reviews

Around the network

Thu, 10/23/2008 - 15:20 — G. Atkinson

 

Kelvin Wright wonders if Christian healing has an essentially "Western" philosophy behind it. The body and the self are separated. "My body is sick. A force from the outside needs to come and fix it."

Julie Clawson has reviewed the documentary Call+Response, which I need to see but am absolutely petrified at the prospect.

Milton Brasher-Cunningham, our chef, has some observations on work and being willing to say, "I don't know how to do that."

It is often hard for ministers to admit our own need. And it is hard to admit that the job wears on us. Terri Pilarski confesses these things. She treats herself to a massage regularly, and it seems to make a difference.

and...

On a lighter note, James McGrath has an embedded video which tells the entire story of the Bible in one minute.

...............Gordon Atkinson

Around the network

Thu, 10/16/2008 - 16:04 — G. Atkinson

There is some great stuff around the network this week:

Carol Howard Merritt has some thoughts on church endowments and the love-hate relationship we ministers have with them.

Julie Clawson, Bob Cornwall, Gordon Atkinson, Raffi Shahinian, and Thomas Turner all posted about Blog Action Day 2008. If any other CCbloggers posted about Blog Action Day, send us an email and I'll get them listed here.

Greg Garrett wonders if our current financial crisis isn't revealing a big golden calf in our culture.

Jan Richardson has prints available form her gorgeous 2007 Advent blog. I highly recommend you stopping by to visit it.


From The Advent Door by Jan Richardson

Kelvin Wright tells the story of a fascinating cultural exchange between branches of the Anglican Church in New Zealand.

Milton Brasher-Cunningham considers hiking, pilgrims, and what it means to know the landscape.

           Enjoy!

Around the network

Thu, 09/11/2008 - 14:28 — G. Atkinson

I've taken some enjoyable time over the last few days to read the latest offerings from our network of bloggers. There are 55 of us currently, and the amount of material we produce is almost more than one person can sort through. As usual, I found a number of things that both intrigue and inform me, things that challenge me and make me proud to be blogging with you.

Gordon (Real Live Preacher)

Larry Vaughan is one of my favorite bloggers. His writing is always beautiful and thoughtful. His latest piece is called "What do you do?" He's quite funny in the beginning (I love the line about Vlad the Impaler). Then Larry comes up with a new describer for his own vocation. One that really makes me think.

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Bishop Will Willimon has returned from a meeting of bishops holding conversations about the war in Iraq.

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Milton Brasher-Cunningham, our resident chef, tells a touching story about the night one of the chefs fed the kitchen staff. It's called "He gave us wings."

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Minister, guitarist, and rock aficionado James Lumsden writes about genre-bending music, Portishead, the Clash, Chuck Berry, Bob Dylan, and Psalm 85. All in one essay.

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Pastor Bob Cornwall asks conservative Christians who are supporting Sarah Palin if they plan to offer similar opportunities to women in their own churches.

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Scot McKnight engages in a little shop talk with fellow ministers. Should you use notes from the pulpit or not? What are the pros and cons?

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Professor Drew Smith asks if Jesus was really serious when he called us to love our enemies. And if so, what does that mean for us? Follow-up piece is here.

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Julie Clawson, layperson (though she might dispute the validity of that term) and new mother, writes about what it means to claim fellowship with the movement some call Emergent or Emerging Christianity.

Around the network

Thu, 07/31/2008 - 21:01 — G. Atkinson

 

I've found some interesting stuff in our blog network over the past few days. Check it out.

Scot McKnight at Jesus Creed notes that Codex Sinaiticus is now online. Greek geeks will be thrilled. It's got a nice interface too.

Allan Bevere, a new CCblogger, writes about blogging etiquette and anonymous comments.

Gen-X Rising has some interesting questions to ask about mission trips. Are they worth the trouble? Are they the best use of resources? It's the kind of question people wonder but don't want to ask.

Keith Herron's Birdie is back. This time she wonders if her pastor has ever heard the voice of God. (And haven't we all had parishioners like that?)

Christian Century editor David Heim has an interesting and inverted way of thinking about the problem of evil. He calls it "The problem of the nonproblem of suffering."

Jonathan Carroll asks a question that many ministers struggle with. Should we perform weddings for people who really just want to be married and don't care that much for the religious part of the ceremony?

 

Around the network

Tue, 07/15/2008 - 10:58 — G. Atkinson

A quick run through our network of blogs today left me enjoying a number of gems.

Milton Brasher-Cunningham considers communion, cupcakes, and a phrase he heard on the news - "unintentional tradition."

Michael Ruffin had a piece published at Ethics Daily about his struggles with Religious Liberty Sunday.

Keith Herron writes about forwarded emails, a new form of terrorism.

Adam Copeland finishes a series on lessons learned in Scotland.

Peter McNmara provides an in-depth analysis of the ELCA's draft statement on human sexuality. Here is his first piece. And here is his latest.

rlp