Comments Off on Dobson vs. Obama · christianity, culture, media
Dobson and Minnery accused Obama of having minority, if not crackpot, opinions about the Bible. They indicated several times that they felt he was not qualified to interpret the Bible. They wailed and gnashed their teeth at the wonton destruction laid bare by Barack’s unauthorized lay-opining. Oh, will the nation ever repair from this grievous wound? Then they changed the subject and repeated the process.