Busy weeks … good links
Last week couldn't have been fuller and more rewarding - first a week with some wonderful pastors at the College of Preachers at the National Cathedral in DC, then the weekend with the Episcopal Diocese of Massachussetts in Boston. This week begins in Austin Texas at Seminary of the Southwest, and in the coming weeks, I'll be in Louisville, New Mexico, and Ohio. Hope to meet many of you here or there.
My friend Tony Jones (whose blog is worth checking daily) has been in a fascinating dialogue with Phillip Clayton about emergence in biology.
I've been doing some thinking and writing about this subject lately. Stay tuned.
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this’ll do you good too …
A song by Michael Kelly Blanchard, one of our best songwriters alive ...
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this’ll do you good …
From a beautiful monologue by Garrison Keillor ... just 8 minutes or so.
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Tension and encouragement …
Often when I speak, there are people in the audience who want or need to do a little inquisition in the Q & A sessions ... I certainly appreciate respectful disagreement and dialogue, but when people feel the need to mock or drop the "H-bomb" (heretic) or create some kind of win-lose scenario, it does get draining. After a recent talk at a Christian college where a bit of this went on, I had several people come up and say, "Please don't let those comments get you down. If it hadn't been for your books, I would have left the faith..." I just received this note along similar lines ...
I was in the audience tonight ..., and just wanted to be one of the ones who sent a thank you your way for your kind, humble, yet firm responses. As faculty here ... [we] often experience isolation because we don't hold views similar to some of the more oppositional ones voiced tonight. I am very grateful your willingness to speak in love in places that aren't always receptive to your message.
Being on the ground here, we hear frequently from students who feel they don't fit into the 'accepted system' and, like you said tonight, are on the way out the door. Thanks for speaking to them tonight. They hear you, and breathe sighs of relief to be introduced to your perspectives.
I was especially disappointed by some of the responses, because I was talking about ...
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Charles Darwin – I missed your birthday!
A few weeks ago there was a lot of talk about old Chuck D, around the time of his birthday. I thought Ken Wilson had one of the most poignant and beautiful commentaries of all ... really worth reading here. As I've said elsewhere, apologizing for the thousands of stupid and harmful things we Christians have done is an important part of apologetics. Why should anyone believe our message if we never admit when we've been ... wrong? (You'll find lots of other great stuff at Ken's site too.)
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