Even the Devils Believe

The study of Paul Tillich’s Systematic Theology that Jeff and I are participating in is continuing with first section on reason and revelation this week, and I am finding it very thought-provoking, especially in regard to the relationship between faith and science.
Although the campaign against evolution by the religious right is well known, I have [...]

Coretta Scott King, long-time advocate for peace and civil rights, has died at the age of 78. She has gone to her heavenly rest, but the flame she and her husband started burns brighter and brighter.

Sue and I received the very difficult news yesterday that Bob Zefo, our Kuk Sool instructor during college, died Saturday from complications following surgery to remove cancer.
The obituary posted on the World Kuk Sool Association doesn’t come close to describe how deeply all of us loved Kwan Jang Nym—he had been a 5th degree Master [...]

From Higher Plane comes the news that the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, D.C., will vote today on proposing Thurgood Marshall for canonization by the ECUSA. According to the WaPo article, two consecutive national conventions must vote to make someone a saint, so the earliest Marshall could be included in their calendar would be 2009.
In [...]

I read Benedict XVI’s Encyclical this evening, and I have to agree with Talmida, it is excellent.
The first half of the Encyclical is a “speculative” exploration of several kinds of love—especially eros and agape—culminating in an argument for love’s essential unity. There are some things I could quibble with, but all in all it’s [...]

Benedict XVI has released the first encyclical of his papacy, Deus Caritas Est. It was released today, but is dated back to 25 December of last year. Talmida gives it two thumbs up and offers us this quote:
Love is possible, and we are able to practise it because we are created in the [...]

The New Liturgical Movement had a post yesterday on the romance of Orthodox worship. It’s unfortunate that the “smells and bells” approach has become so rare in American Christianity, especially since it fills a need more and more people are feeling, as the article points out.
However, I find myself trying to be more open [...]

Well, my first homily went fairly well yesterday. There was a slight mix-up in the readings, but that was easy to recover from, as the Epistle I was preaching on was short enough to summarize at the beginning.
I’m happy to hear constructive criticism on this—I’m not taking the homiletics class for a while, so [...]

Tom Ambrose has a very helpful post up on Thinking Anglicans using Eastern iconography among other points to argue for an inclusive priesthood.
One might then argue that whilst the priest represents the humanity of Christ, what is represented is not just the Jesus of Nazareth who died on the Cross, who was male. Rather, the [...]

I have been asked to give the homily at St. Mary Magdalene’s this Sunday, which is exciting—my first sermon!—but also means I am going to be spending a good chunk of time over the next few days writing that instead of the blog. I may pop in if I see something really compelling (I [...]