BRIAN McLAREN is an author, speaker, activist and public theologian. A former college English teacher and pastor, he is a passionate advocate for “a new kind of Christianity” that is just, generous and working with people of all faiths for the common good. He is the author of more than 20 books.
Our favorite family event this week was a hike with Micah, Jen, Audrey and Noah to one of our nearby trails, Rockstall Nature Preserve. Here’s my favorite quotes…
Looking Reality in the face can be a bummer! What a drag it can be to come eye-ball to eye-ball with the way things really are, especially when you’ve bet your life on the way things really aren’t! And, you didn’t even know about the bet!
David P. Gushee is Distinguished University Professor of Christian Ethics and Director of the Center for Theology and Public Life at Mercer University. He is Past-President of both the American Academy of Religion and Society of Christian Ethics. He is the author and/or editor of 24 books, including Changing Our Mind.
The “insignificant” ones are becoming more and more difficult to unearth. They have long been buried amidst the accumulating rubble of civilization; and it has been going on for 10,000 years. We continue to bury them, each and every time that they stand in the way of civilization’s progress; whenever there is gold in them there hills; whenever trees are needed as a cash crop; whenever land can be stripped of beauty and health for the purposes of wealth.
Jesus—”Be NOT prepared.” A deep spiritual insight is presented here; the only way to be prepared for the ventures of our lives is to be completely unprepared, totally dependent, walking by faith–with just a few instructions on how to handle the inhospitable people we meet on the way.
Serpent Mound: The Largest Effigy Mound In the World. This season of mixed
schooling styles creates
spaces for parents and
grandparents to design our
own field trips on subjects
we believe are important
for our children to learn.
At this very moment, all I need to do to experience joy and sadness at the same time is to turn my attention towards an unfolding experience in the life of my extended family. There they are, waiting for me, smiles and tears, exuberance and grief, lots of pain and compathy, lots of gratitude and amazement; all swirling around and within me. Do you want to see what this looks like?
The myth: There is something fundamentally flawed about human beings. The bottom line is that there is something irreparably broken about you. There is something wrong with me too, that cannot be fixed. Humanity is damaged goods. It has been that way from the beginning…
By age twelve, my Boy Scout troop in Ogdensburg, New York was teaching me, reminding me, and teaching me again, to “Be Prepared.” Funny though, I can’t remember anything in particular that I learned about preparing back then. I don’t recall having a flashlight in my bedroom. I don’t remember any discussion about how to exit the second floor of our home if there was a fire.
