Chaplainmike

Damaris Zehner: The Perspicuity of Scripture? Hmm.

The Perspicuity of Scripture? Hmm. By Damaris Zehner I teach English at a community college campus in rural Indiana. This semester I have a remedial reading and writing class, required for those students who did not score high enough to take freshman composition. At one extreme are the students who are competent but bad atContinue reading “Damaris Zehner: The Perspicuity of Scripture? Hmm.”

Peter Enns: Is there payoff for the church in reading the Bible critically?

Note from CM: In October, we reviewed Peter Enns’s excellent book, The Bible Tells Me So: Why Defending Scripture Has Made Us Unable to Read It. In that review I wrote, “Enns repeatedly encourages us to stop defending the Bible as something we want it to be so that we might read and benefit fromContinue reading “Peter Enns: Is there payoff for the church in reading the Bible critically?”

Advent with Christina Rossetti (1)

On Advent Sundays this year, we will encourage contemplation using some of the seasonal poems of Christina Rossetti. For years now, a favorite book in my library has been an old worn copy of The Poetical Works of Christina Georgina Rossetti, published in 1904. A brief note in fountain pen ink inside the cover saysContinue reading “Advent with Christina Rossetti (1)”

Saturday Ramblings — Nov. 29, 2014

Saturday Ramblings, November 29, 2014 Many of you spoke last week, pining for the Saturday Ramblings of old, full of opinion, controversy, and bite. Okay then. We’ll do our best. You will note that the Rambler wagon is back this week, gassed up and ready to take us over the river and through the woodsContinue reading “Saturday Ramblings — Nov. 29, 2014”

How I Became a… Fan of the Church Fathers

This week we continue my “How I Became a…” series. Today I wanted to tell the story of how I became a fan of the Church Fathers, more specifically, the Ante-Nicene Fathers. This is a collection of writings from the early leaders of the church, writing in the first three centuries and before (ante) theContinue reading “How I Became a… Fan of the Church Fathers”

Creation Is a Many-Splendored Thing (5): Delighting in Creation’s Goodness

O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. • Psalm 104: 24, NRSV • • • It has been awhile since we’ve returned to our series from William P. Brown’s fascinating book on the many ways the Bible teaches about creation: TheContinue reading “Creation Is a Many-Splendored Thing (5): Delighting in Creation’s Goodness”

Randy Thompson: Alone with Good Luck?

Alone with Good Luck? (A Thanksgiving Meditation) by Randy Thompson It’s a simple point, really, but one that needs to be made often, and that is, there’s a huge difference between giving thanks and having a good lucky feeling about life. Having a good lucky feeling about our achievements and about our possessions, which defineContinue reading “Randy Thompson: Alone with Good Luck?”

Biblical Marriage: BEYOND Traditional

In last Saturday’s Ramblings we had a story about Rick Warren turning the Vatican into a revival meeting in support of Biblical, traditional marriage. He did so with a scintillating 8-point sermon that followed the alphabet . . . . Well, he followed the alphabet until he got to the last point, and then itContinue reading “Biblical Marriage: BEYOND Traditional”

To Be Well-Spoken

Is not my word like fire, says the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces? • Jeremiah 23:29, NRSV • • • One of my personal goals in life is to be well-spoken. I am tired of “lingo.” I reject group-imposed boundaries around how to express what I’m thinking, what I’mContinue reading “To Be Well-Spoken”

Preparing for the New Church Year (4)

For our final post on preparing for the new Church Year, we will talk about some suggestions for further reading and practice. I’ve divided them into three categories. Some are my own suggestions, others have come from IM readers. Books that give an overview of the Church Year to help individuals, families, and churches graspContinue reading “Preparing for the New Church Year (4)”