Tag Archives: religion

The Muslim Jesus

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Muslim Jesus2Only in Canada eh? Last week, I enjoyed a quintessential Canadian vacation at a rented cottage in Muskoka. Our neighbours in the cottage next-door were delightful companions around the campfire of an evening. It didn’t talk long for us to learn that our neighbours came to Canada from Afghanistan as refugees during the Soviet invasion. When our conversation moved into the realm of religion, I was dismayed that some of the Christians around our campfire were surprised by one of our new friend’s who explained that, “A person cannot be a Muslim unless they believe in Jesus!” 

In a country like Canada, were we have worked together to achieve a level of multiculturalism that most Canadians take pride in, it is disappointing to be reminded how little Christians seem to know of Islam, particularly when it comes to the role Jesus plays in the Islamic faith. I am grateful to our new Canadian-Afghani friends for their patience as they gently explained to my companions their love for the prophet we revere in common. 

I have blogged before on the subject of Jesus in the Qur’an. I also commend this British documentary: The Muslim Jesus. The more we learn about one another, the better able we are to love our neighbours.

The Bible, Women and Violence: Amy-Jill Levine

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violence against womenAs always Dr. Amy-Jill Levine’s consummate scholarship encourages and enables her listeners to seriously and holistically engage biblical texts. Violence against women in all its forms, whether they be physical, sexual, emotional, economical, or psychological types of violence, is a global, national, denominational and domestic problem that has all too often been enabled by interpretations of the bible that fail to take the bible seriously or engage its texts adequately. Please watch, listen, digest, and go forth and do likewise. 

Escaping Our Survival Mentality: John Shelby Spong

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jack spong

Bishop Spong interviewed in his home on August 17, 2013

Jack speaks about his new book The Fourth Gospel: Tales of a Jewish Mystic Listen to the extended interview here

Starry, Starry, Darkness: sermon for Pentecost 12C

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van-gogh-vincent-starry-night-79005662Sermon August 11, 2013

Readings:  Genesis 15:1-6, Hebrews 11:1-16, Luke 12:32-40

Listen to the sermon

I’m a Doubter Not a Believer – Preparing to Preach on FAITH

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Preaching on Luke 12:32-40 and Hebrews 11:1-16

doubters welcome“Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Abba’s good pleasure to give you the kin-dom” So begins the gospel reading for this coming Sunday. But I am afraid and my fear is not about the the thief who this text insists may break into my house or that the Human One is coming at some unexpected hour. No my fear is wrapped up in my desire to pay little or no attention to the second reading prescribed for this Sunday from the letter to the Hebrews:

“Faith is the reality of all that is hoped for; faith is the proof of all that is unseen. Because of faith, our ancestors were approved b God. By faith, we understand the world was created by the word from God, and that what is visible came into being through the invisible…..”

Do I have faith? Do any of us have faith? For that matter: What is faith? According to Hebrews faith “is the reality of all that is hoped for; faith is the proof of all that is unseen.” Faith is the stuff that makes it possible for us to hear Jesus words: “Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Abba’s good pleasure to give you the kin-dom.”  Faith is the stuff that makes it possible for us to believe. So I wonder: Do I have faith? Do I have the faith that makes it possible for me to believe? Do you? Do any of us?

I write this as one who finds it difficult and sometimes even impossible to believe much of anything. I am a doubter by nature. Doubting is part of who I am. I know that there are those who are more inclined to believe and I am envious of believers. I envy those who are sure and are able to find comfort in the Scriptures. For a very long time I was ashamed of my inability to believe. I often sat in church and wondered if I might just be a hypocrite. I wondered if someone who had as many doubts as I have belongs in the church. And so, I tried to conquer my doubts by studying the Scriptures. Continue reading →

At the Heart of Happiness Lies Compassion for Others: Karen Armstrong

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Karen ArmstrongKaren Armstrong, a provocative original thinker whose many books on religion have educated a generation of modern seekers. Armstrong has a unique perspective. She’s a former  nun who moved on to academia to study comparative religion and has become an advocate for the Golden Rule. Her books on Islam, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity and the History of God are a wealth of information and have become must reads for those who study or practice religion. He autobiographical works are well worth reading: The Spiral Staircase is particularly compelling!

Reordered at Conway Hall by Action For Happiness on April 18, 2013

PAINTING the STARS: Science, Religion and an Evolving Faith

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LIVING THE QUESTIONS: PAINTING the STARS:
SCIENCE, RELIGION AND AN EVOLVING FAITH

Begins at Holy Cross in Newmarket on Sunday September 29 at 9:30am

painting the stars flyer

“Why Christianity as We know It is Dying” Bishop John Shelby Spong

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Jack SpongHere’s Jack’s first lecture from the “Future of the Progressive Church” conference held on August 3, 2013 at the Community Christian Church in Springfield, MO. (the sound has now been corrected, thanks to Dr. Roger Ray and the good folks of his congregation for sharing this amazing conference!). You can watch Jack’s second lecture here. As always, Jack’s charming wit coupled with his keen insight is able to move us to places we might never have dreamed of going!!! Well worth watching!!! 

What a New Christianity for a New World will Contain: John Shelby Spong

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Jack SpongThis past weekend, The Emerging Church of Springfield, MO. hosted a conference on the Future of Progressive Christianity at which Bishop John Shelby Spong spoke, as only Jack can, on the history of Christianity’s “wrongful diagnosis of what it means to be human” and pointed to a new vision for Christianity’s future. Many thanks to Dr. Roger Ray and the good people of the Community Christian Church for organizing and sharing this conference!!!

Doubt: Preparing to Preach on Hebrews 11:1-16

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The Place Where We Are RightLooking over the readings for this coming Sunday and the subject of faith jumps out from the Hebrews reading (Hebrews 11:1-16) which begs questions about doubt.  I recently read and blogged about Richard Holloway’s “Faith and Doubt” and Lesley Hazleton’s insistence that “Doubt is Essential to Faith” and both posts provide an interesting jumping off point. This little video of Richard Holloway on “Why doubt is a good thing” drives my thoughts toward preaching on doubt as the foundation of faith??? 

Hosea: the Coronation Street of Ancient Israel

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A Sermon on the Book of the Prophet Hosea

Coronation StI am indebted to Bishop John Shelby Spong for his insights into the Book of the Prophet Hosea. Without Jack’s thoughtful portrayal of Gomer, I would not have recognized her as the Leanne Battersby of her time. Also, thanks to Marcus Borg for his definition of the verb “believe”!

Listen to the sermon:

For those unfamiliar with Corrie, here’s a sample of the first 50 years:

Finding God in the Depths of Silence: Richard Rohr

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rohrSpeaking in May of 2013 at the Festival of Faiths, Richard Rohr shares his perspective on silences as the only thing broad and deep enough ot hold all of the contradictions and paradoxes of Full Reality and our own reality, too. 99.9% of the known universe is silent,, and it is in this space that the force fields of life and compassion dwell and expand. Rohr insists that we too can live in this silent expanse!

Richard Rohr is a Franciscan teacher, author and founder of the Center for Action and Contemplation. 

Questions that Arise from Being Human – Richard Holloway

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human consciousnessRegular visitors to this blog will not be surprised to read that Richard Holloway has become one of my favourite theologians. I have blogged about his writings several times. In this video Holloway moves beyond spiritual autobiography and into the realm of evolutionary theology to explore the big questions about what it means to be human. 

Transfeminist Entaglements: Catherine Keller

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OnThe MysteryToday the church celebrates the feast day of Martha and Mary. Two disciples whom Jesus  loved, who went on to become Apostles. On this day, I am mindful of the plight of women in the church. I present this lecture by Catherine Keller, a brilliant theologian, as my way of celebrating the role of women in theology. Keller’s work in process theology has enlightened my own theology in ways that continue to challenge my own way of approaching Mystery and I highly recommend “On the Mystery: Discerning Divinity in Process. 

On the Drew Theological School’s website Catherine Keller is described as: “Professor of Constructive Theology at the Theological School of Drew University. In her teaching, lecturing and writing, she develops the relational potential of a theology of becoming. Her books reconfigure ancient symbols of divinity for the sake of a planetary conviviality—a life together, across vast webs of difference. Thriving in the interplay of ecological and gender politics, of process cosmology, poststructuralist philosophy and religious pluralism, her work is both deconstructive and constructive in strategy. She is currently finishing Cloud of the Impossible: Theological Entanglements, which explores the relation of mystical unknowing, material indeterminacy and ontological interdependence.”

Prayer: the Perspective of a Process Theologian – Catherine Keller

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quantum thoughtToday, preachers all over the world (myself included) will be tackling what the writer of the gospel of Luke had to say about prayer in Luke 11:1-13. It is a daunting task for any preacher, let alone for those of us who have given up images of the Divine that conjure up notions of a super-hero in the sky who interferes in our lives. Catherine Keller is a process theologian who teaches Constructive Theology at  Drew University (New Jersey). Her comments about prayer as a kind of allurement are enlightening. 

Preparing to Preach on Prayer: 21st Century Questions – There’s an App for that!

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prayer appAs I continue to work on this Sunday’s sermon, (see earlier posts here … here …and here), Jesus’ teaching on prayer in the gospel reading Luke 11:1-13 leaves me wondering what an enlightened 21st humanoid is supposed to do with Jesus 1st century ideas???

Cast you minds back to another time and place and tell what the numbers 33, 45, and 78 have in common??? Vinyl Records anyone? When I was a kid music came from a portable RCA record player. The sound quality wasn’t all that great, but somehow we didn’t seem to care. Later when I was a teenager, my parents got a fancy state of the art Phillips stereo cabinet and suddenly sound seemed to be coming from booth ends of the room. I never did understand how those old record players managed to pick up sound from the grooves in the vinyl to45 produce music. I still remember my father’s first reel-to-reel tape recorder, and then there were the eight-tracks, followed by cassettes, followed by CD’s.  I can remember these things, but I have no idea how they made music. It doesn’t matter how many times people try to explain it to me, I still think it’s a miracle that such beautiful sounds can come out of machines.

These days I don’t use records, tapes or CDs to listen to music. My music is stored in “the cloud” and when I want to hear I song I make sweeping motions on my iphone screen and presto, I can make music fill the room. I don’t know what the cloud is. I asked the personal assistant on my iPhone, her name is Siri and she told me she was sorry but she couldn’t tell me because Steve told her not to tell anyone. Some people think the cloud is located in a 225-acre facility that Apple built in North Carolina. Continue reading →

Preparing to Preach on Prayer: To Whom Shall We Go?

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PanentheismAs I continue to work on this Sunday’s sermon, (see earlier posts here and here) Jesus’ teaching on prayer in the gospel text Luke 11:1-13 begs the question: “To Whom Shall We Go?” Liberated from perceptions that reduce images of God to those of a cosmic superhero who abides up or out there ready to manipulate events here in the world at the request of those who pray, the activity of prayer takes on a whole new meaning and shape. Our images of who, where and what God is will direct our prayers in ways that impact our expectations of prayer. Who do we pray to and what we expect of the One who hears our prayers will shape how and why we pray.

Before we can even begin to understand what so much of the Christian tradition means when it talks about praying to God, we need to take a step back and look at what we mean when we say the word “god.” Throughout the Jewish and Christian traditions you can trace two very distinct ways of understanding and talking about God. Continue reading →

Jesus’ Teaching on Prayer

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teach us to prayThis Sunday’s gospel text (Luke11:1-13) will no doubt send preachers scurrying to review what we might say with regard to prayer. In this splendid little video Laurence Freeman reviews Jesus’ teaching and points to prayer as Jesus’ focus. Well worth watching before you begin to write or indeed listen to Sunday’s sermon.

Dom Laurence Freeman OSB is a monk of the Olivetan Benedictine Congregation of Monte Oliveto Maggiore and Director of The World Community for Christian Meditation. Fr Laurence was born in England in 1951 where he was educated by the Benedictines and studied English Literature at Oxford University.

Before entering monastic life he had experience with the United Nations, banking and journalism. In the monastery his spiritual teacher was John Main with whom he studied and whom he helped in the establishment of the first Christian Meditation Centre in London.

Morning Prayer Liturgy: John Philip Newell

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Chanting for PeaceMorning Prayer Liturgy from Casa del Sol, Ghost Ranch. Led by John Philip Newell, Ali Newell, David E. Poole, Winona Poole. Chants from “Chanting For Peace, Praying with the Earth”

Preparing to Preach on Prayer: Shush!

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BATH QOLIn this coming Sunday’s gospel reading Luke 11:1-13, Jesus’ disciples ask him to teach them to pray. As a pastor I have been asked to teach people to pray. Each time I have been asked to teach someone to pray I have cringed inside because I do not feel up to the task. For some reason the old hymn “I Come to the Garden Alone” keeps playing in my mind. I keep telling it to, “Shush!” so that I might hear the “bath qol” but the daughter of a sound eludes me. Below is a portion of a sermon I preached a couple of years ago on the subject of prayer. If nothing else, it reminds me to shush!

I began this sermon by asking the congregation to sing from memory the old hymn: I Come to the Garden Along. Feel free to sing it to yourself!

I think my earliest memory of prayer is a distant memory I have of skipping along the sidewalk chanting a familiar refrain: “Don’t step on a crack or you’ll break your mother’s back.” Most of us can remember a moment from our childhood when a superstition was instilled in us that caused us to perform some ritual in order to placate the unseen power that could determine our fate. Whether it was avoiding cracks, or walking under ladders or black cats, we were trained from an early age to believe that there were powers out there that could determine our future.   Continue reading →