Faith Forward

Illustrating Faith: A Q&A with Artist Paul Soupiset

Deborah Arca — Thu, 16 May 2013 21:52:13 +0000

Yesterday I interviewed Patheos blogger and acquisitions editor Tony Jones about the new adult faith formation video resource called animate.Faith from Sparkhouse. One of the sparkling gems of animate is the captivating artwork that runs throughout the series, from the video sessions to the facilitator guide, to the elaborately illustrated personal journals. Behind the ornate graphics of animate is San [...]

animate.Faith — Sparking Fresh Christian Conversation

Deborah Arca — Wed, 15 May 2013 21:51:51 +0000

The new adult course animate.Faith is a welcome breath of fresh resource air for Christian pastors, teachers and small group leaders in the contemporary church. Featuring seven of the leading voices of Christianity today (Brian McLaren, Shane Hipps, Nadia Bolz-Weber and Bruce Reyes-Chow to name a few), animate.Faith presents seven conversation “kick-starter” videos, animated with compelling cartoon-like [...]

Musing on God

Jim Burklo — Tue, 14 May 2013 17:33:23 +0000

God is all without being any thing while being the all in every thing. God is the perhaps at the edge of every moment of choosing. God does nothing but nothing does without God. God is the freedom to do and the urge to act. God does not exist because God is existence. God is [...]

Substitutionary Sniffles

Jim Burklo — Thu, 09 May 2013 15:56:26 +0000

Before Jesus died for my sins, Did he catch cold for them, too? Did he sniffle for my pettiness? Did he cough for my pride? Did he sneeze for my anger? When Jesus stubbed his toe, Who was forgiven, and for what? When he scraped his knee, Whose load of guilt was lifted? When he [...]

“Burn it all down” isn’t Christian: A Response to Mark Driscoll

Patheos Admin — Tue, 07 May 2013 21:06:59 +0000

By the Rev. Rich Cizik, President of the New Evangelical Partnership and national spokesperson for the Good Steward Campaign Who hasn’t heard the charge that “God is going to burn it all down, so let’s all drive an SUV”? If you haven’t heard it, you’re not paying attention. Indeed, a statement along those lines is attributed just a few [...]

Pluralism Sunday 2013

Jim Burklo — Wed, 01 May 2013 18:42:04 +0000

We can grow closer to God and deeper in compassion – and we can understand our own traditions better – through more intimate awareness and experience of the world’s religions. Pluralism Sunday, May 5, is a time when churches around the world celebrate elements of other world faiths in sermons, litanies, and music. Many feature [...]

Bombshells to Church Bells

Jim Burklo — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 17:11:11 +0000

A few years ago, I discovered an unusual use for a pressure cooker. I took a thin copper pipe, flared one end slightly, curved the pipe into a “U” shape, and fitted it over the top vent of a pressure cooker. I put water in the cooker and brought it to a boil, and used [...]

Aiming High

Jim Burklo — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 23:03:01 +0000

Last week I attended a conference at Esalen Institute near Big Sur. It’s hosted by Esalen’s Center for Theory and Research. It’s focused on peacemaking among the Abrahamic faiths. After the first day of the meeting, I got into a rich conversation with Esalen’s co-founder, Michael Murphy, two rabbis, and a medical doctor with Talmudic [...]

“Pressure Pots” – A Poetic Response to Boston and West, Texas

Roger Wolsey — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 16:20:26 +0000

“doo doo doo do-do do. do. doo doo doo do-do do. do.” david and freddie knew. they knew about the pressure that comes down on me and you and through their song, we were blessed with a pop witness to the terror of knowing what this world’s all about. it honored the good friends who [...]

A Bible Study for Heretics: A Q&A with Christian Piatt

Deborah Arca — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 17:02:55 +0000

This spring, Patheos launched its first “premium content” blog – a weekly bible study from popular progressive Christian author Christian Piatt. The new subscription blog, A Heretic’s Guide to the Bible, offers a weekly guided tour through the Bible following the Church’s lectionary schedule, and is aimed at bible “pros” (preachers, teachers) as well as [...]