What do you say in the face of evil? The stories from yesterday’s attacks at the Boston Marathon are heartbreaking, gut-wrenching. One in particular stands out to me. A woman was waiting for her husband to cross the finish line when the bombs exploded. For three hours she searched frantically for him, not knowing if he was alive or dead, not knowing if he was frantic and looking for her. Her voice cracked a ...

Yesterday was Easter – the day we celebrated the Resurrection of the Son of God. It’s the day when we finally realize that God isn’t out to get us. In fact, three days after a bunch of people abandoned, betrayed, and killed him, Jesus came back. And instead of following the same old script of holy-revenge-in-the-name-of-justice (thanks to Saturday Night Live for that skit!) Jesus offered forgiveness and pea ...

Christians should be able to see right through the NRA’s logic of violence, and yet during the past week I’ve seen some pretty wacked up arguments put forth from biblical texts. ...

Is God a Cosmic Jerk? That’s how I ask the question, but professional theologians use the term theodicy. It comes from two Greek words: theo, which means “God,” and dike, which means “justice.” Theodicy asks, “If God is good and just, then why is there so much evil in the world?” There are many answers to this question. Some claim that God causes evil. In which case, my question becomes relevant – Is God a ...

I recently wrote a blog titled, “A Christian Support of Same Sex Marriage.” I posted it on Facebook and received a few favorable replies, but there was one somewhat negative response. My Facebook friend posted this: Love the sinner, hate the sin You’ve heard the statement countless times, I’m sure. It’s a cliché. This may surprise you, but I have a certain amount of respect for clichés. Phrases usually beco ...

Rats and All[1] A Sermon Delivered on November 13, 2011 At the First Congragional Church of Wilmette, UCC By Daniel and Adam Based on the Work of Banksy and Matthew 25:14-30 Adam – I’d like to start with a brief story.  There was once a Jewish man named Paul.  He was one of the first followers of Jesus.  One day Paul went to a place the Romans called Mars Hill.  Mars Hill was dedicated to the Roman god of w ...

Adam explores the Word of God. Is the Bible the Word of God? The Bible never explicitly calls itself the Word, but does call Jesus the Word of God. If we call the Bible the Word of God, does that mean we are worshiping the Bible? Is that bibliolatry? What do we do with conflicting passages of the Bible? Jesus says "You have heard that it was said, eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, do n ...