Happy Labor Day. I don’t often follow the calendar in my posts, not even the lectionary or liturgical calendar, yet this Labor Day I feel heavy-hearted for the disaster my country’s economic policies have been for my entire adult life. Maybe I’m cynical of all the election season speeches that praise workers when the country… Continue reading For the Laborer Deserves to Be Paid
We All Interpret the Bible from Our Own Power Structures
A phrase I’ve picked up and used consistently over the last couple years is one I learned from Jared Byas and Pete Enns: all theology has an adjective. We so often describe various theological points of view with adjectives such as liberation theology, feminist theology, queer theology and those adjectives can be a helpful entry… Continue reading We All Interpret the Bible from Our Own Power Structures
How God Says, “No.”
One of the things I say somewhat frequently that annoys my progressive friends (I am a bit of an equal-opportunity theological irritant) is my insistence that there are things to which God must offer a resounding, “no.” They only want to speak of a God of possibilities. I don’t disagree that our God is a… Continue reading How God Says, “No.”
Forgiveness as Liberation Not Transaction
Because I was raised in a conservative faith, with an exceptionally peculiar soteriology as well, I grew up thinking about forgiveness as a transaction. I imagine this is common in many fundangelical circles. In the transactional model, forgiveness is something I do, for you. It’s a gift I give to you. And in so doing,… Continue reading Forgiveness as Liberation Not Transaction
The Jesus Way
I don’t think Christianity is about getting into Heaven or believing the right truth claims. I think it’s a practice to worship our Lord so that we become transformed into Christ’s image which is God’s intention for us from the beginning. If you agree with that, you can stop reading, because this blog post is… Continue reading The Jesus Way
What is Neoorthodoxy?
I sometimes describe myself as “neoorthodox,” although I also describe myself as someone who constantly changes the way I describe myself. But when I mention this, friends will often ask me to define what that means. Orthodox has some connotations that can make it sound like I’m uncompromising on dogma, or maybe that I am… Continue reading What is Neoorthodoxy?
Are Reincarnation and Resurrection Compatible?
In my late twenties, I had a coworker whose six-year-old son followed me around everywhere. He’d come to visit and just generally hang out with me any chance he got. He’d ask his mom about me all the time, “will Matt be there,” or “is Matt coming to the party?” She asked him one time… Continue reading Are Reincarnation and Resurrection Compatible?
Christians Support Everyone’s Dignity
We interrupt your scheduled broadcast to bring you an important announcement: Christians don’t get to prioritize human dignity based on what side of an imaginary line they were born on. I write this blog to explore my own questions of faith so it bothers me when prominent people force me to take time out to… Continue reading Christians Support Everyone’s Dignity
What of the Empty Tomb?
The empty tomb has never been especially important or interesting to me. I know that sounds quite heretical as the empty tomb has played such an enormous role in mainstream American evangelical apologetics. How can I, as someone who affirms the resurrection of Jesus, be ambivalent about the empty tomb? The empty tomb to me… Continue reading What of the Empty Tomb?
Think Before You Prompt
What if you woke up to find your work had been cloned by robots? I mean, as a blogger, I’ve just come to accept that LLMs are reading the entire internet including these articles to feed their machines without paying me. I’m not one of those coin-operated bloggers, all my stuff is here for the… Continue reading Think Before You Prompt