(3128,1,'2011-12-09 11:14:47','2011-12-09 19:14:47','It has been said that divorce is like a death in the family. I would submit that this is not a fair comparison. When a member of your family passes away, loved ones flock to the funeral. Your friends stand by you at the cemetery and watch as the deceased is lowered into the ground. Friends and family descend upon your house with gifts of food and companionship. I can remember when my mother passed away. My closest friends in the world traveled great distances just to sit with me. We stayed up late that night telling stories about my mother.\r\n\r\nDuring my divorce, however, I was alone.\r\n\r\nI was partially to blame for my isolation. Although my marriage had long been in trouble, I was too ashamed to tell others. Rather than confront the issue head-on, I chose to withdraw into solitude. I pursued activities that I could enjoy alone. Cycling, hiking, writing, and even Bible study became reasons to avoid my marital woes. The marriage was over before anyone even attempted to save it. No counseling. No conversation. Like an old dog, it simply died.\r\n\r\nI was a leader in my local church. I taught small groups and volunteered for nearly every opportunity to serve. Many people assumed I would follow in the pastor’s footsteps. Maybe that’s why I didn’t have the courage to tell them my marriage had failed. As a Christian, I had suffered the loss of more than just my marriage. I had lost standing in my church. I had lost a way of life. I felt as if I had let everyone in my church down.  So I withdrew into my shell. For weeks I isolated myself from my friends. It was easier to avoid my church friends than face their criticism and disappointment.\r\n\r\nLittle did I know I was playing right into the enemy’s hands.\r\n\r\nSatan wants to keep us in the dark. Just a few short weeks after my marriage ended, I looked out the window to see my friend and pastor pulling into the driveway. Positive he was there to chastise me for my mistakes, I hurried to turn out the lights and hid behind some furniture. My friend knocked on the door a few times while I remained in my hiding place. There I was, a grown man, crouched in the dark like a common thief. God had thrown me a lifeline in the form of my friend and I <em>chose</em> to remain in the dark – right where the enemy wanted me.\r\n\r\nThe Word makes it clear that things are easier to deal with once they are in the light. Christ Himself said, “I have come <em>as</em> Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness” (John 12:46 NASB). The darkness Christ spoke of was a metaphorical one. It was a darkness denoted by wickedness and ignorance of the Divine. The end result of the darkness Christ spoke of is a miserable, hellish existence. As I crouched behind furniture in my darkened living room, I was creating the kind of hellish existence that Christ hoped I would avoid.\r\n\r\nNearly a month would pass before I agreed to meet my friend at a local coffee shop. He revealed to me that he had known I was in the house that night. He had watched from the outside as my lights turned off one by one. He explained to me that he had come to apologize for failing as my pastor. He blamed himself for not catching the warning signs that my marriage was in trouble. While he acknowledged that the church might judge me harshly for my divorce, he assured me that he simply wanted to be there for me and offer support. His support helped set me on the path to healing. Knowing that I had just one Christian friend who loved me unconditionally helped reconcile me with God. His example was one that I desperately needed.\r\n\r\nIronically, I could have enjoyed his support much earlier had I just opened my front door when he came to my house. Light would have entered into the darkness of my situation.\r\n\r\nIf you have experienced the pain of divorce, you may be tempted to hide yourself in the darkness. For fear of judgment and ridicule you may avoid your church and Christian friends. You may be tempted to withdraw from God, however, the Word reveals how futile such a strategy is:\r\n<blockquote><sup>7</sup> Where can I go from Your Spirit?\r\nOr where can I flee from Your presence?\r\n<sup>8</sup> If I ascend to heaven, You are there;\r\nIf I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there.\r\n<sup>9</sup> If I take the wings of the dawn,\r\nIf I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,\r\n<sup>10</sup> Even there Your hand will lead me,\r\nAnd Your right hand will lay hold of me.\r\n<sup>11</sup> If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me,\r\nAnd the light around me will be night,”\r\n<sup>12</sup> Even the darkness is not dark to You,\r\nAnd the night is as bright as the day.\r\nDarkness and light are alike <em>to You</em>. – Psalm 139:7-12 NASB</blockquote>\r\nThere is no retreating from a God who loves you. There is nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. Rather than crouch in the darkness, seek out Christian friends and family who can help shed God’s light on your situation.\r\n\r\nPhoto credit: dieraecherin courtesy of morgueFile','From Darkness Into Light ','','inherit','open','open','','3080-revision-8','','','2011-12-09 11:14:47','2011-12-09 19:14:47','',3080,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/09/3080-revision-8/',0,'revision','',0),(3094,0,'2011-12-10 14:01:32','2011-12-10 22:01:32','Theology; sports; recovery issues; aging\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Conrad Archer\nAUTHOR EMAIL: ConradArch@yahoo.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://Www.archtrace.blogspot.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 72.177.195.64\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Conrad Archer\n    [Email] =&gt; ConradArch@yahoo.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; Www.archtrace.blogspot.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; Theology; sports; recovery issues; aging\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; conradarch\n)\n','Conrad Archer - 2011-12-10 14:01:32','','publish','open','open','','deef385c3bd83122245ba80407050b03','','','2011-12-10 14:01:32','2011-12-10 22:01:32','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=3094',0,'feedback','',0),(3095,24,'2011-12-10 11:32:36','2011-12-10 19:32:36','<strong>Separateness Revealed</strong>\n\nSnakes in the garden are a subtle and crafty bunch. They love to slip in and investigate any news within the garden. They are especially fond of the trees. Tree’s are where everyone goes to talk about all the amazing things they are observing. The snakes are shrewd and always looking into what they think they need to know.\n\nOne day a particular snake named “Nachash” sets out looking for a new place to gather. Finding just the right tree can make for a great vantage point on the happenings in the garden. He is looking intently at the fruit of these trees. He needs one with a fruit that will gather and nurture him for long periods of observation. There it is, in the middle of a glorious open heaven in the garden. A tree so radiant, so brilliant that Nachash stands there, mouth open. This tree is covered in large glowing fruit. He quickly climbs up the tree, grabs some fruit and with all his might sinks his teeth into its surface. A glorious taste, his whole being seems to charge with energy.\n\nSuddenly he feels something detach from his mind, he becomes aware of himself as a snake. Darkness floods his reality, he feels all alone. His mind racing is soon full of thoughts, ideas and realities about God that he has never known. He recalls a voice speaking to man, God is telling man to not eat of this tree lest he die. Nachash smiles, he now knows something he thinks no one else knows. “You won’t die, you will be like God\"\n\nNachash’’s memories now come back to him with a different view, he remembers meeting Adam. Dark thoughts flood his mind. “who does Adam think he is?” “He thinks he’s better than me!” “Why did God choose him to name us?” \"Adam is so blind, if he only knew what he was missing.\"\n\nThe feelings of aloneness seem to be getting stronger and stronger. He finally articulates what he is feeling, “If you eat this fruit, you will be like God.” “I am God. ha ha ha...I am God!” He retreats into a deep part of the tree. Fear, pain, separateness flood his consciousness. Soon words of anger, jealousy and bitterness are all he can say. “Who does God think He is?” “Why has He kept this from us?”\n\n<strong>Innocence Hides</strong>\n\nHe soon hears a sound of someone walking near him in the garden. He peers out to see who it is. “Ishshah!” he says. “She needs to know what I know.” “I will give her what God has withheld.” “She must know what she can really have.” He makes his was down the tree, across the meadow and approaches Ishshah. As she notices him she greets him with a glorious smile. “Hello Nachash.” For a moment her radiance seems to numb these new feelings, she seems to slow the thoughts of separateness in his mind. He shakes his head, smiles and with hid great clever says to Ishshah, “Do I understand that God told you not to eat from any tree in the garden?\" Ishshah responded to Nachash, \"Not at all. We can eat from the trees in the garden. It\'s only about the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, \'Don\'t eat from it; don\'t even touch it or you\'ll die.\'\"The serpent told the Woman, \"You won\'t die. God knows that the moment you eat from that tree, you\'ll see what\'s really going on. You\'ll be just like God, knowing everything, ranging all the way from good to evil.\"\n\nIshshah in her innocence believes Nachash and looks intently at the tree, mesmerized by its beauty. The fruit looks so good for eating. “If I eat it I will know everything.” she says to herself. She takes the fruit and eats it and walks to Adam to share with him her new experience.  As Adam eats the fruit they immediately begin to feel things they had never experienced. They look at each other realizing they are naked, uncovered and vulnerable to their surroundings. Quickly they grab some leaves from a fig tree and cover themselves. Adam and Eve feel completely alone. The loving presence, the peace, the ecstasy of God now seems completely separate from their experience.\n\nWithin moments of this terrifying experience they hear the sound of God moving through the garden. They quickly run and hide themselves in some bushes. Guilt, shame, hatred and grief flood their consciousness. Adam looks into Womb man’s now fearful eyes and says, “We are all alone!” “If God see’s us, He will certainly hate what He see’s.”\n\n<strong>Genesis of Separation</strong>\n\n* Ishashah - is Hebrew for woman - man with womb. Eve had no given name until commanded to leave garden.\n\nGod calls to Adam, “my son where are you?” Adam replies, “I heard you walking in the garden, and when I saw that I was naked, I hid myself. God replied, “who told you that you where naked?” “Have you eaten of the tree of which I appointed you that you should not eat?”\n\nInwardly Adam senses a deep bitterness towards Ishshah. Why would she do this to me? Why did she make me eat this fruit? “God, its Ishshah, the one you gave me, she gave me the fruit and I ate it.” Adam feels the sting of pain and feels himself growing bitter towards woman. When Ishshah hears Adams accusation she begins to weep as deep grief and shame flood her heart. God asks Eve, “ My daughter what is this you have done?” Ishshah choking down tears cry’s out to God, “Nachash that serpent, he lead me astray, he took from me my joy.”\n\nNachash is laughing at this point. he is fully enjoying watching Adam and Ishshah stumble through this broken reality. When he hears Ishshah tell God that he was to blame he quickly tries to slip away. God speaks and every part of his being freezes in terror. “Nachash, what you have done will now bring detest upon your self. You will no longer walk as a noble creature in my garden. You will now be lowered to a place below all creatures. You shall crawl on you belly and eat dust all the days you exist.” “Hatred and hostility have now entered your mind towards Ishshah, her children and your children will wage war against each other.” “Her children will crush your head and you will strike at their heels.”\n\nGod turns to Ishshah, with love in His eyes, “Pain is now your world, with sorrow and toil you will bring forth your children.” “Without consideration of my view of you, you will turn to Adam and he in turn will rule and dominate you.”\n\nHe then looks to Adam, kneels down and grabbing his hand He says, “ My son, because you have listened and choose to be subject to Eve’s sorrow by eating of the tree, which I appointed you not to partake of, this earth, this garden, the life you have had in it you will now detest. You will labor in pain over it for every meal. In sorrow you will partake of your loss all the days of your life. Poked, pricked by your labors for food, with uncontrolled fruitless plants flourishing around will you find food.  With violent motion you will work for bread, and you will toil for things you where never mean’t to toil for. I took you from the red ground to live, but now you shall return to it.”\n\nAdam turned to Ishshah and says, \"now that we are separate from God. I am going to give you a name outside of me, I shall call you,\" “Eve.” \"You shall be a mother of all living things, because from you children will part from Oneness in sorrow. \"','Return to Innocence','','inherit','open','open','','3043-revision-3','','','2011-12-10 11:32:36','2011-12-10 19:32:36','',3043,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/10/3043-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(3098,100,'2011-12-11 10:31:06','2011-12-11 18:31:06','','Ariah Fine','Ariah Fine','inherit','open','open','','ariah-fine','','','2011-12-11 10:31:06','2011-12-11 18:31:06','',3097,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/ariah-fine.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(3099,100,'2011-12-11 10:28:50','2011-12-11 18:28:50','This week the something beautiful crew talks with author and community organizer Ariah Fine about his latest project, Clean Water for Elirose.\n\nAriah shares why community and social justice matter to him and how he was inspired to write a children’s book to share the story of clean water with his young children.\n\n<strong>Some questions to ask yourself while you listen:</strong>\n\nWhat issues are dear to your heart?\nAre resources available to explain those issues to people of all ages?\nWhat resource could you create to better explain the issue?\nWhat could you and your family do to help provide clean water for people around the world?','Something Beautiful - Ariah Fine','','inherit','open','open','','3097-revision','','','2011-12-11 10:28:50','2011-12-11 18:28:50','',3097,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3097-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(3100,100,'2011-12-11 10:31:24','2011-12-11 18:31:24','[caption id=\"attachment_3098\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"230\" caption=\"Ariah Fine\"]<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/ariah-fine.jpg\"><img src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/ariah-fine-230x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"230\" height=\"300\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-3098\" /></a>[/caption]\r\n\r\nThis week the something beautiful crew talks with author and community organizer Ariah Fine about his latest project, Clean Water for Elirose.\r\n\r\nAriah shares why community and social justice matter to him and how he was inspired to write a children’s book to share the story of clean water with his young children.\r\n\r\n<strong>Some questions to ask yourself while you listen:</strong>\r\n\r\nWhat issues are dear to your heart?\r\nAre resources available to explain those issues to people of all ages?\r\nWhat resource could you create to better explain the issue?\r\nWhat could you and your family do to help provide clean water for people around the world?','Something Beautiful - Ariah Fine','','inherit','open','open','','3097-revision-2','','','2011-12-11 10:31:24','2011-12-11 18:31:24','',3097,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3097-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(3101,100,'2011-12-11 10:31:50','2011-12-11 18:31:50','[caption id=\"attachment_3098\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"230\" caption=\"Ariah Fine\"]<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/ariah-fine.jpg\"><img src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/ariah-fine-230x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"230\" height=\"300\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-3098\" /></a>[/caption]\n\nThis week the something beautiful crew talks with author and community organizer Ariah Fine about his latest project, Clean Water for Elirose.\n\nAriah shares why community and social justice matter to him and how he was inspired to write a children’s book to share the story of clean water with his young children.\n\n<strong>Some questions to ask yourself while you listen:</strong>\n\nWhat issues are dear to your heart?\nAre resources available to explain those issues to people of all ages?\nWhat resource could you create to better explain the issue?\nWhat could you and your family do to help provide clean water for people around the world?\n\n[audio=\"http://somethingbeautifulpodcast.com/podcast/120911.mp3\"]','Something Beautiful - Ariah Fine','','inherit','open','open','','3097-revision-3','','','2011-12-11 10:31:50','2011-12-11 18:31:50','',3097,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3097-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(3102,1,'2011-12-09 08:11:49','2011-12-09 16:11:49','In my upcoming book, \"<a href=\"http://store.civitaspress.com/books/284\">Fallen Pastor: Finding Restoration in a Broken World</a>,\" I answer a lot of questions about ministry failure. But there\'s one question I stayed away from: \"<em>Should</em> a fallen pastor be put back into the pulpit and be allowed to preach again?\"\r\n\r\nIn the book, I interview eleven ministers who fell from the ministry due to moral failure. Several of them are pastoring again. The fact that they are can be attributed to several things. First, they went through an intense restoration process. Secondly, the church or denomination they serve decided they were at peace with having them pastor again. Third, these men were able to see the call of God in their life as a thing that did not go away once they fell.\r\n\r\nThis is a huge issue within the church. Those of a more conservative stripe say a minister who commits adultery should never be restored to the pastorate. The argument typically falls along biblical lines. The guidelines for an overseer in 1 Timothy 3 are that an overseer in the church should be \"above reproach.\" Once a minister has committed adultery, he has violated the trust of the church and is no longer deemed worthy of the office.\r\n\r\nThis passage also says the overseer must be able to manage his household well, not quarrelsome, well thought of by outsiders, respectable, the husband of one wife, hospitable and self-controlled. It is a serious thing to desire to be an overseer. It is not to be taken lightly and those who desire and are called should understand the weight of it.\r\n\r\nThen, there are those who believe that a fallen pastor can enter back into the ministry. Of course, they understand that those who desire to do so must be repentant and restored to Christ. The main argument is also a biblical one. It comes from Romans 11:29:  For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. The argument is that God has granted gifts to people and even if they sin, they still have gifts.\r\n\r\nHonestly, I still don\'t know where I stand, but I\'d like to look at some objections, then tell you how things work out in life.\r\n\r\nThe first argument is that those who serve are held to a high standard. Those who argue that even after a fall a man is worthy of serving argue against it like this: <em>\"The qualifications for overseer are listed as patterns for life. Overseers <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/fallen.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-3005\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/fallen.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"210\" /></a>should have those things be true about them as a rule of life. If those were a hard and fast rule, without grace, then Peter never should have been given the chance to be a leader in the early church because he committed the sin of denying Christ. All sin is worthy of separation. Yes, the bible holds leaders at a high standard, but it is to be measured against grace.\"</em>\r\n\r\nThen there\'s the argument against the second position. <em>\"Yes, the gift is still there, but that doesn\'t mean someone is still worthy of serving in certain capacity. God does forgive fallen leaders, but He has high standards of leadership. Moses is an example of that. After striking the rock, he wasn\'t allowed to enter the promised land. Fallen leaders are still precious to God and can still find other ways to minister other than leadership positions.\"</em>\r\n\r\nIt\'s tough, isn\'t it? I am resolved in this. God\'s grace is much more abounding than many are willing to grant. I\'ve had pastors look me in the eye and basically tell me that I shouldn\'t even pray in public ever again. I know people who believe that fallen pastors should sit in the back pew for the rest of their lives and never make eye contact with God-fearing people ever again. These people are far and few between, but they can feel like the majority.\r\n\r\nChrist\'s voice is clear in the Gospels. He restores sinners. In the face of the religious majority, he picks people up and stands them on their feet. Does this mean we should put fallen pastors back in the pulpit? No, but it does mean that as Christians, we should be the first to seek them out and love them, seeking to show them love.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/person-pew.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3010\" style=\"margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/person-pew-300x205.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"205\" /></a>Now, for my pragmatic argument. I hate the word \"pragmatism\" because it has a <em>stigmatism</em>. The churches I have seen that have placed repentant, restored fallen pastors back into the pulpit have been blessed. They took a chance. It was up to each congregation to make a decision based on their own personal convictions, but they were blessed.\r\n\r\nI can tell you this as well. When I\'ve been able to preach at churches about my fall, my adultery, my sin, I\'ve been able to reach and minister to people like I never could before. My preaching was overcome with a new level of understanding about grace, empathy, compassion and forgiveness. When I preach now, I can almost guarantee that after I\'m done, I\'ll be approached by someone who wants to confess their own sin of adultery or moral failure.\r\n\r\nThe people who talk to me tell me, \"I could never have told my pastor. He wouldn\'t understand. I feel like you have a different kind of heart.\" Yes, I do. Not because of anything I\'ve done, but because Christ took my mess and made a message out of it. He took my crooked little heart and made it into a tool for him.\r\n\r\nWhere does the fallen pastor belong? That\'s a decision for each church to make after he goes through a restoration process. I do know this - he does not belong on the trash heap of society. He belongs among the rest of God\'s people, receiving compassion, participating in worship, and sharing in His grace.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Putting The Fallen Pastor In His Place','','inherit','open','open','','3001-revision-6','','','2011-12-09 08:11:49','2011-12-09 16:11:49','',3001,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/09/3001-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(3103,0,'2011-12-11 16:51:41','2011-12-12 00:51:41','Faith: Spirituality, Theology, Interfaith Dialogue, Question\r\nJustice: Social Justice, Politics, Economics\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Michael Camp\nAUTHOR EMAIL: michaelwcamp@comcast.net\nAUTHOR URL: http://deepthoughtpub.blogspot.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 67.160.88.232\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Michael Camp\n    [Email] =&gt; michaelwcamp@comcast.net\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; http://deepthoughtpub.blogspot.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; Faith: Spirituality, Theology, Interfaith Dialogue, Question\r\nJustice: Social Justice, Politics, Economics\r\n\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; mcamp\n)\n','Michael Camp - 2011-12-11 16:51:41','','publish','open','open','','4ce78cff21f72e139af6f1892a2414df','','','2011-12-11 16:51:41','2011-12-12 00:51:41','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=3103',0,'feedback','',0),(3104,0,'2011-12-11 18:06:10','2011-12-12 02:06:10','I would like to write about a variety of topics in the Life section.\r\n\r\nBlessings!\r\n\r\nMichael\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Michael Levitt\nAUTHOR EMAIL: levitt.mike@gmail.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://levittmike.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 173.32.167.10\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Michael Levitt\n    [Email] =&gt; levitt.mike@gmail.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; levittmike.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; I would like to write about a variety of topics in the Life section.\r\n\r\nBlessings!\r\n\r\nMichael\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; levittmike\n)\n','Michael Levitt - 2011-12-11 18:06:10','','publish','open','open','','23740cea6bb7e50a66dd7d62a32317bf','','','2011-12-11 18:06:10','2011-12-12 02:06:10','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=3104',0,'feedback','',0),(3105,43,'2011-12-13 08:37:30','2011-12-13 16:37:30','By now, most people have seen this ad:\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PAJNntoRgA[/youtube]\r\n\r\nI had to watch the video more than once to wrap my mind around it.  On the surface, he appears to be repeating the same tired nonsense that circulates on social media.  It\'s the same non-logic that fuels angry Facebook re-posts about being forced to say \"Happy Holidays\" instead of \"Merry Christmas.\"  One could easily shrug it off as being no more than an eye-roll-inducing piece of nonsense with a persecution complex.\r\n\r\nExcept that it\'s not.\r\n\r\nIn every single sentence of Rick Perry\'s \"Strong\" ad, he weaponizes his faith.  Not only that, Perry knows exactly what he\'s doing.  He knows that there is a subset of the American population that thrives on the belief that LGBT people have an agenda and are out to destroy traditional values; that children are punished for praying; that President Obama is not only not a \"real\" Christian but actively wants to destroy religion (by which he means true Christianity, of course—who really cares about the Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and so forth).\r\n\r\nPerry, in his zeal to find persecution around every corner, has forgotten one thing.  He\'s embracing the wrong kind of strong.  Perry imagines that if we force his personal values on every man, woman, and child in this country, we will become \"strong.\"  The Jesus he claims to love never came to beat anyone down.  He didn\'t come to claim his power and overthrow the Roman government.  He didn\'t come to weed out the people the Jewish leaders deemed sinful.  Heck, he didn\'t even condemn the people caught in overt sin.  It\'s not very likely that Jesus would do anything different in twenty-first century America than he did two thousand years ago.  Instead of condemnation, Jesus brought love, mercy, grace, and reconciliation.  Those things are far better than whatever Perry has in mind.\r\n\r\nCheck out this video, a response to Perry\'s ad.  It\'s a nice summary of what else is wrong with the ad:\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppOpOv_kv2s&amp;sns=fb[/youtube]','The Wrong Kind of Strong','','publish','open','open','','the-wrong-kind-of-strong','','','2011-12-12 08:47:38','2011-12-12 16:47:38','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=3105',0,'post','',0),(3106,43,'2011-12-11 19:19:24','2011-12-12 03:19:24','By now, most people have seen this ad:\n\n&nbsp;\n\nI had to watch the video more than once to wrap my mind around it.  On the surface, he appears to be repeating the same tired nonsense that circulates on social media.  It\'s the same non-logic that fuels angry Facebook re-posts about being forced to say \"Happy Holidays\" instead of \"Merry Christmas.\"  One could easily shrug it off as being no more than an eye-roll-inducing piece of nonsense with a persecution complex.\n\nExcept that it\'s not.\n\nIn every single sentence of Rick Perry\'s \"Strong\" ad, he weaponizes his faith.  Not only that, Perry knows exactly what he\'s doing.  He knows that there is a subset of the American population that thrives on the belief that LGBT people have an agenda and are out to destroy traditional values; that children are punished for praying; that President Obama is not only not a \"real\" Christian but actively wants to destroy religion (by which he means true Christianity, of course—who really cares about the Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and so forth).\n\nPerry, in his zeal to find persecution around every corner, has forgotten one thing.  He\'s embracing the wrong kind of strong.  Perry imagines that if we force his personal values on every man, woman, and child in this country, we will become \"strong.\"  The Jesus he claims to love never came to beat anyone down.  He didn\'t come to claim his power and overthrow the Roman government.  He didn\'t come to weed out the people the Jewish leaders deemed sinful.  Heck, he didn\'t even condemn the people caught in overt sin.  It\'s not very likely that Jesus would do anything different in twenty-first century America than he did two thousand years ago.  Instead of condemnation, Jesus brought love, mercy, grace, and reconciliation.  Those things are far better than whatever Perry has in mind.\n\nCheck out this video, a response to Perry\'s ad.  It\'s a nice summary of what else is wrong with the ad:\n\n&nbsp;','The Wrong Kind of Strong','','inherit','open','open','','3105-revision','','','2011-12-11 19:19:24','2011-12-12 03:19:24','',3105,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3105-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(3107,43,'2011-12-11 19:20:24','2011-12-12 03:20:24','By now, most people have seen this ad:\n\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PAJNntoRgA[/youtube]\n\nI had to watch the video more than once to wrap my mind around it.  On the surface, he appears to be repeating the same tired nonsense that circulates on social media.  It\'s the same non-logic that fuels angry Facebook re-posts about being forced to say \"Happy Holidays\" instead of \"Merry Christmas.\"  One could easily shrug it off as being no more than an eye-roll-inducing piece of nonsense with a persecution complex.\n\nExcept that it\'s not.\n\nIn every single sentence of Rick Perry\'s \"Strong\" ad, he weaponizes his faith.  Not only that, Perry knows exactly what he\'s doing.  He knows that there is a subset of the American population that thrives on the belief that LGBT people have an agenda and are out to destroy traditional values; that children are punished for praying; that President Obama is not only not a \"real\" Christian but actively wants to destroy religion (by which he means true Christianity, of course—who really cares about the Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and so forth).\n\nPerry, in his zeal to find persecution around every corner, has forgotten one thing.  He\'s embracing the wrong kind of strong.  Perry imagines that if we force his personal values on every man, woman, and child in this country, we will become \"strong.\"  The Jesus he claims to love never came to beat anyone down.  He didn\'t come to claim his power and overthrow the Roman government.  He didn\'t come to weed out the people the Jewish leaders deemed sinful.  Heck, he didn\'t even condemn the people caught in overt sin.  It\'s not very likely that Jesus would do anything different in twenty-first century America than he did two thousand years ago.  Instead of condemnation, Jesus brought love, mercy, grace, and reconciliation.  Those things are far better than whatever Perry has in mind.\n\nCheck out this video, a response to Perry\'s ad.  It\'s a nice summary of what else is wrong with the ad:\n\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppOpOv_kv2s&amp;sns=fb[/youtube]','The Wrong Kind of Strong','','inherit','open','open','','3105-revision-2','','','2011-12-11 19:20:24','2011-12-12 03:20:24','',3105,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3105-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(3108,43,'2011-12-11 19:25:20','2011-12-12 03:25:20','','rick-perry-strong','','inherit','open','open','','rick-perry-strong','','','2011-12-11 19:25:20','2011-12-12 03:25:20','',3105,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/rick-perry-strong.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(3109,43,'2011-12-11 19:21:59','2011-12-12 03:21:59','By now, most people have seen this ad:\n\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PAJNntoRgA[/youtube]\n\nI had to watch the video more than once to wrap my mind around it.  On the surface, he appears to be repeating the same tired nonsense that circulates on social media.  It\'s the same non-logic that fuels angry Facebook re-posts about being forced to say \"Happy Holidays\" instead of \"Merry Christmas.\"  One could easily shrug it off as being no more than an eye-roll-inducing piece of nonsense with a persecution complex.\n\nExcept that it\'s not.\n\nIn every single sentence of Rick Perry\'s \"Strong\" ad, he weaponizes his faith.  Not only that, Perry knows exactly what he\'s doing.  He knows that there is a subset of the American population that thrives on the belief that LGBT people have an agenda and are out to destroy traditional values; that children are punished for praying; that President Obama is not only not a \"real\" Christian but actively wants to destroy religion (by which he means true Christianity, of course—who really cares about the Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and so forth).\n\nPerry, in his zeal to find persecution around every corner, has forgotten one thing.  He\'s embracing the wrong kind of strong.  Perry imagines that if we force his personal values on every man, woman, and child in this country, we will become \"strong.\"  The Jesus he claims to love never came to beat anyone down.  He didn\'t come to claim his power and overthrow the Roman government.  He didn\'t come to weed out the people the Jewish leaders deemed sinful.  Heck, he didn\'t even condemn the people caught in overt sin.  It\'s not very likely that Jesus would do anything different in twenty-first century America than he did two thousand years ago.  Instead of condemnation, Jesus brought love, mercy, grace, and reconciliation.  Those things are far better than whatever Perry has in mind.\n\nCheck out this video, a response to Perry\'s ad.  It\'s a nice summary of what else is wrong with the ad:\n\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppOpOv_kv2s&amp;sns=fb[/youtube]','The Wrong Kind of Strong','','inherit','open','open','','3105-revision-3','','','2011-12-11 19:21:59','2011-12-12 03:21:59','',3105,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3105-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(3110,43,'2011-12-11 19:25:44','2011-12-12 03:25:44','By now, most people have seen this ad:\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PAJNntoRgA[/youtube]\r\n\r\nI had to watch the video more than once to wrap my mind around it.  On the surface, he appears to be repeating the same tired nonsense that circulates on social media.  It\'s the same non-logic that fuels angry Facebook re-posts about being forced to say \"Happy Holidays\" instead of \"Merry Christmas.\"  One could easily shrug it off as being no more than an eye-roll-inducing piece of nonsense with a persecution complex.\r\n\r\nExcept that it\'s not.\r\n\r\nIn every single sentence of Rick Perry\'s \"Strong\" ad, he weaponizes his faith.  Not only that, Perry knows exactly what he\'s doing.  He knows that there is a subset of the American population that thrives on the belief that LGBT people have an agenda and are out to destroy traditional values; that children are punished for praying; that President Obama is not only not a \"real\" Christian but actively wants to destroy religion (by which he means true Christianity, of course—who really cares about the Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and so forth).\r\n\r\nPerry, in his zeal to find persecution around every corner, has forgotten one thing.  He\'s embracing the wrong kind of strong.  Perry imagines that if we force his personal values on every man, woman, and child in this country, we will become \"strong.\"  The Jesus he claims to love never came to beat anyone down.  He didn\'t come to claim his power and overthrow the Roman government.  He didn\'t come to weed out the people the Jewish leaders deemed sinful.  Heck, he didn\'t even condemn the people caught in overt sin.  It\'s not very likely that Jesus would do anything different in twenty-first century America than he did two thousand years ago.  Instead of condemnation, Jesus brought love, mercy, grace, and reconciliation.  Those things are far better than whatever Perry has in mind.\r\n\r\nCheck out this video, a response to Perry\'s ad.  It\'s a nice summary of what else is wrong with the ad:\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppOpOv_kv2s&amp;sns=fb[/youtube]','The Wrong Kind of Strong','','inherit','open','open','','3105-revision-4','','','2011-12-11 19:25:44','2011-12-12 03:25:44','',3105,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3105-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(3111,43,'2011-12-11 19:25:50','2011-12-12 03:25:50','By now, most people have seen this ad:\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PAJNntoRgA[/youtube]\r\n\r\nI had to watch the video more than once to wrap my mind around it.  On the surface, he appears to be repeating the same tired nonsense that circulates on social media.  It\'s the same non-logic that fuels angry Facebook re-posts about being forced to say \"Happy Holidays\" instead of \"Merry Christmas.\"  One could easily shrug it off as being no more than an eye-roll-inducing piece of nonsense with a persecution complex.\r\n\r\nExcept that it\'s not.\r\n\r\nIn every single sentence of Rick Perry\'s \"Strong\" ad, he weaponizes his faith.  Not only that, Perry knows exactly what he\'s doing.  He knows that there is a subset of the American population that thrives on the belief that LGBT people have an agenda and are out to destroy traditional values; that children are punished for praying; that President Obama is not only not a \"real\" Christian but actively wants to destroy religion (by which he means true Christianity, of course—who really cares about the Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and so forth).\r\n\r\nPerry, in his zeal to find persecution around every corner, has forgotten one thing.  He\'s embracing the wrong kind of strong.  Perry imagines that if we force his personal values on every man, woman, and child in this country, we will become \"strong.\"  The Jesus he claims to love never came to beat anyone down.  He didn\'t come to claim his power and overthrow the Roman government.  He didn\'t come to weed out the people the Jewish leaders deemed sinful.  Heck, he didn\'t even condemn the people caught in overt sin.  It\'s not very likely that Jesus would do anything different in twenty-first century America than he did two thousand years ago.  Instead of condemnation, Jesus brought love, mercy, grace, and reconciliation.  Those things are far better than whatever Perry has in mind.\r\n\r\nCheck out this video, a response to Perry\'s ad.  It\'s a nice summary of what else is wrong with the ad:\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppOpOv_kv2s&amp;sns=fb[/youtube]','The Wrong Kind of Strong','','inherit','open','open','','3105-revision-5','','','2011-12-11 19:25:50','2011-12-12 03:25:50','',3105,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3105-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(3112,24,'2011-12-09 10:33:29','2011-12-09 18:33:29','My recent exploration of the idea of  \"me\" has led \"me\" to a remarkable fact. Self exploration can be the best exploration of all. I have not done much of this in the past?  I have been scared to look within. Afraid that something is wrong with me. (That has actually turned out to be true!) I thought only weak people talk about their weaknesses, then they don\'t have to do anything. They have no mission or vision for their lives so they are perishing.  That was a lame thought. If I every said that to you consider this a formal apology.\r\n\r\nWhat if when God formed man and blew the breath of life into us we became and eternal unsearchable being like him. What if there is no end to our souls. What if the more we search the more we discover about God and His amazing love for us.\r\n\r\nWhere could I go and find God absent? It seems everything I perceive to be \'out there\' is leading me towards and inner gaze.\r\nDavid seemed to recognize this phenomena when in Psalm 139.\r\n\r\n<em>I look behind me and you\'re there,</em>\r\n<em> then up ahead and you\'re there, too—</em>\r\n<em> your reassuring presence, coming and going.</em>\r\n<em> This is too much, too wonderful—</em>\r\n<em> I can\'t take it all in!</em>\r\n\r\n<em>Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit?</em>\r\n<em> to be out of your sight?</em>\r\n<em> If I climb to the sky, you\'re there!</em>\r\n<em> If I go underground, you\'re there!</em>\r\n<em> If I flew on morning\'s wings</em>\r\n<em> to the far western horizon,</em>\r\n<em> You\'d find me in a minute—</em>\r\n<em> you\'re already there waiting!</em>\r\n<em> Then I said to myself, \"Oh, he even sees me in the dark!</em>\r\n<em> At night I\'m immersed in the light!\"</em>\r\n<em> It\'s a fact: darkness isn\'t dark to you;</em>\r\n<em> night and day, darkness and light, they\'re all the same to you.</em>\r\nPsalms 139 (message)\r\n\r\nLike David, I am not afraid of the darkness in me anymore. I found that being OK to look at, deal with, run at it and feel the pain of what is hidden in my darkness opens doors of Truth to real freedom. The fact that I used the word \"shit\" as a the title is what I mean. I never cussed before, God forbid someone hear me and think I was not holy, or pure, or the great guy I have worked so hard to be. Forget that! God this shit is overwhelming. I have no clue how to get out of it. I am drowning in darkness. I surrender all!\r\n\r\nSo good ol Peter steps out to walk on the water and before he can get far he is sinking. Lets fast forward a couple thousand years and here we have Jon Crouch trying to walk, but its not water, its shit. My shit, you know the stuff that stinks, the stuff most people don\'t want to see. I am OK looking at it, but if someone else see\'s it they freak. (I know a bit graphic but true.) I tried so hard to be someone, to use people, systems whatever to get love or attention some sort of pat on my back. All the time I am starting to sink, because without real love I turn to any sort of self soothing method. These methods are eating away at my soul. It\'s harder to hide, harder to be nice, I find myself pushing away from those closest to me. I feel like a big piece of shit or like I am sinking into it.\r\n\r\nIn the past I had people come to me who were is the blissful situation, amazingly I had nothing to say. I was shocked at their mess, I would offer the great advice of, pray more, read your bible, or the classical just get over it. Now its me who\'s made a mess, who\'s finally sinking. I realize I am not going to make it without some serious help. I know its good in some deep spiritual cosmic way, but I am terrified. \"Jesus I am sinking in this shit!\"\r\n\r\nSuddenly I realize, He is walking on it. He does not have a nose plug, He\'s not freaking out lecturing me on why I\'m sinking. He is smiling at me with arms out wide. He picks me up give me a big long hug. I am shocked, broken, a mess and He is with me.\r\n\r\nHe tells me, \"It\'s over son, no more trying, no more effort, just let go and trust what I see in you.\"\r\n\r\nSo now this shit I was sinking in has become the energy and fuel for the life Jesus promised.\r\n\r\n\"You\'ll take delight in God, the Mighty One,\r\nand look to him joyfully, boldly.\r\nYou\'ll pray to him and he\'ll listen;\r\nhe\'ll help you do what you\'ve promised.\r\nYou\'ll decide what you want and it will happen;\r\nyour life will be bathed in light.\r\nTo those who feel low you\'ll say, \'Chin up! Be brave!\'\r\nand God will save them.\r\nYes, even the guilty will escape,\r\nescape through God\'s grace in your life.\"\r\nJob 22 (The Message)\r\n\r\nMy pain becomes my platform, my messes my messages, my brokenness an invitation to a living God\'s embrace. Chin up! Be Brave! This messy boy believes in you!\r\n\r\n<strong>\"I should not talk so much about myself if there were anybody else whom I knew as well.\" - David Thoreau</strong>','This Shit Makes Energy!','','inherit','open','open','','3045-revision-10','','','2011-12-09 10:33:29','2011-12-09 18:33:29','',3045,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/09/3045-revision-10/',0,'revision','',0),(3114,20,'2011-12-15 08:01:09','2011-12-15 16:01:09','As Christians we like to talk about the “true”<em> </em>meaning of Christmas – the birth of Jesus Christ of course.  This has even made for a good Christmas political campaign ad in the past.  Sometimes it seems as if certain Christians think it’s sufficient to just <em>mention</em> more loudly than culture what the season is really “all about.”  Doing so gives a kind of cursory feeling of living counter-culturally and of being faithful to the Great Commission.  And it’s usually accompanied by abstract proclamations of love, joy, peace and hope.  I can’t help think again of the verse about “those who give assurance of peace when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).  But we know that beneath the surface there is much more to what Christ’s advent really signifies.\r\n\r\nWe live in an age when people aren’t hearing or seeing the Christmas story as relevant anymore.  On the one hand, we don’t worry about this too much, but on the other hand, have we ever asked why?  There’s so much craziness around the holidays at church.  Living nativities for example – what does this really communicate?  Do the people putting them on even know?  I’m not meaning to be cynical here; I genuinely wonder.  No doubt there are many reasons for society’s disenchantment, but I submit that at least one of them is the failure, in church, to name and confess the biggest sins of our people – social sins like war, coercive free trade agreements with South Korea, exploitation, environmental degradation, and excessive accumulation and resource consumption, or the personal ones like lust, addiction, fear, pride and insecurity.  And I mean like<em> really</em> concretely speak of them, by giving tangible examples and talking about them in the open, admitting our brokenness and mourning over the great, great costs that society and especially the global periphery has borne as a consequence.\r\n\r\nThe other tendency one notices is paradoxically related.  You see it in evangelical contexts particularly, but not only there.  It’s the use of the <em>birth</em> of Jesus as another chance to talk about the <em>death </em>of Jesus, and how it functions as a penal substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.  The danger in this case is similar in that, while harping some on individual sins, the message usually goes straight to celebrating what we get from this exchange.  The other problem is that the real richness of the Incarnation itself is lost, and Jesus is separated too much from God the Father.  It likewise precludes any grieving of the darkness around us and in ourselves.  Much like Holy Saturday, Advent is not yet the time for triumph.  With all of the devastation, agony and uncertainty in the world, it is right and even essential to say that God has unfinished work.  And even after the resurrection, which is a central part of God’s mission, the all-important restoration of creation and the dead is still pending.\r\n\r\nThus there is at least a twofold function to the Incarnation that we can speak of without yet getting to atonement.\r\n\r\nFirst, Jesus’s birth into a political climate under the reign of the ruthless King Herod highlights the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of worldly power.  The lowliness, marginality and vulnerability that characterize Jesus’s family and historical setting invokes the theme of solidarity that he and therefore God has with the subjugated peoples of the world.  This includes especially the undocumented, the foreigner, the jobless, the sick, the elderly, the lonely, the prisoner, the troubled veteran, the homeless, the hungry and the uninsured.  As the one who’s first words at the beginning of his ministry were about proclaiming liberation to persons such as these, perhaps this is where our Christmas reflection should also begin.\r\n\r\nSecondly, the Incarnation doesn’t just say that God is <em>with</em> us and <em>for</em> us.  It also echoes, in continuity with the Jewish prophetic tradition what God is <em>against</em>:\r\n<blockquote>“All sufferers can find comfort in the solidarity of the [Incarnate One]; but only those who struggle against evil by following [his] example will discover him at their side.  To claim the comfort of the Incarnation while rejecting [God’s] way is the advocate not only cheap grace but a deceitful ideology.”<a title=\"\" href=\"#_edn1\">[i]</a></blockquote>\r\nThe manor in which Jesus experiences the realities of life on earth in the birth narratives protests all human ambitions that lead to domination, exclusion and oppression.  From sleeping with animals and fleeing to Egypt, to growing up in Nazareth and being raised by a carpenter, Jesus manifests God’s partiality for the underside of history and defends the case of the sinned-against.\r\n\r\nThe themes of solidarity with the victims and the condemnation of injustice are later supplemented by the atonement by Christ for the perpetrators.  Only God can bring complete healing and reconciliation, and it’s true that we are all perpetrators to some extent – even the poor among us.  We should not romanticize their plight.  The question is not whether we are totally innocent, however – no one is; rather, as Baylor’s Jewish liberation theologian Marc Ellis explains, it’s whether we’re moving <em>toward</em> Community on the one hand or Empire on the other.  Ellis also says that for Christians, unlike Jews, they kind of have to downplay the messianic if they want to properly emphasize the prophetic.  At least for this season and context, I think he might be right.\r\n\r\nThere is another lesson from the Incarnation then.  Henri Nouwen says that “we read the Word[/Christ] so that the Word[/Christ] can become flesh and have a whole new life in us.”  He seems to be hinting here at the idea of <em>theosis</em> – that is, our sanctification and transformation into the image of the invisible God.  This change in us, however gradual and inconsistent, also demands a conversion of some kind, a repentance or “turning around” as John the Baptist insisted.\r\n\r\nI like the words to a song my friend Tripp Fuller wrote and recently sang on his <a href=\"http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2011/12/08/advent-tnt-extravaganza/\" target=\"_blank\">podcast</a> which inspired part of this reflection:\r\n<blockquote>\"Pattern all your calculating\r\n\r\nand the world we are creating\r\n\r\nto the Advent we’re awaiting.\r\n\r\nCome Lord Jesus come.\"</blockquote>\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<hr align=\"left\" size=\"1\" width=\"33%\" />\r\n\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"\" href=\"#_ednref\">[i]</a> Miroslav Volf, <em>Exclusion &amp; Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation</em>, First Edition. (Abingdon Press, 1996), 24.\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n</div>','Still Waiting For Atonement This Christmas','','publish','open','open','','still-waiting-for-atonement-this-christmas','','','2011-12-15 09:39:25','2011-12-15 17:39:25','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=3114',0,'post','',3),(3157,1,'2011-12-14 08:33:28','2011-12-14 16:33:28','As Christians we like to talk about the “true”<em> </em>meaning of Christmas – the birth of Jesus Christ of course.  This has made for a good Republican Christmas tv ad in the past.  Sometimes it seems as if certain Christians think it’s sufficient to just <em>mention</em> more loudly than culture what the season is really “all about.”  Doing so gives a kind of cursory feeling of living counter-culturally and of being faithful to the Great Commission.  And it’s usually accompanied by abstract proclamations of love, joy, peace and hope.  I can’t help think again of the verse about “those who give assurance of peace when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).  But we know that beneath the surface there is much more to what Christ’s advent really signifies.\r\n\r\nWe live in an age when people aren’t hearing or seeing the Christmas story as relevant anymore.  On the one hand, we don’t worry about this too much, but on the other hand, have we ever asked why?  There’s so much craziness around the holidays at church.  Living nativities for example – what does this really communicate?  Do the people putting them on even know?  I’m not meaning to be cynical here; I genuinely wonder.  No doubt there are many reasons for society’s disenchantment, but I submit that at least one of them is the failure, in church, to name and confess the biggest sins of our people – social sins like war, coercive free trade agreements with South Korea, exploitation, environmental degradation, and excessive accumulation and resource consumption, or the personal ones like lust, addiction, fear, pride and insecurity.  And I mean like<em> really</em> concretely speak of them, by giving tangible examples and talking about them in the open, admitting our brokenness and mourning over the great, great costs that society and especially the global periphery has borne as a consequence.\r\n\r\nThe other tendency one notices is paradoxically related.  You see it in evangelical contexts particularly, but not only there.  It’s the use of the <em>birth</em> of Jesus as another chance to talk about the <em>death </em>of Jesus, and how it functions as a penal substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.  The danger in this case is similar in that, while harping some on individual sins, the message usually goes straight to celebrating what we get from this exchange.  The other problem is that the real richness of the Incarnation itself is lost, and Jesus is separated too much from God the Father.  It likewise precludes any grieving of the darkness around us and in ourselves.  Much like Holy Saturday, Advent is not yet the time for triumph.  With all of the devastation, agony and uncertainty in the world, it is right and even essential to say that God has unfinished work.  And even after the resurrection, which is a central part of God’s mission, the all-important restoration of creation and the dead is still pending.\r\n\r\nThus there is at least a twofold function to the Incarnation that we can speak of without yet getting to atonement.\r\n\r\nFirst, Jesus’s birth into a political climate under the reign of the ruthless King Herod highlights the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of worldly power.  The lowliness, marginality and vulnerability that characterize Jesus’s family and historical setting invokes the theme of solidarity that he and therefore God has with the subjugated peoples of the world.  This includes especially the undocumented, the foreigner, the jobless, the sick, the elderly, the lonely, the prisoner, the troubled veteran, the homeless, the hungry and the uninsured.  As the one who’s first words at the beginning of his ministry were about proclaiming liberation to persons such as these, perhaps this is where our Christmas reflection should also begin.\r\n\r\nSecondly, the Incarnation doesn’t just say that God is <em>with</em> us and <em>for</em> us.  It also echoes, in continuity with the Jewish prophetic tradition what God is <em>against</em>:\r\n<blockquote>“All sufferers can find comfort in the solidarity of the [Incarnate One]; but only those who struggle against evil by following [his] example will discover him at their side.  To claim the comfort of the Incarnation while rejecting [God’s] way is the advocate not only cheap grace but a deceitful ideology.”<a title=\"\" href=\"#_edn1\">[i]</a></blockquote>\r\nThe manor in which Jesus experiences the realities of life on earth in the birth narratives protests all human ambitions that lead to domination, exclusion and oppression.  From sleeping with animals and fleeing to Egypt, to growing up in Nazareth and being raised by a carpenter, Jesus manifests God’s partiality for the underside of history and defends the case of the sinned-against.\r\n\r\nThe themes of solidarity with the victims and the condemnation of injustice are later supplemented by the atonement by Christ ','Still Waiting For Atonement this Christmas','','inherit','open','open','','3114-revision-6','','','2011-12-14 08:33:28','2011-12-14 16:33:28','',3114,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3114-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0);
INSERT INTO `wp_posts` VALUES (3156,1,'2011-12-14 08:31:20','2011-12-14 16:31:20','As Christians we like to talk about the “true”<em> </em>meaning of Christmas – the birth of Jesus Christ of course.  This has made for a good Republican Christmas tv ad in the past.  Sometimes it seems as if certain Christians think it’s sufficient to just <em>mention</em> more loudly than culture what the season is really “all about.”  Doing so gives a kind of cursory feeling of living counter-culturally and of being faithful to the Great Commission.  And it’s usually accompanied by abstract proclamations of love, joy, peace and hope.  I can’t help think again of the verse about “those who give assurance of peace when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).  But we know that beneath the surface there is much more to what Christ’s advent really signifies.\r\n\r\nWe live in an age when people aren’t hearing or seeing the Christmas story as relevant anymore.  On the one hand, we don’t worry about this too much, but on the other hand, have we ever asked why?  There’s so much craziness around the holidays at church.  Living nativities for example – what does this really communicate?  Do the people putting them on even know?  I’m not meaning to be cynical here; I genuinely wonder.  No doubt there are many reasons for society’s disenchantment, but I submit that at least one of them is the failure, in church, to name and confess the biggest sins of our people – social sins like war, coercive free trade agreements with South Korea, exploitation, environmental degradation, and excessive accumulation and resource consumption, or the personal ones like lust, addiction, fear, pride and insecurity.  And I mean like<em> really</em> concretely speak of them, by giving tangible examples and talking about them in the open, admitting our brokenness and mourning over the great, great costs that society and especially the global periphery has borne as a consequence.\r\n\r\nThe other tendency one notices is paradoxically related.  You see it in evangelical contexts particularly, but not only there.  It’s the use of the <em>birth</em> of Jesus as another chance to talk about the <em>death </em>of Jesus, and how it functions as a penal substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.  The danger in this case is similar in that, while harping some on individual sins, the message usually goes straight to celebrating what we get from this exchange.  The other problem is that the real richness of the Incarnation itself is lost, and Jesus is separated too much from God the Father.  It likewise precludes any grieving of the darkness around us and in ourselves.  Much like Holy Saturday, Advent is not yet the time for triumph.  With all of the devastation, agony and uncertainty in the world, it is right and even essential to say that God has unfinished work.  And even after the resurrection, which is a central part of God’s mission, the all-important restoration of creation and the dead is still pending.\r\n\r\nThus there is at least a twofold function to the Incarnation that we can speak of without yet getting to atonement.\r\n\r\nFirst, Jesus’s birth into a political climate under the reign of the ruthless King Herod highlights the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of worldly power.  The lowliness, marginality and vulnerability that characterize Jesus’s family and historical setting invokes the theme of solidarity that he and therefore God has with the subjugated peoples of the world.  This includes especially the undocumented, the foreigner, the jobless, the sick, the elderly, the lonely, the prisoner, the troubled veteran, the homeless, the hungry and the uninsured.  As the one who’s first words at the beginning of his ministry were about proclaiming liberation to persons such as these, perhaps this is where our Christmas reflection should also begin.\r\n\r\nSecondly, the Incarnation doesn’t just say that God is <em>with</em> us and <em>for</em> us.  It also echoes, in continuity with the Jewish prophetic tradition what God is <em>against</em>:\r\n<blockquote>“All sufferers can find comfort in the solidarity of the [Incarnate One]; but only those who struggle against evil by following [his] example will discover him at their side.  To claim the comfort of the Incarnation while rejecting [God’s] way is the advocate not only cheap grace but a deceitful ideology.”<a title=\"\" href=\"#_edn1\">[i]</a></blockquote>\r\nThe manor in which Jesus experiences the realities of life on earth in the birth narratives protests all human ambitions that lead to domination, exclusion and oppression.  From sleeping with animals and fleeing to Egypt, to growing up in Nazareth and being raised by a carpenter, Jesus manifests God’s partiality for the underside of history and defends the case of the sinned-against.\r\n\r\nThe themes of solidarity with the victims and the condemnation of injustice are later supplemented by the atonement by Christ for the perpetrators.  Only God can bring complete healing and reconciliation, and it’s true that we are all perpetrators to some extent – even the poor among us.  We should not romanticize their plight.  The question is not whether we are totally innocent, however – no one is; rather, as Baylor’s Jewish liberation theologian Marc Ellis explains, it’s whether we’re moving <em>toward</em> Community on the one hand or Empire on the other.  Ellis also says that for Christians, unlike Jews, they kind of have to downplay the messianic if they want to properly emphasize the prophetic.  At least for this season and context, I think he might be right.\r\n\r\nThere is another lesson from the Incarnation then.  Henri Nouwen says that “we read the Word[/Christ] so that the Word[/Christ] can become flesh and have a whole new life in us.”  He seems to be hinting here at the idea of <em>theosis</em> – that is, our sanctification and transformation into the image of the invisible God.  This change in us, however gradual and inconsistent, also demands a conversion of some kind, a repentance or “turning around” as John the Baptist insisted.\r\n\r\nI like the words to a song ','Still Waiting For Atonement this Christmas','','inherit','open','open','','3114-revision-5','','','2011-12-14 08:31:20','2011-12-14 16:31:20','',3114,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3114-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(3115,20,'2011-12-11 23:44:32','2011-12-12 07:44:32','As Christians we like to talk about the “true”<em> </em>meaning of Christmas – the birth of Jesus Christ of course.  This has made for a good Republican Christmas tv ad in the past.  Sometimes it seems as if certain Christians think it’s sufficient to just <em>mention</em> more loudly than culture what the season is really “all about.”  Doing so gives a kind of cursory feeling of living counter-culturally and of being faithful to the Great Commission.  And it’s usually accompanied by abstract proclamations of love, joy, peace and hope.  I can’t help think again of the verse about “those who give assurance of peace when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).  But we know that beneath the surface there is much more to what Christ’s advent really signifies.  We live in an age when people aren’t hearing or seeing the Christmas story as relevant anymore.  On the one hand, we don’t worry about this too much, but on the other hand, have we ever asked why?  There’s so much craziness around the holidays at church.  Living nativities for example – what does this really communicate?  Do the people putting them on even know?  I’m not meaning to be cynical here; I genuinely wonder.  No doubt there are many reasons for society’s disenchantment, but I submit that at least one of them is the failure, in church, to name and confess the biggest sins of our people – social sins like war, coercive free trade agreements with South Korea, exploitation, environmental degradation, and excessive accumulation and resource consumption, or the personal ones like lust, addiction, fear, pride and insecurity.  And I mean like<em> really</em> concretely speak of them, by giving tangible examples and talking about them in the open, admitting our brokenness and mourning over the great, great costs that society and especially the global periphery has borne as a consequence.\n\nThe other tendency one notices is paradoxically related.  You see it in evangelical contexts particularly, but not only there.  It’s the use of the <em>birth</em> of Jesus as another chance to talk about the <em>death </em>of Jesus, and how it functions as a penal substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.  The danger in this case is similar in that, while harping some on individual sins, the message usually goes straight to celebrating what we get from this exchange.  The other problem is that the real richness of the Incarnation itself is lost, and Jesus is separated too much from God the Father.  It likewise precludes any grieving of the darkness around us and in ourselves.  Much like Holy Saturday, Advent is not yet the time for triumph.  With all of the devastation, agony and uncertainty in the world, it is right and even essential to say that God has unfinished work.  And even after the resurrection, which is a central part of God’s mission, the all-important restoration of creation and the dead is still pending.\n\nThus there is at least a twofold function to the Incarnation that we can speak of without yet getting to atonement.\n\nFirst, Jesus’s birth into a political climate under the reign of the ruthless King Herod highlights the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of worldly power.  The lowliness, marginality and vulnerability that characterize Jesus’s family and historical setting invokes the theme of solidarity that he and therefore God has with the subjugated peoples of the world.  This includes especially the undocumented, the foreigner, the jobless, the sick, the elderly, the lonely, the prisoner, the troubled veteran, the homeless, the hungry and the uninsured.  As the one who’s first words at the beginning of his ministry were about proclaiming liberation to persons such as these, perhaps this is where our Christmas reflection should also begin.\n\nSecondly, the Incarnation doesn’t just say that God is <em>with</em> us and <em>for</em> us.  It also echoes, in continuity with the Jewish prophetic tradition what God is <em>against</em>:\n<blockquote>“All sufferers can find comfort in the solidarity of the [Incarnate One]; but only those who struggle against evil by following [his] example will discover him at their side.  To claim the comfort of the Incarnation while rejecting [God’s] way is the advocate not only cheap grace but a deceitful ideology.”<a title=\"\" href=\"#_edn1\">[i]</a></blockquote>\nThe manor in which Jesus experiences the realities of life on earth in the birth narratives protests all human ambitions that lead to domination, exclusion and oppression.  From sleeping with animals and fleeing to Egypt, to growing up in Nazareth and being raised by a carpenter, Jesus manifests God’s partiality for the underside of history and defends the case of the sinned-against.\n\nThe themes of solidarity with the victims and the condemnation of injustice are later supplemented by the atonement by Christ for the perpetrators.  Only God can bring complete healing and reconciliation, and it’s true that we are all perpetrators to some extent – even the poor among us.  We should not romanticize their plight.  The question is not whether we are totally innocent, however – no one is; rather, as Baylor’s Jewish liberation theologian Marc Ellis explains, it’s whether we’re moving <em>toward</em> Community on the one hand or Empire on the other.  Ellis also says that for Christians, unlike Jews, they kind of have to downplay - not dismiss - the messianic if they want to properly emphasize the prophetic.  At least for this season and context, I think he might be right.\n\nThere is another lesson from the Incarnation then.  Henri Nouwen says that “we read the Word[/Christ] so that the Word[/Christ] can become flesh and have a whole new life in us.”  He seems to be hinting here at the idea of <em>theosis</em> – that is, our sanctification and transformation into the image of the invisible God.  This change in us, however gradual and inconsistent, also demands a conversion of some kind, a repentance or “turning around” as John the Baptist insisted.\n\nI like the words to a song my friend Tripp Fuller wrote and recently sang on his <a href=\"http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2011/12/08/advent-tnt-extravaganza/\" target=\"_blank\">podcast</a> which inspired part of this reflection:\n<blockquote>\"Pattern all your calculating\n\nand the world we are creating\n\nto the Advent we’re awaiting.\n\nCome Lord Jesus come.\"</blockquote>\n<div><br />\n\n<hr align=\"left\" size=\"1\" width=\"33%\" />\n\n<div>\n\n<a title=\"\" href=\"#_ednref\">[i]</a> Miroslav Volf, <em>Exclusion &amp; Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation</em>, First Edition. (Abingdon Press, 1996), 24.\n\n</div>\n</div>','Doing Justice to Incarnation this Christmas: Still Waiting for Atonement','','inherit','open','open','','3114-revision','','','2011-12-11 23:44:32','2011-12-12 07:44:32','',3114,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3114-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(3154,1,'2011-12-14 08:26:17','2011-12-14 16:26:17','','Jesus_nativity','','inherit','open','open','','jesus_nativity','','','2011-12-14 08:26:17','2011-12-14 16:26:17','',3114,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Jesus_nativity.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(3116,20,'2011-12-11 23:45:07','2011-12-12 07:45:07','As Christians we like to talk about the “true”<em> </em>meaning of Christmas – the birth of Jesus Christ of course.  This has made for a good Republican Christmas tv ad in the past.  Sometimes it seems as if certain Christians think it’s sufficient to just <em>mention</em> more loudly than culture what the season is really “all about.”  Doing so gives a kind of cursory feeling of living counter-culturally and of being faithful to the Great Commission.  And it’s usually accompanied by abstract proclamations of love, joy, peace and hope.  I can’t help think again of the verse about “those who give assurance of peace when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).  But we know that beneath the surface there is much more to what Christ’s advent really signifies.  We live in an age when people aren’t hearing or seeing the Christmas story as relevant anymore.  On the one hand, we don’t worry about this too much, but on the other hand, have we ever asked why?  There’s so much craziness around the holidays at church.  Living nativities for example – what does this really communicate?  Do the people putting them on even know?  I’m not meaning to be cynical here; I genuinely wonder.  No doubt there are many reasons for society’s disenchantment, but I submit that at least one of them is the failure, in church, to name and confess the biggest sins of our people – social sins like war, coercive free trade agreements with South Korea, exploitation, environmental degradation, and excessive accumulation and resource consumption, or the personal ones like lust, addiction, fear, pride and insecurity.  And I mean like<em> really</em> concretely speak of them, by giving tangible examples and talking about them in the open, admitting our brokenness and mourning over the great, great costs that society and especially the global periphery has borne as a consequence.\r\n\r\nThe other tendency one notices is paradoxically related.  You see it in evangelical contexts particularly, but not only there.  It’s the use of the <em>birth</em> of Jesus as another chance to talk about the <em>death </em>of Jesus, and how it functions as a penal substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.  The danger in this case is similar in that, while harping some on individual sins, the message usually goes straight to celebrating what we get from this exchange.  The other problem is that the real richness of the Incarnation itself is lost, and Jesus is separated too much from God the Father.  It likewise precludes any grieving of the darkness around us and in ourselves.  Much like Holy Saturday, Advent is not yet the time for triumph.  With all of the devastation, agony and uncertainty in the world, it is right and even essential to say that God has unfinished work.  And even after the resurrection, which is a central part of God’s mission, the all-important restoration of creation and the dead is still pending.\r\n\r\nThus there is at least a twofold function to the Incarnation that we can speak of without yet getting to atonement.\r\n\r\nFirst, Jesus’s birth into a political climate under the reign of the ruthless King Herod highlights the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of worldly power.  The lowliness, marginality and vulnerability that characterize Jesus’s family and historical setting invokes the theme of solidarity that he and therefore God has with the subjugated peoples of the world.  This includes especially the undocumented, the foreigner, the jobless, the sick, the elderly, the lonely, the prisoner, the troubled veteran, the homeless, the hungry and the uninsured.  As the one who’s first words at the beginning of his ministry were about proclaiming liberation to persons such as these, perhaps this is where our Christmas reflection should also begin.\r\n\r\nSecondly, the Incarnation doesn’t just say that God is <em>with</em> us and <em>for</em> us.  It also echoes, in continuity with the Jewish prophetic tradition what God is <em>against</em>:\r\n<blockquote>“All sufferers can find comfort in the solidarity of the [Incarnate One]; but only those who struggle against evil by following [his] example will discover him at their side.  To claim the comfort of the Incarnation while rejecting [God’s] way is the advocate not only cheap grace but a deceitful ideology.”<a title=\"\" href=\"#_edn1\">[i]</a></blockquote>\r\nThe manor in which Jesus experiences the realities of life on earth in the birth narratives protests all human ambitions that lead to domination, exclusion and oppression.  From sleeping with animals and fleeing to Egypt, to growing up in Nazareth and being raised by a carpenter, Jesus manifests God’s partiality for the underside of history and defends the case of the sinned-against.\r\n\r\nThe themes of solidarity with the victims and the condemnation of injustice are later supplemented by the atonement by Christ for the perpetrators.  Only God can bring complete healing and reconciliation, and it’s true that we are all perpetrators to some extent – even the poor among us.  We should not romanticize their plight.  The question is not whether we are totally innocent, however – no one is; rather, as Baylor’s Jewish liberation theologian Marc Ellis explains, it’s whether we’re moving <em>toward</em> Community on the one hand or Empire on the other.  Ellis also says that for Christians, unlike Jews, they kind of have to downplay the messianic if they want to properly emphasize the prophetic.  At least for this season and context, I think he might be right.\r\n\r\nThere is another lesson from the Incarnation then.  Henri Nouwen says that “we read the Word[/Christ] so that the Word[/Christ] can become flesh and have a whole new life in us.”  He seems to be hinting here at the idea of <em>theosis</em> – that is, our sanctification and transformation into the image of the invisible God.  This change in us, however gradual and inconsistent, also demands a conversion of some kind, a repentance or “turning around” as John the Baptist insisted.\r\n\r\nI like the words to a song my friend Tripp Fuller wrote and recently sang on his <a href=\"http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2011/12/08/advent-tnt-extravaganza/\" target=\"_blank\">podcast</a> which inspired part of this reflection:\r\n<blockquote>\"Pattern all your calculating\r\n\r\nand the world we are creating\r\n\r\nto the Advent we’re awaiting.\r\n\r\nCome Lord Jesus come.\"</blockquote>\r\n<div><br />\r\n\r\n<hr align=\"left\" size=\"1\" width=\"33%\" />\r\n\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"\" href=\"#_ednref\">[i]</a> Miroslav Volf, <em>Exclusion &amp; Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation</em>, First Edition. (Abingdon Press, 1996), 24.\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n</div>','Doing Justice to Incarnation this Christmas: Still Waiting for Atonement','','inherit','open','open','','3114-revision-2','','','2011-12-11 23:45:07','2011-12-12 07:45:07','',3114,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3114-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(3117,20,'2012-03-24 13:49:28','2012-03-24 20:49:28','As Christians we like to talk about the “true”<em> </em>meaning of Christmas – the birth of Jesus Christ of course.  This has even made for a good Christmas political campaign ad in the past.  Sometimes it seems as if certain Christians think it’s sufficient to just <em>mention</em> more loudly than culture what the season is really “all about.”  Doing so gives a kind of cursory feeling of living counter-culturally and of being faithful to the Great Commission.  And it’s usually accompanied by abstract proclamations of love, joy, peace and hope.  I can’t help think again of the verse about “those who give assurance of peace when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).  But we know that beneath the surface there is much more to what Christ’s advent really signifies.\n\nWe live in an age when people aren’t hearing or seeing the Christmas story as relevant anymore.  On the one hand, we don’t worry about this too much, but on the other hand, have we ever asked why?  There’s so much craziness around the holidays at church.  Living nativities for example – what does this really communicate?  Do the people putting them on even know?  I’m not meaning to be cynical here; I genuinely wonder.  No doubt there are many reasons for society’s disenchantment, but I submit that at least one of them is the failure, in church, to name and confess the biggest sins of our people – social sins like war, coercive free trade agreements with South Korea, exploitation, environmental degradation, and excessive accumulation and resource consumption, or the personal ones like lust, addiction, fear, pride and insecurity.  And I mean like<em> really</em> concretely speak of them, by giving tangible examples and talking about them in the open, admitting our brokenness and mourning over the great, great costs that society and especially the global periphery has borne as a consequence.\n\nThe other tendency one notices is paradoxically related.  You see it in evangelical contexts particularly, but not only there.  It’s the use of the <em>birth</em> of Jesus as another chance to talk about the <em>death </em>of Jesus, and how it functions as a penal substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.  The danger in this case is similar in that, while harping some on individual sins, the message usually goes straight to celebrating what we get from this exchange.  The other problem is that the real richness of the Incarnation itself is lost, and Jesus is separated too much from God the Father.  It likewise precludes any grieving of the darkness around us and in ourselves.  Much like Holy Saturday, Advent is not yet the time for triumph.  With all of the devastation, agony and uncertainty in the world, it is right and even essential to say that God has unfinished work.  And even after the resurrection, which is a central part of God’s mission, the all-important restoration of creation and the dead is still pending.\n\nThus there is at least a twofold function to the Incarnation that we can speak of without yet getting to atonement.\n\nFirst, Jesus’s birth into a political climate under the reign of the ruthless King Herod highlights the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of worldly power.  The lowliness, marginality and vulnerability that characterize Jesus’s family and historical setting invokes the theme of solidarity that he and therefore God has with the subjugated peoples of the world.  This includes especially the undocumented, the foreigner, the jobless, the sick, the elderly, the lonely, the prisoner, the troubled veteran, the homeless, the hungry and the uninsured.  As the one who’s first words at the beginning of his ministry were about proclaiming liberation to persons such as these, perhaps this is where our Christmas reflection should also begin.\n\nSecondly, the Incarnation doesn’t just say that God is <em>with</em> us and <em>for</em> us.  It also echoes, in continuity with the Jewish prophetic tradition what God is <em>against</em>:\n<blockquote>“All sufferers can find comfort in the solidarity of the [Incarnate One]; but only those who struggle against evil by following [his] example will discover him at their side.  To claim the comfort of the Incarnation while rejecting [God’s] way is the advocate not only cheap grace but a deceitful ideology.”<a title=\"\" href=\"#_edn1\">[i]</a></blockquote>\nThe manor in which Jesus experiences the realities of life on earth in the birth narratives protests all human ambitions that lead to domination, exclusion and oppression.  From sleeping with animals and fleeing to Egypt, to growing up in Nazareth and being raised by a carpenter, Jesus manifests God’s partiality for the underside of history and defends the case of the sinned-against.\n\nThe themes of solidarity with the victims and the condemnation of injustice are later supplemented by the atonement by Christ for the perpetrators.  Only God can bring complete healing and reconciliation, and it’s true that we are all perpetrators to some extent – even the poor among us.  We should not romanticize their plight.  The question is not whether we are totally innocent, however – no one is; rather, as Baylor’s Jewish liberation theologian Marc Ellis explains, it’s whether we’re moving <em>toward</em> Community on the one hand or Empire on the other.  Ellis also says that for Christians, unlike Jews, they kind of have to downplay the messianic if they want to properly emphasize the prophetic.  At least for this season and context, I think he might be right.\n\nThere is another lesson from the Incarnation then.  Henri Nouwen says that “we read the Word[/Christ] so that the Word[/Christ] can become flesh and have a whole new life in us.”  He seems to be hinting here at the idea of <em>theosis</em> – that is, our sanctification and transformation into the image of the invisible God.  This change in us, however gradual and inconsistent, also demands a conversion of some kind, a repentance or “turning around” as John the Baptist insisted.\n\nI like the words to a song my friend Tripp Fuller wrote and recently sang on his <a href=\"http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2011/12/08/advent-tnt-extravaganza/\" target=\"_blank\">podcast</a> which inspired part of this reflection:\n<blockquote>\"Pattern all your calculating\n\nand the world we are creating\n\nto the Advent we’re awaiting.\n\nCome Lord Jesus come.\"</blockquote>\n<div>\n\n<hr align=\"left\" size=\"1\" width=\"33%\" />\n\n<div>\n\n<a title=\"\" href=\"#_ednref\">[i]</a> Miroslav Volf, <em>Exclusion &amp; Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation</em>, First Edition. (Abingdon Press, 1996), 24.\n\n</div>\n</div>','Still Waiting For Atonement This Christmas','','inherit','open','open','','3114-autosave','','','2012-03-24 13:49:28','2012-03-24 20:49:28','',3114,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3114-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(3525,1,'2012-01-03 09:30:56','2012-01-03 17:30:56','<iframe src=\"http://player.vimeo.com/video/30187712?color=ffffff\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\"></iframe>\r\n\r\n<strong>The <a href=\"http://verge2012.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Verge 2012 Missional Community Conference</a> </strong>is a four-day experience for church leaders, students, entrepreneurs, artists, urban innovators, business leaders, community development specialists, non-profit leaders, church planters and everyday leaders - anyone pursuing the mission of God, in community, whatever the context, for the sake of the Gospel.\r\n\r\nVerge will resource you to make disciples who make disciples in every sphere and domain of society, advocate for the poor and oppressed, mobilize urban and global mission leaders, and champion movements of gospel-centered missional communities\r\n\r\nMade up of pre-conferences, post-conferences, two-days of challenging main sessions, music, workshops, networking opportunities and more, Verge 2012 is here to encourage, build up and renew all kinds of leaders engaged in the mission of God to redeem and renew.<em></em>\r\n\r\n<em>Verge 2012 is For The Gospel \\ For The City \\ For The Nations</em>\r\n\r\nTuesday, February 28, 2012 - Friday, March 02, 2012 - Austin, TX.\r\n\r\nCost is just $129 - <a href=\"http://www.regonline.com/Register/Checkin.aspx?EventID=987424\" target=\"_blank\">Register here</a>.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','The Verge 2012 Missional Community Conference','','publish','open','open','','the-verge-2012-missional-community-conference','','','2012-01-02 09:44:11','2012-01-02 17:44:11','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=3525',0,'post','',0),(3119,110,'2011-12-12 02:56:31','2011-12-12 10:56:31','','St Matthew','','inherit','open','open','','st-matthew','','','2011-12-12 02:56:31','2011-12-12 10:56:31','',3024,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/St-Matthew.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(3120,110,'2011-12-12 02:55:42','2011-12-12 10:55:42','The four gospels are like the four voices of a choir, singing the song of Jesus in tight harmony. But the composition is so careful and clever that by putting them all together we miss the intricate detail of the individual melodies and counter melodies. Each one is exquisite and unique alone, while contributing to a majestic symphonic masterpiece. But sometimes we hear them all mushed together through little cheap white ear-buds, we forget the detail in each one - which in this series we hope to glimpse a little of.\n\nThe start of Matthews gospel contains some of the most treasured moments in the nativity play, but read alone, forgetting the \'rest of the story\' that you\'ve heard so many times it is fresh and compelling. Why not take a moment of your day to read the first two chapters of Matthew - it\'s less than 1500 words, it will only take about 6 minutes to read.\n\nThe two chapters can be summarised like this:\n<ol>\n	<li>Ancestors of Jesus</li>\n	<li>An angel visits Joseph (and Jesus is born)</li>\n	<li>Magi come to find the king of the Jews</li>\n	<li>An angel tells Joseph to run from murderous Herod</li>\n	<li>They return to Nazareth</li>\n</ol>\nNotice that the only angels are in Joseph\'s two dreams, there\'s no journey to Bethlehem written about - the journeys are the escape to Egypt and the return to Nazareth. In fact the \'main characters\' seem to have quite a small part - neither Mary, Joseph or Jesus are named more that half a dozen times between the two chapters. It\'s all happening so that the prophets\' words come true and at the direction of the angelic dreams.\n\nMatthew gives away the emphasis of his gospel telling by giving the detailed ancestry of Jesus right at the start of the book. Matthew, over and over, show Jesus coming in the light of all the Old Testament, and this list of people includes so many of the \'heroes\' of the Jewish faith by tracing Jesus back to King David and back to the fathers of the Israelite nation, to Abraham.\n\nBut then Matthew does something unexpected. Jesus is born exactly as the prophets said he would be, but the only ones looking for him are Persian \'Magicians\'. We call them \'Kings\' or \'Wise Men\' because it\'s not neat to think of them as priests of a foreign religion, but this is exactly the shock value Matthew wants us to see. Herod wanted to be thought of as \'King of the Jews\' but didn\'t appreciate the importance of this baby. His advisors, who are well read enough in religion to tell the Magi where to find Jesus are either too unbelieving or too scared of Herod to do anything but advise. So for Matthew, this distinctively Jewish good news starts with hated foreigners getting it right. The only ones who really understand Jesus and worship him are high-ranking priests in another religion entirely, while the ones who should understand are slaughtering children.\n\nMatthew\'s first couple of chapters are all about validating who Jesus is and how he will be rejected by some but surprisingly found by others who we wouldn\'t expect. Though Matthew begins with Jesus\' Jewish heritage and ancestry, it is outsiders who see the King of the Jews and even worship \'God with us\'.  Jesus\' childhood in exile in Egypt is the final hint that if the Jews don\'t accept this message it will go to the rest of the world, outsiders, people who will see Jesus for who he really is. May we not be so busy this Christmas; organising services, buying, wrapping, cooking and talking about the \'real meaning\' that we miss the \'God with us\'. And no matter how much of the history and ritual of worshipping God we know, let\'s not forget that those with no experience can sometimes find Jesus more easily than we can.','De-harmonising Christmas - Part 3: Matthew','','inherit','open','open','','3024-revision-3','','','2011-12-12 02:55:42','2011-12-12 10:55:42','',3024,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3024-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(3121,1,'2011-12-16 07:53:30','2011-12-16 15:53:30','The four gospels are like the four voices of a choir, singing the song of Jesus in tight harmony. But the composition is so careful and clever that by putting them all together we miss the intricate detail of the individual melodies and counter melodies. Each one is exquisite and unique alone, while contributing to a majestic symphonic masterpiece. But sometimes we hear them all mushed together through little cheap white ear-buds, we forget the detail in each one - which in this series we hope to glimpse a little of.\n\nThe start of Matthews gospel contains some of the most treasured moments in the nativity play, but read alone, forgetting the \'rest of the story\' that you\'ve heard so many times it is fresh and compelling. Why not take a moment of your day to read the first two chapters of Matthew - it\'s less than 1500 words, it will only take about 6 minutes to read.\n\nThe two chapters can be summarised like this:\n<ol>\n	<li>Ancestors of Jesus</li>\n	<li>An angel visits Joseph (and Jesus is born)</li>\n	<li>Magi come to find the king of the Jews</li>\n	<li>An angel tells Joseph to run from murderous Herod</li>\n	<li>They return to Nazareth</li>\n</ol>\nNotice that the only angels are in Joseph\'s two dreams, there\'s no journey to Bethlehem written about - the journeys are the escape to Egypt and the return to Nazareth. In fact the \'main characters\' seem to have quite a small part - neither Mary, Joseph or Jesus are named more that half a dozen times between the two chapters. It\'s all happening so that the prophets\' words come true and at the direction of the angelic dreams.\n\nMatthew gives away the emphasis of his gospel telling by giving the detailed ancestry of Jesus right at the start of the book. Matthew, over and over, show Jesus coming in the light of all the Old Testament, and this list of people includes so many of the \'heroes\' of the Jewish faith by tracing Jesus back to King David and back to the fathers of the Israelite nation, to Abraham.\n\nBut then Matthew does something unexpected. Jesus is born exactly as the prophets said he would be, but the only ones looking for him are Persian \'Magicians\'. We call them \'Kings\' or \'Wise Men\' because it\'s not neat to think of them as priests of a foreign religion, but this is exactly the shock value Matthew wants us to see. Herod wanted to be thought of as \'King of the Jews\' but didn\'t appreciate the importance of this baby. His advisors, who are well read enough in religion to tell the Magi where to find Jesus are either too unbelieving or too scared of Herod to do anything but advise. So for Matthew, this distinctively Jewish good news starts with hated foreigners getting it right. The only ones who really understand Jesus and worship him are high-ranking priests in another religion entirely, while the ones who should understand are slaughtering children.\n\nMatthew\'s first couple of chapters are all about validating who Jesus is and how he will be rejected by some but surprisingly found by others who we wouldn\'t expect. Though Matthew begins with Jesus\' Jewish heritage and ancestry, it is outsiders who see the King of the Jews and even worship \'God with us\'. Jesus\' childhood in exile in Egypt is the final hint that if the Jews don\'t accept this message it will go to the rest of the world, outsiders, people who will see Jesus for who he really is.\n\nMay we not be so busy this Christmas; organising services, buying, wrapping, cooking and talking about the \'real meaning\' that we miss the \'God with us\'. And no matter how much we know of the history and ritual of worshipping God, let\'s not forget that those with no experience can sometimes find Jesus more easily than we can.','De-harmonising Christmas - Part 3: Matthew','','inherit','open','open','','3024-autosave','','','2011-12-16 07:53:30','2011-12-16 15:53:30','',3024,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3024-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(3122,110,'2011-12-12 02:57:07','2011-12-12 10:57:07','The four gospels are like the four voices of a choir, singing the song of Jesus in tight harmony. But the composition is so careful and clever that by putting them all together we miss the intricate detail of the individual melodies and counter melodies. Each one is exquisite and unique alone, while contributing to a majestic symphonic masterpiece. But sometimes we hear them all mushed together through little cheap white ear-buds, we forget the detail in each one - which in this series we hope to glimpse a little of.\r\n\r\nThe start of Matthews gospel contains some of the most treasured moments in the nativity play, but read alone, forgetting the \'rest of the story\' that you\'ve heard so many times it is fresh and compelling. Why not take a moment of your day to read the first two chapters of Matthew - it\'s less than 1500 words, it will only take about 6 minutes to read.\r\n\r\nThe two chapters can be summarised like this:\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Ancestors of Jesus</li>\r\n	<li>An angel visits Joseph (and Jesus is born)</li>\r\n	<li>Magi come to find the king of the Jews</li>\r\n	<li>An angel tells Joseph to run from murderous Herod</li>\r\n	<li>They return to Nazareth</li>\r\n</ol>\r\nNotice that the only angels are in Joseph\'s two dreams, there\'s no journey to Bethlehem written about - the journeys are the escape to Egypt and the return to Nazareth. In fact the \'main characters\' seem to have quite a small part - neither Mary, Joseph or Jesus are named more that half a dozen times between the two chapters. It\'s all happening so that the prophets\' words come true and at the direction of the angelic dreams.\r\n\r\nMatthew gives away the emphasis of his gospel telling by giving the detailed ancestry of Jesus right at the start of the book. Matthew, over and over, show Jesus coming in the light of all the Old Testament, and this list of people includes so many of the \'heroes\' of the Jewish faith by tracing Jesus back to King David and back to the fathers of the Israelite nation, to Abraham.\r\n\r\nBut then Matthew does something unexpected. Jesus is born exactly as the prophets said he would be, but the only ones looking for him are Persian \'Magicians\'. We call them \'Kings\' or \'Wise Men\' because it\'s not neat to think of them as priests of a foreign religion, but this is exactly the shock value Matthew wants us to see. Herod wanted to be thought of as \'King of the Jews\' but didn\'t appreciate the importance of this baby. His advisors, who are well read enough in religion to tell the Magi where to find Jesus are either too unbelieving or too scared of Herod to do anything but advise. So for Matthew, this distinctively Jewish good news starts with hated foreigners getting it right. The only ones who really understand Jesus and worship him are high-ranking priests in another religion entirely, while the ones who should understand are slaughtering children.\r\n\r\nMatthew\'s first couple of chapters are all about validating who Jesus is and how he will be rejected by some but surprisingly found by others who we wouldn\'t expect. Though Matthew begins with Jesus\' Jewish heritage and ancestry, it is outsiders who see the King of the Jews and even worship \'God with us\'. Jesus\' childhood in exile in Egypt is the final hint that if the Jews don\'t accept this message it will go to the rest of the world, outsiders, people who will see Jesus for who he really is.\r\n\r\nMay we not be so busy this Christmas; organising services, buying, wrapping, cooking and talking about the \'real meaning\' that we miss the \'God with us\'. And no matter how much we know of the history and ritual of worshipping God, let\'s not forget that those with no experience can sometimes find Jesus more easily than we can.','De-harmonising Christmas - Part 3: Matthew','','inherit','open','open','','3024-revision-4','','','2011-12-12 02:57:07','2011-12-12 10:57:07','',3024,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3024-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(3123,110,'2011-12-12 03:02:00','2011-12-12 11:02:00','The four gospels are like the four voices of a choir, singing the song of Jesus in tight harmony. But the composition is so careful and clever that by putting them all together we miss the intricate detail of the individual melodies and counter melodies. Each one is exquisite and unique alone, while contributing to a majestic symphonic masterpiece. But sometimes we hear them all mushed together through little cheap white ear-buds, we forget the detail in each one - which in this series we hope to glimpse a little of.\r\n\r\nThe start of Matthews gospel contains some of the most treasured moments in the nativity play, but read alone, forgetting the \'rest of the story\' that you\'ve heard so many times it is fresh and compelling. Why not take a moment of your day to read the first two chapters of Matthew - it\'s less than 1500 words, it will only take about 6 minutes to read.\r\n\r\nThe two chapters can be summarised like this:\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Ancestors of Jesus</li>\r\n	<li>An angel visits Joseph (and Jesus is born)</li>\r\n	<li>Magi come to find the king of the Jews</li>\r\n	<li>An angel tells Joseph to run from murderous Herod</li>\r\n	<li>They return to Nazareth</li>\r\n</ol>\r\nNotice that the only angels are in Joseph\'s two dreams, there\'s no journey to Bethlehem written about - the journeys are the escape to Egypt and the return to Nazareth. In fact the \'main characters\' seem to have quite a small part - neither Mary, Joseph or Jesus are named more that half a dozen times between the two chapters. It\'s all happening so that the prophets\' words come true and at the direction of the angelic dreams.\r\n\r\nMatthew gives away the emphasis of his gospel telling by giving the detailed ancestry of Jesus right at the start of the book. Matthew, over and over, show Jesus coming in the light of all the Old Testament, and this list of people includes so many of the \'heroes\' of the Jewish faith by tracing Jesus back to King David and back to the fathers of the Israelite nation, to Abraham.\r\n\r\nBut then Matthew does something unexpected. Jesus is born exactly as the prophets said he would be, but the only ones looking for him are Persian \'Magicians\'. We call them \'Kings\' or \'Wise Men\' because it\'s not neat to think of them as priests of a foreign religion, but this is exactly the shock value Matthew wants us to see. Herod wanted to be thought of as \'King of the Jews\' but didn\'t appreciate the importance of this baby. His advisors, who are well read enough in religion to tell the Magi where to find Jesus are either too unbelieving or too scared of Herod to do anything but advise. So for Matthew, this distinctively Jewish good news starts with hated foreigners getting it right. The only ones who really understand Jesus and worship him are high-ranking priests in another religion entirely, while the ones who should understand are slaughtering children.\r\n\r\nMatthew\'s first couple of chapters are all about validating who Jesus is and how he will be rejected by some but surprisingly found by others who we wouldn\'t expect. Though Matthew begins with Jesus\' Jewish heritage and ancestry, it is outsiders who see the King of the Jews and even worship \'God with us\'. Jesus\' childhood in exile in Egypt is the final hint that if the Jews don\'t accept this message it will go to the rest of the world, outsiders, people who will see Jesus for who he really is.\r\n\r\nMay we not be so busy this Christmas; organising services, buying, wrapping, cooking and talking about the \'real meaning\' that we miss the \'God with us\'. And no matter how much we know of the history and ritual of worshipping God, let\'s not forget that those with no experience can sometimes find Jesus more easily than we can.','De-harmonising Christmas - Part 3: Matthew','','inherit','open','open','','3024-revision-5','','','2011-12-12 03:02:00','2011-12-12 11:02:00','',3024,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3024-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(3377,1,'2011-12-26 17:59:09','2011-12-27 01:59:09','','Joy Bennett','','publish','open','open','','joy-bennett','','','2012-12-18 12:55:03','2012-12-18 20:55:03','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=3377',10,'nav_menu_item','',0),(3125,1,'2011-12-12 08:12:49','2011-12-12 16:12:49','Last night as I was going through my iTunes library, I realized that most of my favorite Christmas songs have to do with peace on earth . . . specifically the lack of it. For starters, there\'s of course John Lennon\'s \"Happy Xmas (War is Over),\" where Yoko Ono and a children\'s choir sing \"War is over if you want it, war is over now\" throughout the song. Then there\'s Stevie Wonder\'s \"Someday at Christmas,\" where Stevie dreams of a world where \"men won\'t be boys/playing with bombs like kids play with toys.\" Then there\'s Greg Lake\'s \"I Believe in Father Christmas,\" which begins with these words:\n<blockquote><em>\"They said there\'ll be snow at Christmas\nThey said there\'ll be peace on earth\nBut instead it just kept on raining\nA veil of tears for the virgin\'s birth\" </em></blockquote>\nOf course my personal favorite is David Bowie and Bing Crosby singing \"Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth.\" According to legend, Bowie was supposed to sing \"Little Drummer Boy\" with Crosby, but asked to sing something else instead, so the producers wrote these new lyrics:\n<blockquote><em>\"Peace on earth, can it be?\nYears from now, perhaps we\'ll see\nSee the day of glory\nSee the day when men of goodwill\nLive in peace, live in peace again\nPeace on earth, can it be?</em>\n\n<em>Every child must be made aware</em>\n<em> Every child must be made to care</em>\n<em> Care enough for his fellow man</em>\n<em> To give all the love that he can.</em>\n\n<em>I pray my wish will come true</em>\n<em> For my child, and your child too.</em>\n<em> He\'ll see the day of glory.</em>\n<em> He\'ll see the day when men of goodwill</em>\n<em> Live in peace, live in peace again</em>\n<em> Peace on earth, can it be?\"</em></blockquote>\nWhy are so many of my favorite Christmas songs about peace on earth? Maybe it\'s just the anarcho-pacifist in me pushing my radical agenda onto this sacred holiday season of overspending and gross commercialism. Or maybe, just maybe, it\'s a little bit more than that.\n\nLike I said <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/12/03/advent-meditation-returning-to-sister-winter/\">a week or so ago</a>, every week during Advent as we light the wreath, we wait for the day when Jesus comes to bring light into the darkness. And as Isaiah prophesied, when the Light of the World comes, he will \"teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths. . . . He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore\" (2:3-4).\n\nI used to think that passage was only referring to the Second Coming, until I noticed the part in verse two when Isaiah says, “He will teach us His ways so that we may walk in His paths.” To me, that indicates Isaiah was talking about Jesus\' first advent, when He came to teach us about the Kingdom of God. So if I\'m not mistaken, that means we don’t have to wait around in order to have peace; we can work for peace right now.\n\nSo will David Bowie\'s wish ever come true? Yes, but I don’t think we’ll have perfect peace until Jesus returns, so in that sense we are still waiting. However, I do believe it’s time the Church took Jesus’ teachings about nonviolence seriously, and start working to make the world a more peaceful place (with the help of God, of course).','Advent Meditation:  Beating Swords Into Plowshares','','inherit','open','open','','3018-autosave','','','2011-12-12 08:12:49','2011-12-12 16:12:49','',3018,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3018-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(3126,1,'2011-12-12 08:18:07','2011-12-12 16:18:07','','field_rows','','inherit','open','open','','field_rows','','','2011-12-12 08:18:07','2011-12-12 16:18:07','',3018,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/field_rows.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(3127,1,'2011-12-08 11:33:28','2011-12-08 19:33:28','Last night as I was going through my iTunes library, I realized that most of my favorite Christmas songs have to do with peace on earth . . . specifically the lack of it. For starters, there\'s of course John Lennon\'s \"Happy Xmas (War is Over),\" where Yoko Ono and a children\'s choir sing \"War is over if you want it, war is over now\" throughout the song. Then there\'s Stevie Wonder\'s \"Someday at Christmas,\" where Stevie dreams of a world where \"men won\'t be boys/playing with bombs like kids play with toys.\" Then there\'s Greg Lake\'s \"I Believe in Father Christmas,\" which begins with these words:\r\n<blockquote><em>\r\n\"They said there\'ll be snow at Christmas\r\nThey said there\'ll be peace on earth\r\nBut instead it just kept on raining\r\nA veil of tears for the virgin\'s birth\" </em></blockquote>\r\nOf course my personal favorite is David Bowie and Bing Crosby singing \"Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth.\" According to legend, Bowie was supposed to sing \"Little Drummer Boy\" with Crosby, but asked to sing something else instead, so the producers wrote these new lyrics:\r\n<blockquote><em>\"Peace on earth, can it be?\r\nYears from now, perhaps we\'ll see\r\nSee the day of glory\r\nSee the day when men of goodwill\r\nLive in peace, live in peace again\r\nPeace on earth, can it be?\r\n\r\nEvery child must be made aware\r\nEvery child must be made to care\r\nCare enough for his fellow man\r\nTo give all the love that he can.\r\n\r\nI pray my wish will come true\r\nFor my child, and your child too.\r\nHe\'ll see the day of glory.\r\nHe\'ll see the day when men of goodwill\r\nLive in peace, live in peace again\r\nPeace on earth, can it be?\"</em></blockquote>\r\nWhy are so many of my favorite Christmas songs about peace on earth? Maybe it\'s just the anarcho-pacifist in me pushing my radical agenda onto this sacred holiday season of overspending and gross commercialism.  Or maybe, just maybe, it\'s a little bit more than that.\r\n\r\nLike I said <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/12/03/advent-meditation-returning-to-sister-winter/\">a week or so ago</a>, every week during Advent as we light the wreath, we wait for the day when Jesus comes to bring light into the darkness. And as Isaiah prophesied, when the Light of the World comes, he will \"teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths. . . . He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore\" (2:3-4). \r\n\r\nI used to think that passage was only referring to the Second Coming, until I noticed the part in verse two when Isaiah says, “He will teach us His ways so that we may walk in His paths.” To me, that indicates Isaiah was talking about Jesus\' first advent, when He came to teach us about the Kingdom of God. So if I\'m not mistaken, that means we don’t have to wait around in order to have peace; we can work for peace right now.\r\n\r\nSo will David Bowie\'s wish ever come true?  Yes, but I don’t think we’ll have perfect peace until Jesus returns, so in that sense we are still waiting.  However, I do believe it’s time the Church took Jesus’ teachings about nonviolence seriously, and start working to make the world a more peaceful place (with the help of God, of course).','Advent Meditation:  Beating Swords Into Plowshares','','inherit','open','open','','3018-revision-6','','','2011-12-08 11:33:28','2011-12-08 19:33:28','',3018,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/08/3018-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(3129,1,'2011-12-11 10:32:20','2011-12-11 18:32:20','[caption id=\"attachment_3098\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"230\" caption=\"Ariah Fine\"]<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/ariah-fine.jpg\"><img src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/ariah-fine-230x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"230\" height=\"300\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-3098\" /></a>[/caption]\r\n\r\nThis week the something beautiful crew talks with author and community organizer Ariah Fine about his latest project, Clean Water for Elirose.\r\n\r\nAriah shares why community and social justice matter to him and how he was inspired to write a children’s book to share the story of clean water with his young children.\r\n\r\n<strong>Some questions to ask yourself while you listen:</strong>\r\n\r\nWhat issues are dear to your heart?\r\nAre resources available to explain those issues to people of all ages?\r\nWhat resource could you create to better explain the issue?\r\nWhat could you and your family do to help provide clean water for people around the world?\r\n\r\n[audio=\"http://somethingbeautifulpodcast.com/podcast/120911.mp3\"]','Something Beautiful - Ariah Fine','','inherit','open','open','','3097-revision-4','','','2011-12-11 10:32:20','2011-12-11 18:32:20','',3097,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3097-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(3130,1,'2011-12-12 08:38:38','2011-12-12 16:38:38','By now, most people have seen this ad:\n\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PAJNntoRgA[/youtube]\n\nI had to watch the video more than once to wrap my mind around it.  On the surface, he appears to be repeating the same tired nonsense that circulates on social media.  It\'s the same non-logic that fuels angry Facebook re-posts about being forced to say \"Happy Holidays\" instead of \"Merry Christmas.\"  One could easily shrug it off as being no more than an eye-roll-inducing piece of nonsense with a persecution complex.\n\nExcept that it\'s not.\n\nIn every single sentence of Rick Perry\'s \"Strong\" ad, he weaponizes his faith.  Not only that, Perry knows exactly what he\'s doing.  He knows that there is a subset of the American population that thrives on the belief that LGBT people have an agenda and are out to destroy traditional values; that children are punished for praying; that President Obama is not only not a \"real\" Christian but actively wants to destroy religion (by which he means true Christianity, of course—who really cares about the Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and so forth).\n\nPerry, in his zeal to find persecution around every corner, has forgotten one thing.  He\'s embracing the wrong kind of strong.  Perry imagines that if we force his personal values on every man, woman, and child in this country, we will become \"strong.\"  The Jesus he claims to love never came to beat anyone down.  He didn\'t come to claim his power and overthrow the Roman government.  He didn\'t come to weed out the people the Jewish leaders deemed sinful.  Heck, he didn\'t even condemn the people caught in overt sin.  It\'s not very likely that Jesus would do anything different in twenty-first century America than he did two thousand years ago.  Instead of condemnation, Jesus brought love, mercy, grace, and reconciliation.  Those things are far better than whatever Perry has in mind.\n\nCheck out this video, a response to Perry\'s ad.  It\'s a nice summary of what else is wrong with the ad:\n\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppOpOv_kv2s&amp;sns=fb[/youtube]','The Wrong Kind of Strong','','inherit','open','open','','3105-autosave','','','2011-12-12 08:38:38','2011-12-12 16:38:38','',3105,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3105-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(3131,1,'2011-12-11 19:26:06','2011-12-12 03:26:06','By now, most people have seen this ad:\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PAJNntoRgA[/youtube]\r\n\r\nI had to watch the video more than once to wrap my mind around it.  On the surface, he appears to be repeating the same tired nonsense that circulates on social media.  It\'s the same non-logic that fuels angry Facebook re-posts about being forced to say \"Happy Holidays\" instead of \"Merry Christmas.\"  One could easily shrug it off as being no more than an eye-roll-inducing piece of nonsense with a persecution complex.\r\n\r\nExcept that it\'s not.\r\n\r\nIn every single sentence of Rick Perry\'s \"Strong\" ad, he weaponizes his faith.  Not only that, Perry knows exactly what he\'s doing.  He knows that there is a subset of the American population that thrives on the belief that LGBT people have an agenda and are out to destroy traditional values; that children are punished for praying; that President Obama is not only not a \"real\" Christian but actively wants to destroy religion (by which he means true Christianity, of course—who really cares about the Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and so forth).\r\n\r\nPerry, in his zeal to find persecution around every corner, has forgotten one thing.  He\'s embracing the wrong kind of strong.  Perry imagines that if we force his personal values on every man, woman, and child in this country, we will become \"strong.\"  The Jesus he claims to love never came to beat anyone down.  He didn\'t come to claim his power and overthrow the Roman government.  He didn\'t come to weed out the people the Jewish leaders deemed sinful.  Heck, he didn\'t even condemn the people caught in overt sin.  It\'s not very likely that Jesus would do anything different in twenty-first century America than he did two thousand years ago.  Instead of condemnation, Jesus brought love, mercy, grace, and reconciliation.  Those things are far better than whatever Perry has in mind.\r\n\r\nCheck out this video, a response to Perry\'s ad.  It\'s a nice summary of what else is wrong with the ad:\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppOpOv_kv2s&amp;sns=fb[/youtube]','The Wrong Kind of Strong','','inherit','open','open','','3105-revision-6','','','2011-12-11 19:26:06','2011-12-12 03:26:06','',3105,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3105-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(3132,1,'2011-12-12 08:47:17','2011-12-12 16:47:17','','rick_perry','','inherit','open','open','','rick_perry','','','2011-12-12 08:47:17','2011-12-12 16:47:17','',3105,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/rick_perry.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(3133,1,'2011-12-12 08:39:32','2011-12-12 16:39:32','By now, most people have seen this ad:\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PAJNntoRgA[/youtube]\r\n\r\nI had to watch the video more than once to wrap my mind around it.  On the surface, he appears to be repeating the same tired nonsense that circulates on social media.  It\'s the same non-logic that fuels angry Facebook re-posts about being forced to say \"Happy Holidays\" instead of \"Merry Christmas.\"  One could easily shrug it off as being no more than an eye-roll-inducing piece of nonsense with a persecution complex.\r\n\r\nExcept that it\'s not.\r\n\r\nIn every single sentence of Rick Perry\'s \"Strong\" ad, he weaponizes his faith.  Not only that, Perry knows exactly what he\'s doing.  He knows that there is a subset of the American population that thrives on the belief that LGBT people have an agenda and are out to destroy traditional values; that children are punished for praying; that President Obama is not only not a \"real\" Christian but actively wants to destroy religion (by which he means true Christianity, of course—who really cares about the Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and so forth).\r\n\r\nPerry, in his zeal to find persecution around every corner, has forgotten one thing.  He\'s embracing the wrong kind of strong.  Perry imagines that if we force his personal values on every man, woman, and child in this country, we will become \"strong.\"  The Jesus he claims to love never came to beat anyone down.  He didn\'t come to claim his power and overthrow the Roman government.  He didn\'t come to weed out the people the Jewish leaders deemed sinful.  Heck, he didn\'t even condemn the people caught in overt sin.  It\'s not very likely that Jesus would do anything different in twenty-first century America than he did two thousand years ago.  Instead of condemnation, Jesus brought love, mercy, grace, and reconciliation.  Those things are far better than whatever Perry has in mind.\r\n\r\nCheck out this video, a response to Perry\'s ad.  It\'s a nice summary of what else is wrong with the ad:\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppOpOv_kv2s&amp;sns=fb[/youtube]','The Wrong Kind of Strong','','inherit','open','open','','3105-revision-7','','','2011-12-12 08:39:32','2011-12-12 16:39:32','',3105,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3105-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(3134,1,'2011-12-11 22:08:14','2011-12-12 06:08:14','My recent exploration of the idea of  \"me\" has led \"me\" to a remarkable fact. Self exploration can be the best exploration of all. I have not done much of this in the past?  I have been scared to look within. Afraid that something is wrong with me. (That has actually turned out to be true!) I thought only weak people talk about their weaknesses, then they don\'t have to do anything. They have no mission or vision for their lives so they are perishing.  That was a lame thought. If I every said that to you consider this a formal apology.\r\n\r\nWhat if when God formed man and blew the breath of life into us we became and eternal unsearchable being like him. What if there is no end to our souls. What if the more we search the more we discover about God and His amazing love for us.\r\n\r\nWhere could I go and find God absent? It seems everything I perceive to be \'out there\' is leading me towards and inner gaze.\r\nDavid seemed to recognize this phenomena when he penned the 139 psalm.\r\n\r\n<em>I look behind me and you\'re there,</em>\r\n<em> then up ahead and you\'re there, too—</em>\r\n<em> your reassuring presence, coming and going.</em>\r\n<em> This is too much, too wonderful—</em>\r\n<em> I can\'t take it all in!</em>\r\n\r\n<em>Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit?</em>\r\n<em> to be out of your sight?</em>\r\n<em> If I climb to the sky, you\'re there!</em>\r\n<em> If I go underground, you\'re there!</em>\r\n<em> If I flew on morning\'s wings</em>\r\n<em> to the far western horizon,</em>\r\n<em> You\'d find me in a minute—</em>\r\n<em> you\'re already there waiting!</em>\r\n<em> Then I said to myself, \"Oh, he even sees me in the dark!</em>\r\n<em> At night I\'m immersed in the light!\"</em>\r\n<em> It\'s a fact: darkness isn\'t dark to you;</em>\r\n<em> night and day, darkness and light, they\'re all the same to you.</em>\r\nPsalms 139 (message)\r\n\r\nLike David, I am not afraid of the darkness in me anymore. I found that being OK to look at, deal with, run at it and feel the pain of what is hidden in my darkness opens doors of Truth to real freedom. The fact that I used the word \"shit\" as a the title is what I mean. I never cussed before, God forbid someone hear me and think I was not holy, or pure, or the great guy I have worked so hard to be. Forget that! God this shit is overwhelming. I have no clue how to get out of it. I am drowning in darkness. I surrender all!\r\n\r\nSo good ol Peter steps out to walk on the water and before he can get far he is sinking. Lets fast forward a couple thousand years and here we have Jon Crouch trying to walk, but its not water, its shit. My shit, you know the stuff that stinks, the stuff most people don\'t want to see. I am OK looking at it, but if someone else see\'s it they freak. (I know a bit graphic but true.) I tried so hard to be someone, to use people, systems whatever to get love or attention some sort of pat on my back. All the time I am starting to sink, because without real love I turn to any sort of self soothing method. These methods are eating away at my soul. It\'s harder to hide, harder to be nice, I find myself pushing away from those closest to me. I feel like a big piece of shit or like I am sinking into it.\r\n\r\nIn the past I had people come to me who were is the blissful situation, amazingly I had nothing to say. I was shocked at their mess, I would offer the great advice of, pray more, read your bible, or the classical just get over it. Now its me who\'s made a mess, who\'s finally sinking. I realize I am not going to make it without some serious help. I know its good in some deep spiritual cosmic way, but I am terrified. \"Jesus I am sinking in this shit!\"\r\n\r\nSuddenly I realize, He is walking on it. He does not have a nose plug, He\'s not freaking out lecturing me on why I\'m sinking. He is smiling at me with arms out wide. He picks me up give me a big long hug. I am shocked, broken, a mess and He is with me.\r\n\r\nHe tells me, \"It\'s over son, no more trying, no more effort, just let go and trust what I see in you.\"\r\n\r\nSo now this shit I was sinking in has become the energy and fuel for the life Jesus promised.\r\n\r\n\"You\'ll take delight in God, the Mighty One,\r\nand look to him joyfully, boldly.\r\nYou\'ll pray to him and he\'ll listen;\r\nhe\'ll help you do what you\'ve promised.\r\nYou\'ll decide what you want and it will happen;\r\nyour life will be bathed in light.\r\nTo those who feel low you\'ll say, \'Chin up! Be brave!\'\r\nand God will save them.\r\nYes, even the guilty will escape,\r\nescape through God\'s grace in your life.\"\r\nJob 22 (The Message)\r\n\r\nMy pain becomes my platform, my messes my messages, my brokenness an invitation to a living God\'s embrace. Chin up! Be Brave! This messy boy believes in you!\r\n\r\n<strong>\"I should not talk so much about myself if there were anybody else whom I knew as well.\" - David Thoreau</strong>','This Shit Makes Energy!','','inherit','open','open','','3045-revision-11','','','2011-12-11 22:08:14','2011-12-12 06:08:14','',3045,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3045-revision-11/',0,'revision','',0),(3135,1,'2011-12-12 08:25:36','2011-12-12 16:25:36','[caption id=\"attachment_3098\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"230\" caption=\"Ariah Fine\"]<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/ariah-fine.jpg\"><img class=\"size-medium wp-image-3098\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/ariah-fine-230x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"230\" height=\"300\" /></a>[/caption]\r\n\r\nThis week the something beautiful crew talks with author and community organizer Ariah Fine about his latest project, Clean Water for Elirose.\r\n\r\nAriah shares why community and social justice matter to him and how he was inspired to write a children’s book to share the story of clean water with his young children.\r\n\r\n<strong>Some questions to ask yourself while you listen:</strong>\r\n\r\nWhat issues are dear to your heart?\r\nAre resources available to explain those issues to people of all ages?\r\nWhat resource could you create to better explain the issue?\r\nWhat could you and your family do to help provide clean water for people around the world?\r\n\r\n[audio=\"http://somethingbeautifulpodcast.com/podcast/120911.mp3\"]','Something Beautiful - Ariah Fine','','inherit','open','open','','3097-revision-5','','','2011-12-12 08:25:36','2011-12-12 16:25:36','',3097,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3097-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(3139,12,'2011-12-12 18:37:01','2011-12-13 02:37:01','','nativ','','inherit','open','open','','nativ','','','2011-12-12 18:37:01','2011-12-13 02:37:01','',3138,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/nativ.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(3140,12,'2011-12-12 18:43:51','2011-12-13 02:43:51','','state&amp;church','','inherit','open','open','','statechurch','','','2011-12-12 18:43:51','2011-12-13 02:43:51','',3138,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/statechurch.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(3141,12,'2011-12-12 18:44:43','2011-12-13 02:44:43','','jesusmary','','inherit','open','open','','jesusmary','','','2011-12-12 18:44:43','2011-12-13 02:44:43','',3138,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/jesusmary.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(3142,12,'2011-12-12 18:46:43','2011-12-13 02:46:43','','lvingnat','','inherit','open','open','','lvingnat','','','2011-12-12 18:46:43','2011-12-13 02:46:43','',3138,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lvingnat.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(3143,12,'2011-12-12 18:45:14','2011-12-13 02:45:14','Every year, the Christmas season brings a time of turmoil and anger, typically centered around the public display of Nativity scenes on public property. Let me say up front that I\'m not a huge fan of the \"season\" only because it\'s been supplanted by all the things it\'s not about. I am a huge fan of the Savior, coming into this world to save us, love us and show us compassion.\n\nI\'m a card carrying Southern Baptist, by the way. If it matters. I think our celebration of Christ should be bible based and closest to what He would have wanted.\n\nI am not a fan of the Nativity scene. At all. So, for a mish-mash of particulars that might resemble a fruitcake, I\'d like to give you three reasons for tearing down the Nativity scene. Everywhere. Especially in the public square. Please bear with me.\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/statechurch.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3140\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/statechurch-300x239.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"258\" height=\"205\" /></a>1. Christians should be fans of the \"accomodation\" idea of religious expression. Here\'s the idea behind it, according to The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commision, an arm of the Southern Baptist Convention - \"Seeks government \'accommodation\' of individuals’ rights to express religious beliefs in government locales.\" (<a href=\"http://erlc.com/documents/pdf/restoring_religious_freedom.pdf\">Here\'s the handy, dandy PDF file explaining all the views</a>.) Most Christians don\'t have a problem with that statement. However, the meat of the issue comes in this explanation - all religions have a right to the public square, as long as they are privately funded. In other words, if the Christians can put up a display, so can Muslims, Hindus or Buddhists. Know why? Because religious freedom for one is religious freedom for all. And denial of that freedom for one is denial of freedom for all.\n\nFor some reason, some Christians get angry about that. We see people getting angry when a school won\'t let a Christian say a prayer before a ball game or a graduation ceremony. Do you know why the school just bans it? Because they know the law. The law says that if you let the Christian do it, they have to let the Buddhist do it. Frankly, they don\'t want the headache or the culture war. So, they just say, \"no prayer.\" I think it\'s a fine thing to do. The only other alternative is to ask the Christians, \"Fine, have your prayer, but we have to allow the Muslim family to have their leader pray as well.\" How do you think that would go over?\n\nI\'m all for freedom of religious expression. I say, open the floodgates. Unfortunately, the culture at large isn\'t ready for it. In turn, culture gets mad at the government for \"restricting\" freedom of religious expression when the government just doesn\'t want the darn headache. They get tired of fighting the battle every year and just say \"no\" to the hot-headed Christian majority.\n\nWorst part? How do you think the vocal Christian majority looks to those who don\'t believe as they do? Not very good. It\'s not the way to win the battle of hearts and minds.\n\n2. It\'s biblically incorrect for the most part. Yeah. Fact checking time. Evangelical Christians pride themselves for being strong in the bible. So, let\'s review the Christmas story for a moment. It\'s found in two sections of Scripture. In Luke 2:1-20, we have Mary and Joseph arriving at Bethlehem, giving birth, and shepherds arriving after seeing angels who appear to them on the ground. In Matthew 2, we have the arrival of the magi, who came to Mary and Joseph while they were living in Jerusalem while Jesus was a young boy. Many scholars think this happened up to two years later. Yeah.\n\nLet me use a local \"live nativity\" near my house as an example. They\'ve prided themselves with their biblical accuracy. I did a drive by the other night. They\'ve even rebuilt Bethlehem. How did they do?\n\nStar over the manger - nope. The star appeared almost two years later over Jerusalem. Wise men - nope. Weren\'t at Jesus\' birth - two years later. <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/jesusmary.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-3141\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/jesusmary-300x192.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"192\" /></a>The bible actually never says there were three. Angels - nope. The angels appeared, on the ground to the shepherds, not at Jesus\' feeding trough. Innkeeper? Nope. Where is an innkeeper mentioned? Yeah, no room at the inn. But the inn mentioned was more like a house crammed with people during the census. It was probably more comfortable for them with the animals.\n\nWhy do we feel the need to romanticize the scene? It was a girl around 15 years old giving birth in a tough environment. The only people who showed up were nasty, stinky shepherds with their smelly sheep. But they were praising God. A humble birth for an amazing Savior among low people.\n\n3. I think there\'s a better way to concentrate our passions. Let\'s think back to the early church for a moment. Here were a bunch of men and women who had seen the risen Savior. Their lives were lived every day with the zeal and passion for Him. They showed love for one another and for others based on what Christ had done.\n\nI don\'t have any evidence for it, but I\'m pretty sure one of the other disciples didn\'t come up to Peter one day and say, \"Hey Peter, let\'s remember the birth of Jesus and put up a little play about it. Even better, let\'s put up a living crucifixion to remember that day.\" Why would they want to do that? They spent every day in the love and enjoyment of the presence of Jesus Christ. Their hearts overflowed with His presence in their community, their families and their relationships.\n\nDo we really need to set up these ridiculous little tableaus twice a year that are mocked with error? What glorifies Christ more? A little set up that tells nothing to the world, or lives that reflect out His love to others? What if our communities of faith put the same amount of effort into the poor, the disenfranchised, the mocked, the persecuted, the homeless, the forsaken, the abandoned, the beaten, the abused, the hated of this world? What if we went to the places in our communities where Christ went first?\n\nI\'m definitely not calling for people to tear down Nativity scenes in their community ala the <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther#Peasants.27_War\">Peasant\'s War</a> that followed Martin Luther\'s stand against Rome. I am calling for rational thought when it comes to the Christian mission.\n\nI often wonder what Christ would think if He came into our communities and saw our Nativity scenes and the wars we wage over them. The time we spend keeping them on the public square. Would He be proud? Or would He simply move on to the impoverished neighborhoods to share, love and heal?','Three Reasons To Tear Down The Nativity Scene','','inherit','open','open','','3138-revision','','','2011-12-12 18:45:14','2011-12-13 02:45:14','',3138,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3138-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(3144,1,'2011-12-16 08:29:54','2011-12-16 16:29:54','Every year, the Christmas season brings a time of turmoil and anger, typically centered around the public display of Nativity scenes on public property. Let me say up front that I\'m not a huge fan of the \"season\" only because it\'s been supplanted by all the things it\'s not about. I am a huge fan of the Savior, coming into this world to save us, love us and show us compassion.\n\nI\'m a card carrying Southern Baptist, by the way. If it matters. I think our celebration of Christ should be bible based and closest to what He would have wanted.\n\nI am not a fan of the Nativity scene. At all. So, for a mish-mash of particulars that might resemble a fruitcake, I\'d like to give you three reasons for tearing down the Nativity scene. Everywhere. Especially in the public square. Please bear with me.\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/statechurch.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3140\" style=\"margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/statechurch-300x239.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"258\" height=\"205\" /></a>1. Christians should be fans of the \"accommodation\" idea of religious expression. Here\'s the idea behind it, according to The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commision, an arm of the Southern Baptist Convention - \"Seeks government \'accommodation\' of individuals’ rights to express religious beliefs in government locales.\" (<a href=\"http://erlc.com/documents/pdf/restoring_religious_freedom.pdf\">Here\'s the handy, dandy PDF file explaining all the views</a>.) Most Christians don\'t have a problem with that statement. However, the meat of the issue comes in this explanation - all religions have a right to the public square, as long as they are privately funded. In other words, if the Christians can put up a display, so can Muslims, Hindus or Buddhists. Know why? Because religious freedom for one is religious freedom for all. And denial of that freedom for one is denial of freedom for all.\n\nFor some reason, some Christians get angry about that. We see people getting angry when a school won\'t let a Christian say a prayer before a ball game or a graduation ceremony. Do you know why the school just bans it? Because they know the law. The law says that if you let the Christian do it, they have to let the Buddhist do it. Frankly, they don\'t want the headache or the culture war. So, they just say, \"no prayer.\" I think it\'s a fine thing to do. The only other alternative is to ask the Christians, \"Fine, have your prayer, but we have to allow the Muslim family to have their leader pray as well.\" How do you think that would go over?\n\nI\'m all for freedom of religious expression. I say, open the floodgates. Unfortunately, the culture at large isn\'t ready for it. In turn, culture gets mad at the government for \"restricting\" freedom of religious expression when the government just doesn\'t want the darn headache. They get tired of fighting the battle every year and just say \"no\" to the hot-headed Christian majority.\n\nWorst part? How do you think the vocal Christian majority looks to those who don\'t believe as they do? Not very good. It\'s not the way to win the battle of hearts and minds.\n\n2. It\'s biblically incorrect for the most part. Yeah. Fact checking time. Evangelical Christians pride themselves for being strong in the bible. So, let\'s review the Christmas story for a moment. It\'s found in two sections of Scripture. In <a href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/search/luke+2%3A1-20/\">Luke 2:1-20</a>, we have Mary and Joseph arriving at Bethlehem, giving birth, and shepherds arriving after seeing angels who appear to them on the ground. In <a href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/search/matthew+2/\">Matthew 2</a>, we have the arrival of the magi, who came to Mary and Joseph while they were living in Jerusalem while Jesus was a young boy. Many scholars think this happened up to two years later. Yeah.\n\nLet me use a local \"live nativity\" near my house as an example. They\'ve prided themselves with their biblical accuracy. I did a drive by the other night. They\'ve even rebuilt Bethlehem. How did they do?\n\nStar over the manger - nope. The star appeared almost two years later over Jerusalem. Wise men - nope. Weren\'t at Jesus\' birth - two years later. <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/jesusmary.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-3141\" style=\"margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/jesusmary-300x192.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"192\" /></a>The bible actually never says there were three. Angels - nope. The angels appeared, on the ground to the shepherds, not at Jesus\' feeding trough. <a href=\"http://www.ancientsandals.com/articles/01_jesus_birth.htm\">Innkeeper</a>? Nope. Where is an innkeeper mentioned? Yeah, no room at the inn. But the inn mentioned was more like a house crammed with people during the census. It was probably more comfortable for them with the animals.\n\nWhy do we feel the need to romanticize the scene? It was a girl around <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_%28mother_of_Jesus%29\">15 years old</a> giving birth in a tough environment. The only people who showed up were nasty, stinky shepherds with their smelly sheep. But they were praising God. A humble birth for an amazing Savior among low people.\n\n3. I think there\'s a better way to concentrate our passions. Let\'s think back to the early church for a moment. Here were a bunch of men and women who had seen the risen Savior. Their lives were lived every day with the zeal and passion for Him. They showed love for one another and for others based on what Christ had done.\n\nI don\'t have any evidence for it, but I\'m pretty sure one of the other disciples didn\'t come up to Peter one day and say, \"Hey Peter, let\'s remember the birth of Jesus and put up a little play about it. Even better, let\'s put up a living crucifixion to remember <em>that</em> day.\" Why would they want to do that? They spent every day in the love and enjoyment of the presence of Jesus Christ. Their hearts overflowed with His presence in their community, their families and their relationships.\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lvingnat.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3142\" style=\"margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lvingnat-300x206.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"206\" /></a>Do we really need to set up these ridiculous little tableaus twice a year that are mocked with error? What glorifies Christ more? A little set up that tells nothing to the world, or lives that reflect out His love to others? What if our communities of faith put the same amount of effort into the poor, the disenfranchised, the mocked, the persecuted, the homeless, the forsaken, the abandoned, the beaten, the abused, the hated of this world? What if we went to the places in our communities where Christ went first?\n\nI\'m definitely not calling for people to tear down Nativity scenes in their community ala the <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther#Peasants.27_War\">Peasant\'s War</a> that followed Martin Luther\'s stand against Rome. I am calling for rational thought when it comes to the Christian mission.\n\nI often wonder what Christ would think if He came into our communities and saw our Nativity scenes and the wars we wage over them. The time we spend keeping them on the public square. Would He be proud? Or would He simply move on to the impoverished neighborhoods to share, love and heal?','Three Reasons To Tear Down The Nativity Scene','','inherit','open','open','','3138-autosave','','','2011-12-16 08:29:54','2011-12-16 16:29:54','',3138,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3138-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(3145,12,'2011-12-12 18:47:08','2011-12-13 02:47:08','Every year, the Christmas season brings a time of turmoil and anger, typically centered around the public display of Nativity scenes on public property. Let me say up front that I\'m not a huge fan of the \"season\" only because it\'s been supplanted by all the things it\'s not about. I am a huge fan of the Savior, coming into this world to save us, love us and show us compassion.\r\n\r\nI\'m a card carrying Southern Baptist, by the way. If it matters. I think our celebration of Christ should be bible based and closest to what He would have wanted.\r\n\r\nI am not a fan of the Nativity scene. At all. So, for a mish-mash of particulars that might resemble a fruitcake, I\'d like to give you three reasons for tearing down the Nativity scene. Everywhere. Especially in the public square. Please bear with me.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/statechurch.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3140\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/statechurch-300x239.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"258\" height=\"205\" /></a>1. Christians should be fans of the \"accomodation\" idea of religious expression. Here\'s the idea behind it, according to The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commision, an arm of the Southern Baptist Convention - \"Seeks government \'accommodation\' of individuals’ rights to express religious beliefs in government locales.\" (<a href=\"http://erlc.com/documents/pdf/restoring_religious_freedom.pdf\">Here\'s the handy, dandy PDF file explaining all the views</a>.) Most Christians don\'t have a problem with that statement. However, the meat of the issue comes in this explanation - all religions have a right to the public square, as long as they are privately funded. In other words, if the Christians can put up a display, so can Muslims, Hindus or Buddhists. Know why? Because religious freedom for one is religious freedom for all. And denial of that freedom for one is denial of freedom for all.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, some Christians get angry about that. We see people getting angry when a school won\'t let a Christian say a prayer before a ball game or a graduation ceremony. Do you know why the school just bans it? Because they know the law. The law says that if you let the Christian do it, they have to let the Buddhist do it. Frankly, they don\'t want the headache or the culture war. So, they just say, \"no prayer.\" I think it\'s a fine thing to do. The only other alternative is to ask the Christians, \"Fine, have your prayer, but we have to allow the Muslim family to have their leader pray as well.\" How do you think that would go over?\r\n\r\nI\'m all for freedom of religious expression. I say, open the floodgates. Unfortunately, the culture at large isn\'t ready for it. In turn, culture gets mad at the government for \"restricting\" freedom of religious expression when the government just doesn\'t want the darn headache. They get tired of fighting the battle every year and just say \"no\" to the hot-headed Christian majority.\r\n\r\nWorst part? How do you think the vocal Christian majority looks to those who don\'t believe as they do? Not very good. It\'s not the way to win the battle of hearts and minds.\r\n\r\n2. It\'s biblically incorrect for the most part. Yeah. Fact checking time. Evangelical Christians pride themselves for being strong in the bible. So, let\'s review the Christmas story for a moment. It\'s found in two sections of Scripture. In Luke 2:1-20, we have Mary and Joseph arriving at Bethlehem, giving birth, and shepherds arriving after seeing angels who appear to them on the ground. In Matthew 2, we have the arrival of the magi, who came to Mary and Joseph while they were living in Jerusalem while Jesus was a young boy. Many scholars think this happened up to two years later. Yeah.\r\n\r\nLet me use a local \"live nativity\" near my house as an example. They\'ve prided themselves with their biblical accuracy. I did a drive by the other night. They\'ve even rebuilt Bethlehem. How did they do?\r\n\r\nStar over the manger - nope. The star appeared almost two years later over Jerusalem. Wise men - nope. Weren\'t at Jesus\' birth - two years later. <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/jesusmary.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-3141\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/jesusmary-300x192.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"192\" /></a>The bible actually never says there were three. Angels - nope. The angels appeared, on the ground to the shepherds, not at Jesus\' feeding trough. Innkeeper? Nope. Where is an innkeeper mentioned? Yeah, no room at the inn. But the inn mentioned was more like a house crammed with people during the census. It was probably more comfortable for them with the animals.\r\n\r\nWhy do we feel the need to romanticize the scene? It was a girl around 15 years old giving birth in a tough environment. The only people who showed up were nasty, stinky shepherds with their smelly sheep. But they were praising God. A humble birth for an amazing Savior among low people.\r\n\r\n3. I think there\'s a better way to concentrate our passions. Let\'s think back to the early church for a moment. Here were a bunch of men and women who had seen the risen Savior. Their lives were lived every day with the zeal and passion for Him. They showed love for one another and for others based on what Christ had done.\r\n\r\nI don\'t have any evidence for it, but I\'m pretty sure one of the other disciples didn\'t come up to Peter one day and say, \"Hey Peter, let\'s remember the birth of Jesus and put up a little play about it. Even better, let\'s put up a living crucifixion to remember that day.\" Why would they want to do that? They spent every day in the love and enjoyment of the presence of Jesus Christ. Their hearts overflowed with His presence in their community, their families and their relationships.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lvingnat.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3142\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lvingnat-300x206.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"206\" /></a>Do we really need to set up these ridiculous little tableaus twice a year that are mocked with error? What glorifies Christ more? A little set up that tells nothing to the world, or lives that reflect out His love to others? What if our communities of faith put the same amount of effort into the poor, the disenfranchised, the mocked, the persecuted, the homeless, the forsaken, the abandoned, the beaten, the abused, the hated of this world? What if we went to the places in our communities where Christ went first?\r\n\r\nI\'m definitely not calling for people to tear down Nativity scenes in their community ala the <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther#Peasants.27_War\">Peasant\'s War</a> that followed Martin Luther\'s stand against Rome. I am calling for rational thought when it comes to the Christian mission.\r\n\r\nI often wonder what Christ would think if He came into our communities and saw our Nativity scenes and the wars we wage over them. The time we spend keeping them on the public square. Would He be proud? Or would He simply move on to the impoverished neighborhoods to share, love and heal?','Three Reasons To Tear Down The Nativity Scene','','inherit','open','open','','3138-revision-2','','','2011-12-12 18:47:08','2011-12-13 02:47:08','',3138,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3138-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(3146,12,'2011-12-12 18:54:03','2011-12-13 02:54:03','Every year, the Christmas season brings a time of turmoil and anger, typically centered around the public display of Nativity scenes on public property. Let me say up front that I\'m not a huge fan of the \"season\" only because it\'s been supplanted by all the things it\'s not about. I am a huge fan of the Savior, coming into this world to save us, love us and show us compassion.\r\n\r\nI\'m a card carrying Southern Baptist, by the way. If it matters. I think our celebration of Christ should be bible based and closest to what He would have wanted.\r\n\r\nI am not a fan of the Nativity scene. At all. So, for a mish-mash of particulars that might resemble a fruitcake, I\'d like to give you three reasons for tearing down the Nativity scene. Everywhere. Especially in the public square. Please bear with me.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/statechurch.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3140\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/statechurch-300x239.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"258\" height=\"205\" /></a>1. Christians should be fans of the \"accomodation\" idea of religious expression. Here\'s the idea behind it, according to The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commision, an arm of the Southern Baptist Convention - \"Seeks government \'accommodation\' of individuals’ rights to express religious beliefs in government locales.\" (<a href=\"http://erlc.com/documents/pdf/restoring_religious_freedom.pdf\">Here\'s the handy, dandy PDF file explaining all the views</a>.) Most Christians don\'t have a problem with that statement. However, the meat of the issue comes in this explanation - all religions have a right to the public square, as long as they are privately funded. In other words, if the Christians can put up a display, so can Muslims, Hindus or Buddhists. Know why? Because religious freedom for one is religious freedom for all. And denial of that freedom for one is denial of freedom for all.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, some Christians get angry about that. We see people getting angry when a school won\'t let a Christian say a prayer before a ball game or a graduation ceremony. Do you know why the school just bans it? Because they know the law. The law says that if you let the Christian do it, they have to let the Buddhist do it. Frankly, they don\'t want the headache or the culture war. So, they just say, \"no prayer.\" I think it\'s a fine thing to do. The only other alternative is to ask the Christians, \"Fine, have your prayer, but we have to allow the Muslim family to have their leader pray as well.\" How do you think that would go over?\r\n\r\nI\'m all for freedom of religious expression. I say, open the floodgates. Unfortunately, the culture at large isn\'t ready for it. In turn, culture gets mad at the government for \"restricting\" freedom of religious expression when the government just doesn\'t want the darn headache. They get tired of fighting the battle every year and just say \"no\" to the hot-headed Christian majority.\r\n\r\nWorst part? How do you think the vocal Christian majority looks to those who don\'t believe as they do? Not very good. It\'s not the way to win the battle of hearts and minds.\r\n\r\n2. It\'s biblically incorrect for the most part. Yeah. Fact checking time. Evangelical Christians pride themselves for being strong in the bible. So, let\'s review the Christmas story for a moment. It\'s found in two sections of Scripture. In <a href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/search/luke+2%3A1-20/\">Luke 2:1-20</a>, we have Mary and Joseph arriving at Bethlehem, giving birth, and shepherds arriving after seeing angels who appear to them on the ground. In <a href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/search/matthew+2/\">Matthew 2</a>, we have the arrival of the magi, who came to Mary and Joseph while they were living in Jerusalem while Jesus was a young boy. Many scholars think this happened up to two years later. Yeah.\r\n\r\nLet me use a local \"live nativity\" near my house as an example. They\'ve prided themselves with their biblical accuracy. I did a drive by the other night. They\'ve even rebuilt Bethlehem. How did they do?\r\n\r\nStar over the manger - nope. The star appeared almost two years later over Jerusalem. Wise men - nope. Weren\'t at Jesus\' birth - two years later. <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/jesusmary.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-3141\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/jesusmary-300x192.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"192\" /></a>The bible actually never says there were three. Angels - nope. The angels appeared, on the ground to the shepherds, not at Jesus\' feeding trough. <a href=\"http://www.ancientsandals.com/articles/01_jesus_birth.htm\">Innkeeper</a>? Nope. Where is an innkeeper mentioned? Yeah, no room at the inn. But the inn mentioned was more like a house crammed with people during the census. It was probably more comfortable for them with the animals.\r\n\r\nWhy do we feel the need to romanticize the scene? It was a girl around <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_%28mother_of_Jesus%29\">15 years old</a> giving birth in a tough environment. The only people who showed up were nasty, stinky shepherds with their smelly sheep. But they were praising God. A humble birth for an amazing Savior among low people.\r\n\r\n3. I think there\'s a better way to concentrate our passions. Let\'s think back to the early church for a moment. Here were a bunch of men and women who had seen the risen Savior. Their lives were lived every day with the zeal and passion for Him. They showed love for one another and for others based on what Christ had done.\r\n\r\nI don\'t have any evidence for it, but I\'m pretty sure one of the other disciples didn\'t come up to Peter one day and say, \"Hey Peter, let\'s remember the birth of Jesus and put up a little play about it. Even better, let\'s put up a living crucifixion to remember that day.\" Why would they want to do that? They spent every day in the love and enjoyment of the presence of Jesus Christ. Their hearts overflowed with His presence in their community, their families and their relationships.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lvingnat.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3142\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lvingnat-300x206.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"206\" /></a>Do we really need to set up these ridiculous little tableaus twice a year that are mocked with error? What glorifies Christ more? A little set up that tells nothing to the world, or lives that reflect out His love to others? What if our communities of faith put the same amount of effort into the poor, the disenfranchised, the mocked, the persecuted, the homeless, the forsaken, the abandoned, the beaten, the abused, the hated of this world? What if we went to the places in our communities where Christ went first?\r\n\r\nI\'m definitely not calling for people to tear down Nativity scenes in their community ala the <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther#Peasants.27_War\">Peasant\'s War</a> that followed Martin Luther\'s stand against Rome. I am calling for rational thought when it comes to the Christian mission.\r\n\r\nI often wonder what Christ would think if He came into our communities and saw our Nativity scenes and the wars we wage over them. The time we spend keeping them on the public square. Would He be proud? Or would He simply move on to the impoverished neighborhoods to share, love and heal?','Three Reasons To Tear Down The Nativity Scene','','inherit','open','open','','3138-revision-3','','','2011-12-12 18:54:03','2011-12-13 02:54:03','',3138,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3138-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(3948,43,'2012-01-11 12:44:11','2012-01-11 20:44:11','The title of this article is a quote from the film <a href=\"http://www.tuckermax.com/movie\"><em>I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell</em></a>, a crude movie about the escapades of Tucker Max.  I should note here that I haven\'t seen the film; I found the quote on a blog about rape culture.  I stumbled upon this in my search to understand why some conservative churches continue to push the message that women are responsible for sexual harassment and violence committed against them.\r\n\r\nSadly, though it may be phrased more politely, far too many women echo the sentiment of the quote about our own gender.  We are prepared to blame ourselves for our men folk\'s lack of sexual self-control.  One young man recently told me, \"What girls don\'t get is that if they dress a certain way, guys are going to <em>treat</em> them a certain way.\"  This was something he had heard not from his father or a male leader at church, but from a woman.\r\n\r\nOver the last couple of weeks, I\'ve received multiple emails from well-meaning friends.  Every single one is about the call to feminine modesty, in one way or another.  It\'s as though we, as women, have absorbed the sentiments of rape culture and taken it on ourselves to resolve the issue.  This is particularly distressing because it\'s cleverly disguised as \"Christian sex education.\"  While I applaud the efforts to encourage modest dress, I don\'t believe this should be done in the context of telling young women we\'re responsible for keeping men from hurting us.\r\n\r\nIn fact, I don\'t believe this is the way most men and boys actually think.  The vast majority of men (and young men) that I know treat their wives, girlfriends, and friends with far more dignity than that.  The way that \"real life,\" so to speak, plays out is not merely a drama of trashy women being preyed upon by leering men.  I\'m not denying the reality of violence and sexual assault against women.  But it\'s unfair to characterize an entire gender based on the actions of some people.  Count me refreshed, then, having seen this photo on a friend\'s Facebook page:\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Men-Can-Stop-Rape.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3568\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Men-Can-Stop-Rape-206x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"206\" height=\"300\" /></a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nYes, men and boys, you <em>do </em>have the power to treat women and girls right, no matter the circumstances.  I want to see much more of this kind of thing taught to our sons <em>and our daughters</em>.  We need to teach our young people that both women and men have responsibilities.  I want to see women empowered to stand up for themselves, but with the understanding that they don\'t have to fight alone.  Everyone has the right to be treated respectfully in relationships.','“Your gender is hardwired for whoredom.”','','inherit','open','open','','3562-revision-12','','','2012-01-11 12:44:11','2012-01-11 20:44:11','',3562,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/11/3562-revision-12/',0,'revision','',0),(3148,0,'2011-12-13 07:29:38','2011-12-13 15:29:38','current events, culture, film, music, spirituality, \"church\", and the occasional little person or pudding binge.\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Ryan Kemp-Pappan\nAUTHOR EMAIL: beingrkp@gmail.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://beingrkp@gmail.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 72.198.74.185\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Ryan Kemp-Pappan\n    [Email] =&gt; beingrkp@gmail.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; beingrkp@gmail.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; current events, culture, film, music, spirituality, \"church\", and the occasional little person or pudding binge.\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; ryanpappan\n)\n','Ryan Kemp-Pappan - 2011-12-13 07:29:38','','publish','open','open','','6b50abe913617251ad1e5f22b792656b','','','2011-12-13 07:29:38','2011-12-13 15:29:38','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=3148',0,'feedback','',0),(3149,47,'2011-12-17 08:35:07','2011-12-17 16:35:07','<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I have a confession to make.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I believe in the power of redemption.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I believe that redemption is available to anyone and that no one is beyond redemption.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Except when I don’t.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">You see, redemption is fine, as long as the ‘candidates’ are ‘out there’ or part of some other nebulous, non-specific entity.  I truly believe that murderers, rapists, thieves, governments, and even child predators can be redeemed someday.  For the most part, those are all ‘out there’, and don’t affect me personally.  Detachment makes it easy.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">It’s when the person to be redeemed is someone who has hurt either me or someone close to me that believing in redemption becomes difficult bordering on impossible.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In <em>The Cost of Discipleship</em>, Dietrich Bonheoffer starts off with a difficult and convicting treatise on the difference between cheap grace and costly grace.  Cheap grace is given away as a commodity, costs us nothing, and makes grace simply a bullet point in a 3-point sermon.  Costly grace is so named because it costs us <em>everything</em>.  Embracing costly grace costs us our desires, our plans, our biases, our very lives.  It’s uncomfortable.  It’s painful. It’s hard.  But most of all, it exposes our vulnerability.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I see redemption in the same light, and I’ll admit, I’m hooked on the addictiveness of cheap redemption and am even willing to pay the cost for inexpensive and slightly expensive redemption.  Costly redemption comes with a price tag that can cause us to gasp when we see it.  We gasp out of shock that the entry fee to redemption is to be paid by us, and not by ‘them’.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">That entry fee is our willingness to forgive.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The first step on someone else’s journey to redemption is our forgiveness, and that can be a cost we’re not willing to bear.  Yet, as Christians, forgiveness, true forgiveness, should flow from us in everything we do and to everyone we encounter.  In Matthew 18, Jesus tells his disciples that “<em>whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be</em><strong><em></em></strong><em>loosed in heaven</em>.” He then continues with the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant, which begins by Peter asking Jesus “<em>How many times should I forgive someone who wrongs me?  Seven times</em>?”  Jesus responds by turning Lamech’s lament (Genesis 4) on its head by saying “<em>No.  Seventy times seven</em>”.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The lesson is clear.  Just as Christ’s forgiveness sets us free, so our forgiveness sets others free, and free to seek redemption.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fourteen years ago, my ex-wife walked out on me.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Eight years ago, she walked out on our daughters.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Two weeks ago, due to the diligence of my oldest daughter, she has returned.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I admit it.   I’m still angry and hurt.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I have no idea if she wants to seek redemption.  To be honest, it really doesn’t matter.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">What matters is how I answer the question I ask myself.  The question we should all ask ourselves in this situation.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Who are we to hold redemption hostage?</p>','Holding Redemption Hostage','','publish','open','open','','holding-redemption-hostage','','','2011-12-16 08:37:14','2011-12-16 16:37:14','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=3149',0,'post','',11),(3150,47,'2011-12-13 12:05:10','2011-12-13 20:05:10','','redemption1','','inherit','open','open','','redemption1','','','2011-12-13 12:05:10','2011-12-13 20:05:10','',3149,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/redemption1.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(3151,47,'2011-12-13 12:03:14','2011-12-13 20:03:14','<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I have a confession to make.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I believe in the power of redemption.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I believe that redemption is available to anyone and that no one is beyond redemption.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">Except when I don’t.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">You see, redemption is fine, as long as the ‘candidates’ are ‘out there’ or part of some other nebulous, non-specific entity.  I truly believe that murderers, rapists, thieves, governments, and even child predators can be redeemed someday.  For the most part, those are all ‘out there’, and don’t affect me personally.  Detachment makes it easy.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">It’s when the person to be redeemed is someone who has hurt either me or someone close to me that believing in redemption becomes difficult bordering on impossible.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">In <em>The Cost of Discipleship</em>, Dietrich Bonheoffer starts off with a difficult and convicting treatise on the difference between cheap grace and costly grace.  Cheap grace is given away as a commodity, costs us nothing, and makes grace simply a bullet point in a 3-point sermon.  Costly grace is so named because it costs us <em>everything</em>.  Embracing costly grace costs us our desires, our plans, our biases, our very lives.  It’s uncomfortable.  It’s painful. It’s hard.  But most of all, it exposes our vulnerability.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I see redemption in the same light, and I’ll admit, I’m hooked on the addictiveness of cheap redemption and am even willing to pay the cost for inexpensive and slightly expensive redemption.  Costly redemption comes with a price tag that can cause us to gasp when we see it.  We gasp out of shock that the entry fee to redemption is to be paid by us, and not by ‘them’.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">That entry fee is our willingness to forgive.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">The first step on someone else’s journey to redemption is our forgiveness, and that can be a cost we’re not willing to bear.  Yet, as Christians, forgiveness, true forgiveness, should flow from us in everything we do and to everyone we encounter.  In Matthew 18, Jesus tells his disciples that “<em>whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be</em><strong><em></em></strong><em>loosed in heaven</em>.” He then continues with the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant, which begins by Peter asking Jesus “<em>How many times should I forgive someone who wrongs me?  Seven times</em>?”  Jesus responds by turning Lamech’s lament (Genesis 4) on its head by saying “<em>No.  Seventy times seven</em>”.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">The lesson is clear.  Just as Christ’s forgiveness sets us free, so our forgiveness sets others free, and free to seek redemption.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">Fourteen years ago, my ex-wife walked out on me.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">Eight years ago, she walked out on our daughters.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">Two weeks ago, due to the diligence of my oldest daughter, she has returned.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I admit it.   I’m still angry and hurt.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I have no idea if she wants to seek redemption.  To be honest, it really doesn’t matter.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">What matters is how I answer the question I ask myself.  The question we should all ask ourselves in this situation.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">Who are we to hold redemption hostage?</p>','Holding Redemption Hostage','','inherit','open','open','','3149-revision','','','2011-12-13 12:03:14','2011-12-13 20:03:14','',3149,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/13/3149-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(3153,1,'2011-12-11 23:45:49','2011-12-12 07:45:49','As Christians we like to talk about the “true”<em> </em>meaning of Christmas – the birth of Jesus Christ of course.  This has made for a good Republican Christmas tv ad in the past.  Sometimes it seems as if certain Christians think it’s sufficient to just <em>mention</em> more loudly than culture what the season is really “all about.”  Doing so gives a kind of cursory feeling of living counter-culturally and of being faithful to the Great Commission.  And it’s usually accompanied by abstract proclamations of love, joy, peace and hope.  I can’t help think again of the verse about “those who give assurance of peace when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).  But we know that beneath the surface there is much more to what Christ’s advent really signifies.\r\n\r\nWe live in an age when people aren’t hearing or seeing the Christmas story as relevant anymore.  On the one hand, we don’t worry about this too much, but on the other hand, have we ever asked why?  There’s so much craziness around the holidays at church.  Living nativities for example – what does this really communicate?  Do the people putting them on even know?  I’m not meaning to be cynical here; I genuinely wonder.  No doubt there are many reasons for society’s disenchantment, but I submit that at least one of them is the failure, in church, to name and confess the biggest sins of our people – social sins like war, coercive free trade agreements with South Korea, exploitation, environmental degradation, and excessive accumulation and resource consumption, or the personal ones like lust, addiction, fear, pride and insecurity.  And I mean like<em> really</em> concretely speak of them, by giving tangible examples and talking about them in the open, admitting our brokenness and mourning over the great, great costs that society and especially the global periphery has borne as a consequence.\r\n\r\nThe other tendency one notices is paradoxically related.  You see it in evangelical contexts particularly, but not only there.  It’s the use of the <em>birth</em> of Jesus as another chance to talk about the <em>death </em>of Jesus, and how it functions as a penal substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.  The danger in this case is similar in that, while harping some on individual sins, the message usually goes straight to celebrating what we get from this exchange.  The other problem is that the real richness of the Incarnation itself is lost, and Jesus is separated too much from God the Father.  It likewise precludes any grieving of the darkness around us and in ourselves.  Much like Holy Saturday, Advent is not yet the time for triumph.  With all of the devastation, agony and uncertainty in the world, it is right and even essential to say that God has unfinished work.  And even after the resurrection, which is a central part of God’s mission, the all-important restoration of creation and the dead is still pending.\r\n\r\nThus there is at least a twofold function to the Incarnation that we can speak of without yet getting to atonement.\r\n\r\nFirst, Jesus’s birth into a political climate under the reign of the ruthless King Herod highlights the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of worldly power.  The lowliness, marginality and vulnerability that characterize Jesus’s family and historical setting invokes the theme of solidarity that he and therefore God has with the subjugated peoples of the world.  This includes especially the undocumented, the foreigner, the jobless, the sick, the elderly, the lonely, the prisoner, the troubled veteran, the homeless, the hungry and the uninsured.  As the one who’s first words at the beginning of his ministry were about proclaiming liberation to persons such as these, perhaps this is where our Christmas reflection should also begin.\r\n\r\nSecondly, the Incarnation doesn’t just say that God is <em>with</em> us and <em>for</em> us.  It also echoes, in continuity with the Jewish prophetic tradition what God is <em>against</em>:\r\n<blockquote>“All sufferers can find comfort in the solidarity of the [Incarnate One]; but only those who struggle against evil by following [his] example will discover him at their side.  To claim the comfort of the Incarnation while rejecting [God’s] way is the advocate not only cheap grace but a deceitful ideology.”<a title=\"\" href=\"#_edn1\">[i]</a></blockquote>\r\nThe manor in which Jesus experiences the realities of life on earth in the birth narratives protests all human ambitions that lead to domination, exclusion and oppression.  From sleeping with animals and fleeing to Egypt, to growing up in Nazareth and being raised by a carpenter, Jesus manifests God’s partiality for the underside of history and defends the case of the sinned-against.\r\n\r\nThe themes of solidarity with the victims and the condemnation of injustice are later supplemented by the atonement by Christ for the perpetrators.  Only God can bring complete healing and reconciliation, and it’s true that we are all perpetrators to some extent – even the poor among us.  We should not romanticize their plight.  The question is not whether we are totally innocent, however – no one is; rather, as Baylor’s Jewish liberation theologian Marc Ellis explains, it’s whether we’re moving <em>toward</em> Community on the one hand or Empire on the other.  Ellis also says that for Christians, unlike Jews, they kind of have to downplay the messianic if they want to properly emphasize the prophetic.  At least for this season and context, I think he might be right.\r\n\r\nThere is another lesson from the Incarnation then.  Henri Nouwen says that “we read the Word[/Christ] so that the Word[/Christ] can become flesh and have a whole new life in us.”  He seems to be hinting here at the idea of <em>theosis</em> – that is, our sanctification and transformation into the image of the invisible God.  This change in us, however gradual and inconsistent, also demands a conversion of some kind, a repentance or “turning around” as John the Baptist insisted.\r\n\r\nI like the words to a song my friend Tripp Fuller wrote and recently sang on his <a href=\"http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2011/12/08/advent-tnt-extravaganza/\" target=\"_blank\">podcast</a> which inspired part of this reflection:\r\n<blockquote>\"Pattern all your calculating\r\n\r\nand the world we are creating\r\n\r\nto the Advent we’re awaiting.\r\n\r\nCome Lord Jesus come.\"</blockquote>\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<hr align=\"left\" size=\"1\" width=\"33%\" />\r\n\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"\" href=\"#_ednref\">[i]</a> Miroslav Volf, <em>Exclusion &amp; Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation</em>, First Edition. (Abingdon Press, 1996), 24.\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n</div>','Doing Justice to Incarnation this Christmas: Still Waiting for Atonement','','inherit','open','open','','3114-revision-3','','','2011-12-11 23:45:49','2011-12-12 07:45:49','',3114,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/11/3114-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(3155,1,'2011-12-14 08:06:31','2011-12-14 16:06:31','As Christians we like to talk about the “true”<em> </em>meaning of Christmas – the birth of Jesus Christ of course.  This has made for a good Republican Christmas tv ad in the past.  Sometimes it seems as if certain Christians think it’s sufficient to just <em>mention</em> more loudly than culture what the season is really “all about.”  Doing so gives a kind of cursory feeling of living counter-culturally and of being faithful to the Great Commission.  And it’s usually accompanied by abstract proclamations of love, joy, peace and hope.  I can’t help think again of the verse about “those who give assurance of peace when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).  But we know that beneath the surface there is much more to what Christ’s advent really signifies.\r\n\r\nWe live in an age when people aren’t hearing or seeing the Christmas story as relevant anymore.  On the one hand, we don’t worry about this too much, but on the other hand, have we ever asked why?  There’s so much craziness around the holidays at church.  Living nativities for example – what does this really communicate?  Do the people putting them on even know?  I’m not meaning to be cynical here; I genuinely wonder.  No doubt there are many reasons for society’s disenchantment, but I submit that at least one of them is the failure, in church, to name and confess the biggest sins of our people – social sins like war, coercive free trade agreements with South Korea, exploitation, environmental degradation, and excessive accumulation and resource consumption, or the personal ones like lust, addiction, fear, pride and insecurity.  And I mean like<em> really</em> concretely speak of them, by giving tangible examples and talking about them in the open, admitting our brokenness and mourning over the great, great costs that society and especially the global periphery has borne as a consequence.\r\n\r\nThe other tendency one notices is paradoxically related.  You see it in evangelical contexts particularly, but not only there.  It’s the use of the <em>birth</em> of Jesus as another chance to talk about the <em>death </em>of Jesus, and how it functions as a penal substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.  The danger in this case is similar in that, while harping some on individual sins, the message usually goes straight to celebrating what we get from this exchange.  The other problem is that the real richness of the Incarnation itself is lost, and Jesus is separated too much from God the Father.  It likewise precludes any grieving of the darkness around us and in ourselves.  Much like Holy Saturday, Advent is not yet the time for triumph.  With all of the devastation, agony and uncertainty in the world, it is right and even essential to say that God has unfinished work.  And even after the resurrection, which is a central part of God’s mission, the all-important restoration of creation and the dead is still pending.\r\n\r\nThus there is at least a twofold function to the Incarnation that we can speak of without yet getting to atonement.\r\n\r\nFirst, Jesus’s birth into a political climate under the reign of the ruthless King Herod highlights the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of worldly power.  The lowliness, marginality and vulnerability that characterize Jesus’s family and historical setting invokes the theme of solidarity that he and therefore God has with the subjugated peoples of the world.  This includes especially the undocumented, the foreigner, the jobless, the sick, the elderly, the lonely, the prisoner, the troubled veteran, the homeless, the hungry and the uninsured.  As the one who’s first words at the beginning of his ministry were about proclaiming liberation to persons such as these, perhaps this is where our Christmas reflection should also begin.\r\n\r\nSecondly, the Incarnation doesn’t just say that God is <em>with</em> us and <em>for</em> us.  It also echoes, in continuity with the Jewish prophetic tradition what God is <em>against</em>:\r\n<blockquote>“All sufferers can find comfort in the solidarity of the [Incarnate One]; but only those who struggle against evil by following [his] example will discover him at their side.  To claim the comfort of the Incarnation while rejecting [God’s] way is the advocate not only cheap grace but a deceitful ideology.”<a title=\"\" href=\"#_edn1\">[i]</a></blockquote>\r\nThe manor in which Jesus experiences the realities of life on earth in the birth narratives protests all human ambitions that lead to domination, exclusion and oppression.  From sleeping with animals and fleeing to Egypt, to growing up in Nazareth and being raised by a carpenter, Jesus manifests God’s partiality for the underside of history and defends the case of the sinned-against.\r\n\r\nThe themes of solidarity with the victims and the condemnation of injustice are later supplemented by the atonement by Christ for the perpetrators.  Only God can bring complete healing and reconciliation, and it’s true that we are all perpetrators to some extent – even the poor among us.  We should not romanticize their plight.  The question is not whether we are totally innocent, however – no one is; rather, as Baylor’s Jewish liberation theologian Marc Ellis explains, it’s whether we’re moving <em>toward</em> Community on the one hand or Empire on the other.  Ellis also says that for Christians, unlike Jews, they kind of have to downplay the messianic if they want to properly emphasize the prophetic.  At least for this season and context, I think he might be right.\r\n\r\nThere is another lesson from the Incarnation then.  Henri Nouwen says that “we read the Word[/Christ] so that the Word[/Christ] can become flesh and have a whole new life in us.”  He seems to be hinting here at the idea of <em>theosis</em> – that is, our sanctification and transformation into the image of the invisible God.  This change in us, however gradual and inconsistent, also demands a conversion of some kind, a repentance or “turning around” as John the Baptist insisted.\r\n\r\nI like the words to a song my friend Tripp Fuller wrote and recently sang on his <a href=\"http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2011/12/08/advent-tnt-extravaganza/\" target=\"_blank\">podcast</a> which inspired part of this reflection:\r\n<blockquote>\"Pattern all your calculating\r\n\r\nand the world we are creating\r\n\r\nto the Advent we’re awaiting.\r\n\r\nCome Lord Jesus come.\"</blockquote>\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<hr align=\"left\" size=\"1\" width=\"33%\" />\r\n\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"\" href=\"#_ednref\">[i]</a> Miroslav Volf, <em>Exclusion &amp; Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation</em>, First Edition. (Abingdon Press, 1996), 24.\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n</div>','Still Waiting For Atonement this Christmas','','inherit','open','open','','3114-revision-4','','','2011-12-14 08:06:31','2011-12-14 16:06:31','',3114,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3114-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(3158,1,'2011-12-14 08:35:28','2011-12-14 16:35:28','As Christians we like to talk about the “true”<em> </em>meaning of Christmas – the birth of Jesus Christ of course.  This has made for a good Republican Christmas tv ad in the past.  Sometimes it seems as if certain Christians think it’s sufficient to just <em>mention</em> more loudly than culture what the season is really “all about.”  Doing so gives a kind of cursory feeling of living counter-culturally and of being faithful to the Great Commission.  And it’s usually accompanied by abstract proclamations of love, joy, peace and hope.  I can’t help think again of the verse about “those who give assurance of peace when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).  But we know that beneath the surface there is much more to what Christ’s advent really signifies.\r\n\r\nWe live in an age when people aren’t hearing or seeing the Christmas story as relevant anymore.  On the one hand, we don’t worry about this too much, but on the other hand, have we ever asked why?  There’s so much craziness around the holidays at church.  Living nativities for example – what does this really communicate?  Do the people putting them on even know?  I’m not meaning to be cynical here; I genuinely wonder.  No doubt there are many reasons for society’s disenchantment, but I submit that at least one of them is the failure, in church, to name and confess the biggest sins of our people – social sins like war, coercive free trade agreements with South Korea, exploitation, environmental degradation, and excessive accumulation and resource consumption, or the personal ones like lust, addiction, fear, pride and insecurity.  And I mean like<em> really</em> concretely speak of them, by giving tangible examples and talking about them in the open, admitting our brokenness and mourning over the great, great costs that society and especially the global periphery has borne as a consequence.\r\n\r\nThe other tendency one notices is paradoxically related.  You see it in evangelical contexts particularly, but not only there.  It’s the use of the <em>birth</em> of Jesus as another chance to talk about the <em>death </em>of Jesus, and how it functions as a penal substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.  The danger in this case is similar in that, while harping some on individual sins, the message usually goes straight to celebrating what we get from this exchange.  The other problem is that the real richness of the Incarnation itself is lost, and Jesus is separated too much from God the Father.  It likewise precludes any grieving of the darkness around us and in ourselves.  Much like Holy Saturday, Advent is not yet the time for triumph.  With all of the devastation, agony and uncertainty in the world, it is right and even essential to say that God has unfinished work.  And even after the resurrection, which is a central part of God’s mission, the all-important restoration of creation and the dead is still pending.\r\n\r\nThus there is at least a twofold function to the Incarnation that we can speak of without yet getting to atonement.\r\n\r\nFirst, Jesus’s birth into a political climate under the reign of the ruthless King Herod highlights the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of worldly power.  The lowliness, marginality and vulnerability that characterize Jesus’s family and historical setting invokes the theme of solidarity that he and therefore God has with the subjugated peoples of the world.  This includes especially the undocumented, the foreigner, the jobless, the sick, the elderly, the lonely, the prisoner, the troubled veteran, the homeless, the hungry and the uninsured.  As the one who’s first words at the beginning of his ministry were about proclaiming liberation to persons such as these, perhaps this is where our Christmas reflection should also begin.\r\n\r\nSecondly, the Incarnation doesn’t just say that God is <em>with</em> us and <em>for</em> us.  It also echoes, in continuity with the Jewish prophetic tradition what God is <em>against</em>:\r\n<blockquote>“All sufferers can find comfort in the solidarity of the [Incarnate One]; but only those who struggle against evil by following [his] example will discover him at their side.  To claim the comfort of the Incarnation while rejecting [God’s] way is the advocate not only cheap grace but a deceitful ideology.”<a title=\"\" href=\"#_edn1\">[i]</a></blockquote>\r\nThe manor in which Jesus experiences the realities of life on earth in the birth narratives protests all human ambitions that lead to domination, exclusion and oppression.  From sleeping with animals and fleeing to Egypt, to growing up in Nazareth and being raised by a carpenter, Jesus manifests God’s partiality for the underside of history and defends the case of the sinned-against.\r\n\r\nThe themes of solidarity with the victims and the condemnation of injustice are later supplemented by the atonement by Christ for the perpetrators.  Only God can bring complete healing and reconciliation, and it’s true that we are all perpetrators to some extent – even the poor among us.  We should not romanticize their plight.  The question is not whether we are totally innocent, however – no one is; rather, as Baylor’s Jewish liberation theologian Marc Ellis explains, it’s whether we’re moving <em>toward</em> Community on the one hand or Empire on the other.  Ellis also says that for Christians, unlike Jews, they kind of have to downplay the messianic if they want to properly emphasize the prophetic.  At least for this season and context, I think he might be right.\r\n\r\nThere is another lesson from the Incarnation then.  Henri Nouwen says that “we read the Word[/Christ] so that the Word[/Christ] can become flesh and have a whole new life in us.”  He seems to be hinting here at the idea of <em>theosis</em> – that is, our sanctification and transformation into the image of the invisible God.  This change in us, however gradual and inconsistent, also demands a conversion of some kind, a repentance or “turning around” as John the Baptist insisted.\r\n\r\nI like the words to a song my friend Tripp Fuller wrote and recently sang on his <a href=\"http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2011/12/08/advent-tnt-extravaganza/\" target=\"_blank\">podcast</a> which inspired part of this reflection:\r\n<blockquote>\"Pattern all your calculating\r\n\r\nand the world we are creating\r\n\r\nto the Advent we’re awaiting.\r\n\r\nCome Lord Jesus come.\"</blockquote>\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<hr align=\"left\" size=\"1\" width=\"33%\" />\r\n\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"\" href=\"#_ednref\">[i]</a> Miroslav Volf, <em>Exclusion &amp; Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation</em>, First Edition. (Abingdon Press, 1996), 24.\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n</div>','Still Waiting For Atonement this Christmas','','inherit','open','open','','3114-revision-7','','','2011-12-14 08:35:28','2011-12-14 16:35:28','',3114,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3114-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(3159,1,'2011-12-14 08:36:59','2011-12-14 16:36:59','As Christians we like to talk about the “true”<em> </em>meaning of Christmas – the birth of Jesus Christ of course.  This has made for a good Republican Christmas tv ad in the past.  Sometimes it seems as if certain Christians think it’s sufficient to just <em>mention</em> more loudly than culture what the season is really “all about.”  Doing so gives a kind of cursory feeling of living counter-culturally and of being faithful to the Great Commission.  And it’s usually accompanied by abstract proclamations of love, joy, peace and hope.  I can’t help think again of the verse about “those who give assurance of peace when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).  But we know that beneath the surface there is much more to what Christ’s advent really signifies.\r\n\r\nWe live in an age when people aren’t hearing or seeing the Christmas story as relevant anymore.  On the one hand, we don’t worry about this too much, but on the other hand, have we ever asked why?  There’s so much craziness around the holidays at church.  Living nativities for example – what does this really communicate?  Do the people putting them on even know?  I’m not meaning to be cynical here; I genuinely wonder.  No doubt there are many reasons for society’s disenchantment, but I submit that at least one of them is the failure, in church, to name and confess the biggest sins of our people – social sins like war, coercive free trade agreements with South Korea, exploitation, environmental degradation, and excessive accumulation and resource consumption, or the personal ones like lust, addiction, fear, pride and insecurity.  And I mean like<em> really</em> concretely speak of them, by giving tangible examples and talking about them in the open, admitting our brokenness and mourning over the great, great costs that society and especially the global periphery has borne as a consequence.\r\n\r\nThe other tendency one notices is paradoxically related.  You see it in evangelical contexts particularly, but not only there.  It’s the use of the <em>birth</em> of Jesus as another chance to talk about the <em>death </em>of Jesus, and how it functions as a penal substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.  The danger in this case is similar in that, while harping some on individual sins, the message usually goes straight to celebrating what we get from this exchange.  The other problem is that the real richness of the Incarnation itself is lost, and Jesus is separated too much from God the Father.  It likewise precludes any grieving of the darkness around us and in ourselves.  Much like Holy Saturday, Advent is not yet the time for triumph.  With all of the devastation, agony and uncertainty in the world, it is right and even essential to say that God has unfinished work.  And even after the resurrection, which is a central part of God’s mission, the all-important restoration of creation and the dead is still pending.\r\n\r\nThus there is at least a twofold function to the Incarnation that we can speak of without yet getting to atonement.\r\n\r\nFirst, Jesus’s birth into a political climate under the reign of the ruthless King Herod highlights the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of worldly power.  The lowliness, marginality and vulnerability that characterize Jesus’s family and historical setting invokes the theme of solidarity that he and therefore God has with the subjugated peoples of the world.  This includes especially the undocumented, the foreigner, the jobless, the sick, the elderly, the lonely, the prisoner, the troubled veteran, the homeless, the hungry and the uninsured.  As the one who’s first words at the beginning of his ministry were about proclaiming liberation to persons such as these, perhaps this is where our Christmas reflection should also begin.\r\n\r\nSecondly, the Incarnation doesn’t just say that God is <em>with</em> us and <em>for</em> us.  It also echoes, in continuity with the Jewish prophetic tradition what God is <em>against</em>:\r\n<blockquote>“All sufferers can find comfort in the solidarity of the [Incarnate One]; but only those who struggle against evil by following [his] example will discover him at their side.  To claim the comfort of the Incarnation while rejecting [God’s] way is the advocate not only cheap grace but a deceitful ideology.”<a title=\"\" href=\"#_edn1\">[i]</a></blockquote>\r\nThe manor in which Jesus experiences the realities of life on earth in the birth narratives protests all human ambitions that lead to domination, exclusion and oppression.  From sleeping with animals and fleeing to Egypt, to growing up in Nazareth and being raised by a carpenter, Jesus manifests God’s partiality for the underside of history and defends the case of the sinned-against.\r\n\r\nThe themes of solidarity with the victims and the condemnation of injustice are later supplemented by the atonement by Christ for the perpetrators.  Only God can bring complete healing and reconciliation, and it’s true that we are all perpetrators to some extent – even the poor among us.  We should not romanticize their plight.  The question is not whether we are totally innocent, however – no one is; rather, as Baylor’s Jewish liberation theologian Marc Ellis explains, it’s whether we’re moving <em>toward</em> Community on the one hand or Empire on the other.  Ellis also says that for Christians, unlike Jews, they kind of have to downplay the messianic if they want to properly emphasize the prophetic.  At least for this season and context, I think he might be right.\r\n\r\nThere is another lesson from the Incarnation then.  Henri Nouwen says that “we read the Word[/Christ] so that the Word[/Christ] can become flesh and have a whole new life in us.”  He seems to be hinting here at the idea of <em>theosis</em> – that is, our sanctification and transformation into the image of the invisible God.  This change in us, however gradual and inconsistent, also demands a conversion of some kind, a repentance or “turning around” as John the Baptist insisted.\r\n\r\nI like the words to a song my friend Tripp Fuller wrote and recently sang on his <a href=\"http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2011/12/08/advent-tnt-extravaganza/\" target=\"_blank\">podcast</a> which inspired part of this reflection:\r\n<blockquote>\"Pattern all your calculating\r\n\r\nand the world we are creating\r\n\r\nto the Advent we’re awaiting.\r\n\r\nCome Lord Jesus come.\"</blockquote>\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<hr align=\"left\" size=\"1\" width=\"33%\" />\r\n\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"\" href=\"#_ednref\">[i]</a> Miroslav Volf, <em>Exclusion &amp; Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation</em>, First Edition. (Abingdon Press, 1996), 24.\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n</div>','Still Waiting For Atonement this Christmas','','inherit','open','open','','3114-revision-8','','','2011-12-14 08:36:59','2011-12-14 16:36:59','',3114,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3114-revision-8/',0,'revision','',0),(3419,12,'2012-01-01 08:00:40','2012-01-01 16:00:40','It had been a really long day. And it was only 2:00. I was on my way to cover a basketball game for my sports medicine job in a neighboring county.\r\n\r\nI had holiday depression. I was way behind on several assignments. I had the upcoming release of <a href=\"http://store.civitaspress.com/books/284\">my book</a> weighing heavy on my mind with a lot of people I really needed to contact. It was the day after Christmas. I wanted time off. Everyone else had time off, why shouldn\'t I? I was mad a several people, for no really good reason. I just really wanted to crawl in a hole and hide for about three weeks.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/windy.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3422\" style=\"margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/windy-300x187.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"187\" /></a>It was a cold, dreary day. As soon as you stepped outside, the wind smacked you in the face. It didn\'t just smack you in the face, it went straight up your nostrils and gave you brain freeze. Every mile I drove further from home seemed like a thousand. I just wanted to go home. I was miserable.\r\n\r\n<em>\"Bing, bing, bing.\"</em> Stupid gas light. Stupid $3.20 cents a gallon. Stupid empty tank. Stupid payday another week and a half away.\r\n\r\nI pulled into a gas station where other frozen customers were doling out their precious paychecks to fill their tanks. I felt so sorry for myself. My subconscious told me, \"Would you like a pity party Ray? We can invite the whole neighborhood. You know there are people starving and dying right now, don\'t you?\"\r\n\r\n\"Shut up, subconscious,\" I said as I hammered it down with a short burst of jadedness.\r\n\r\nI went into the gas station to prepay for my gas. Apparently, no one was scheduled to work that day. Apparently, the gas station owners did not realize that the entire world revolves around me and my busy schedule. Then I heard one of them. They were in the back. They were somewhere between the Red Bull cans and the wafting smells of fried gizzards laid out for the hungry customers waiting for a heart attack. They didn\'t know I could hear them.\r\n\r\n\"Can you believe Bill scheduled me for *&amp;^%$ New Year\'s Eve? And there\'s only two of us on the schedule!\" employee number one said.\r\n\r\n\"What\'s wrong with that Lucy?\" the other one said.\r\n\r\n\"Because after midnight you can\'t buy beer anywhere except the &amp;*&amp;^% gas stations!\" She peered around the corner. \"Oh, hi. I\'m just complaining. What do you need?\"\r\n\r\nI told her what pump I was on and said, \"Life stinks sometimes, doesn\'t it? Especially with a boss who doesn\'t understand.\"\r\n\r\n\"Yeah,\" she said. Completely understanding my irritation for all things human. I wanted her to hate life like I hated it for the stupid reasons I hated it.\r\n\r\nI walked out the door and to my car and started pumping gas. My religious sub-conscious started kicking in, but I was hardly listening, \"Ray, God is here. He is present.\" Whatever. Stupid voices. Need to go see my doctor again.\r\n\r\nOut of the corner of my eye, in the blistering cold, I saw the most remarkable thing. I had to do a double take. I assure <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/pogg.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-3425\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/pogg-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a>you, I am not making this up. I wish I were. Because it would have been easier to remain in my misery.\r\n\r\nThere was a white minivan pulled up on  an opposite set of pumps. It was rusted and worn and the back was open. But the van isn\'t important. The thing that caught my eye was a girl of about nine. She was jumping up and down on a pogo-stick.\r\n\r\nI stared.\r\n\r\nShe had her brunette pigtails tied up and they were flopping up and down as she hopped next to the little discolored minivan. The thing that got me was the look on her face. It was the goofiest look of happiness. She had the biggest smile and her eyes were wide open. Bounce, bounce, bounce.\r\n\r\nMy Lord. She was happy.\r\n\r\nMy stupid brain kicked in, \"How ridiculous. It\'s freezing cold! She could get hit by a car! Who jumps on a pogo-stick in the middle of a gas station parking lot? Who even jumps on a pogo-stick in 2011?\"\r\n\r\nI said, \"Shut up, brain. This is a beautiful moment.\"\r\n\r\nShe was happy. She had joy. I wanted that. I knew that kind of joy. It was within me. Problem was, I had allowed a thousand other things hinder my joy that day. In one small prayer, I let them all go.\r\n\r\nThe gas pump shut off and I snapped my attention downward. God had given me a moment to see the joy that I had within me. I looked up and she was pogoing on the other side of the van.\r\n\r\nI got back into my car and smiled. Joy unhindered. That\'s how I want to choose to live. And with a goofy smile on my face.','Joy Unhindered: The Lesson of the Unlikely Pogo Stick','','publish','open','open','','joy-unhindered-the-lesson-of-the-unlikely-pogo-stick','','\nhttp://store.civitaspress.com/books/284','2012-01-03 10:42:04','2012-01-03 18:42:04','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=3419',0,'post','',4),(3162,46,'2011-12-14 15:50:08','2011-12-14 23:50:08','Anyone who knows me knows that when a particular subject interests me, I go out and read every single thing I can about that subject until it becomes an obsession and it is all I ever talk about. Yeah, I’m that nerdy!\n\nLately the subject that has become my obsession is the history of Christianity. Turns out it’s a lot more complicated than the short history lesson a lot of evangelical churches teach: God wrote the Bible, the Catholics came along and ruined things, Luther and Calvin saved the day, the end. There’s a whole two-thousand year history that’s full of different doctrines, ideas, theologies, and schisms that have shaped the religion throughout the years. In fact, I think Christianity is still evolving right now as I write this.\n\nUnfortunately, some of the things I have read had made me question a lot of my theology.\n\nThis is why I have mixed feelings about biblical scholar Marcus Borg. On one hand, his book <em>Reading the Bible Again For the First Time</em> has definitely taught me how to take the Bible seriously without interpreting every story literally. But on the other hand, when he questions the historical accuracy of anything that the Apostle’s Creed confirms, that’s when I get a little anxious.\n\nFor example, since this is the Advent season I’ve had the virgin birth on my mind a lot lately. Only two of the gospels mention anything about Jesus’ birth--Matthew and Luke--and none of the New Testament books written prior to Matthew and Luke say anything about Jesus’ birth. Also, both Matthew and Luke have different details about what exactly happened on that first Christmas morning. And then of course, there’s the fact that in the original Hebrew, Isaiah 7:14 could mean either “virgin” or “young girl.” (Hat tip: <em>Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time</em>, chapter 2).\n\nOf course since we can’t go back in time to give Mary a physical examination, there’s no way of knowing for sure whether or not she really was a virgin. But since I’ve always been the over-analytical type, I can’t help but wonder, “If the virgin birth isn’t factual, what about the incarnation? How else could God come to earth as a human?”\n\nI can’t help but think about what Martin Luther King Jr said about science and religion:\n<blockquote><em>“Science investigates; religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge which is power; religion gives man wisdom which is control. Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values. The two are not rivals. They are complementary. Science keeps religion from sinking into the valley of crippling irrationalism and paralyzing obscurantism. Religion prevents science from falling into the marsh of obsolete materialism and moral nihilism.”</em></blockquote>\nAnd I think the same can be applied to history. We need historical fact in order to distinguish myth from reality. Of course all facts need interpretation, and this where faith comes in. The book of Hebrews tells us that “faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (11:1). When there are gaps in the facts, or the facts leave gaps in our previously-held theology, faith fills in those gaps. It does not ignore the facts; it merely says that God is much bigger than all of our questions, all of our doubts, and all of our tiny little theological boxes.\n\nLike I said, we have no way of looking up Mary’s medical records, but maybe we don’t need to. Faith is enough to reassure us that Jesus is still God-with-us.','Letting Faith Fill In The Gaps','','inherit','open','open','','3161-revision','','','2011-12-14 15:50:08','2011-12-14 23:50:08','',3161,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3161-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(3163,0,'2011-12-14 17:51:59','2011-12-15 01:51:59','Your first article was awesome.  Seriously looking forward to your next one.\r\n\r\nJonathan\r\nProvoketive Magazine\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Jonathan Brink\nAUTHOR EMAIL: jb@thriven.org\nAUTHOR URL: http://jonathanbrink.com\nSUBJECT: [Provoketive Magazine] Gender Roles As God Intended\nIP: 75.31.90.110\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Jonathan Brink\n    [Email] =&gt; jb@thriven.org\n    [Website] =&gt; http://jonathanbrink.com\n    [Message] =&gt; Your first article was awesome.  Seriously looking forward to your next one.\r\n\r\nJonathan\r\nProvoketive Magazine\n)\n','Jonathan Brink - 2011-12-14 17:51:59','','publish','open','open','','ad36faca69a323acc884e9d56f98b57c','','','2011-12-14 17:51:59','2011-12-15 01:51:59','',2508,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=3163',0,'feedback','',0),(3169,117,'2011-12-14 21:02:13','2011-12-15 05:02:13','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\r\n\r\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them. He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\r\n\r\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom. All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party. Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].” The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.\r\n\r\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine” in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging. The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\r\n\r\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\r\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\r\n\r\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere, this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.\r\n\r\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\r\n\r\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\r\n\r\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles. He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,” referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia. Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\r\n\r\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\r\n\r\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church, nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as ekklesia, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts. It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture. This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.\r\n\r\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores, approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives, always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\r\n\r\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-revision-4','','','2011-12-14 21:02:13','2011-12-15 05:02:13','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3165-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(3166,117,'2011-12-14 20:48:47','2011-12-15 04:48:47','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\n\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them.  He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom.  All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party.  Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].”  The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine”  in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging.  The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere,  this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles.  He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,”  referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia.  Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church,  nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as ekklesia, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts.  It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture.  This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores,  approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives,  always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\n\n\nMichael Camp is a former missionary for evangelical aid and mission organizations and a church-planting ministry. He lived in Africa for seven years, earned a Masters degree at Eastern University, and was a senior writer for World Vision. His writing appears in Homebrewed Christianity and Recovering Fundamentalists. He ruminates further on what Jesus would brew in his forthcoming book entitled Confessions of a Bible Thumper: My Homebrewed Quest for a Reasoned Faith. He also writes on social justice and poverty issues. To engage him more, visit his blog, Deep Thought Pub and michaelcampbooks.com.','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-revision','','','2011-12-14 20:48:47','2011-12-15 04:48:47','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3165-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(3168,117,'2011-12-14 20:50:39','2011-12-15 04:50:39','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\r\n\r\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them. He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\r\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom. All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party. Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].” The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.\r\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine” in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging. The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\r\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\r\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\r\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere, this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.\r\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\r\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\r\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles. He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,” referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia. Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\r\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\r\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church, nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as ekklesia, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts. It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture. This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.\r\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores, approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives, always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\r\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\r\n\r\nMichael Camp is a former missionary for evangelical aid and mission organizations and a church-planting ministry. He lived in Africa for seven years, earned a Masters degree at Eastern University, and was a senior writer for World Vision. His writing appears in Homebrewed Christianity and Recovering Fundamentalists. He ruminates further on what Jesus would brew in his forthcoming book entitled Confessions of a Bible Thumper: My Homebrewed Quest for a Reasoned Faith. He also writes on social justice and poverty issues. To engage him more, visit his blog, Deep Thought Pub and michaelcampbooks.com.','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-revision-3','','','2011-12-14 20:50:39','2011-12-15 04:50:39','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3165-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(3167,117,'2011-12-14 20:50:13','2011-12-15 04:50:13','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\r\n\r\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them.  He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\r\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom.  All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party.  Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].”  The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.\r\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine”  in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging.  The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\r\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\r\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\r\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere,  this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.\r\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\r\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\r\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles.  He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,”  referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia.  Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\r\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\r\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church,  nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as ekklesia, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts.  It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture.  This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.\r\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores,  approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives,  always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\r\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\r\n\r\n\r\nMichael Camp is a former missionary for evangelical aid and mission organizations and a church-planting ministry. He lived in Africa for seven years, earned a Masters degree at Eastern University, and was a senior writer for World Vision. His writing appears in Homebrewed Christianity and Recovering Fundamentalists. He ruminates further on what Jesus would brew in his forthcoming book entitled Confessions of a Bible Thumper: My Homebrewed Quest for a Reasoned Faith. He also writes on social justice and poverty issues. To engage him more, visit his blog, Deep Thought Pub and michaelcampbooks.com.','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-revision-2','','','2011-12-14 20:50:13','2011-12-15 04:50:13','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3165-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(3170,117,'2011-12-14 21:03:28','2011-12-15 05:03:28','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\r\n\r\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them. He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\r\n\r\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom. All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party. Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].” The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.\r\n\r\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine” in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging. The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\r\n\r\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\r\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\r\n\r\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere, this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.\r\n\r\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\r\n\r\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\r\n\r\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles. He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,” referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia. Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\r\n\r\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\r\n\r\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church, nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as ekklesia, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts. It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture. This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.\r\n\r\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores, approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives, always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\r\n\r\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-revision-5','','','2011-12-14 21:03:28','2011-12-15 05:03:28','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3165-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(3171,117,'2011-12-14 21:18:02','2011-12-15 05:18:02','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\r\n\r\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them.[1] He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\r\n\r\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom.[2] All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party.[3] Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].”[4] The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.[5]\r\n\r\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine”[6] in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging.[7] The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\r\n\r\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\r\n\r\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\r\n\r\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere,[8] this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.[9]\r\n\r\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\r\n\r\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\r\n\r\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles.[10] He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,”[11] referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia.[12] Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\r\n\r\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\r\n\r\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church,[13] nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as ekklesia, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts.[14] It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture.[15] This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.[16]\r\n\r\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores, approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives,[18] always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\r\n\r\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\r\n\r\n____________\r\n1- Matthew 11:19\r\n2 - John 2:1-10\r\n3 - Deuteronomy 14:26\r\n4 - Psalm 104:14-15\r\n5 - Genesis 27:28\r\n6 - Ephesians 5:18\r\n7 - Darwin Chandler, <em>The Royal Law of Liberty: Living in Freedom Under Christ’s Law of Love</em>, pages 252-253\r\n8 - Michael Camp, <em>I Survived the Christian Right: 10 Lessons I Learned on My Journey Home</em>, in Lesson Four.\r\n9 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Nine.\r\n10 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Two.\r\n11 - Song of Songs 1:2\r\n12 - See Lawrence, Raymond J., Jr., <em>Sexual Liberation: The Scandal of Christendom</em>, page 23, referring to Song of Songs 5:14 and 7:2.\r\n13 - Gary Wills, <em>What Jesus Meant</em>, page 78.\r\n14 - Wills, Ibid., page 78.\r\n15 - Frank Viola and George Barna, <em>Pagan Christianity: Exploring the Roots of Our Church Practices</em>, page xix.\r\n16 - A Pew poll the week of August 20, 2010 found 18 percent of Americans think President Barak Obama is a Muslim, only one third correctly identify him as a Christian, and 43 percent have no idea what his religion is. The fact that Obama and his family haven’t joined a Christian church as of the time of the poll may influence these confused perspectives and highlights how Americans often put more stock in superficial religiosity than genuine Christian charity.\r\n17 - Matthew 11:19 and 21:31\r\n18 - Luke 9:56\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-revision-6','','','2011-12-14 21:18:02','2011-12-15 05:18:02','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3165-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(3172,117,'2011-12-14 21:18:45','2011-12-15 05:18:45','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\r\n\r\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them.[1] He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\r\n\r\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom.[2] All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party.[3] Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].”[4] The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.[5]\r\n\r\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine”[6] in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging.[7] The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\r\n\r\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\r\n\r\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\r\n\r\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere,[8] this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.[9]\r\n\r\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\r\n\r\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\r\n\r\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles.[10] He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,”[11] referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia.[12] Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\r\n\r\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\r\n\r\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church,[13] nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as ekklesia, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts.[14] It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture.[15] This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.[16]\r\n\r\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores, approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives,[18] always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\r\n\r\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\r\n\r\n____________\r\n1- Matthew 11:19\r\n2 - John 2:1-10\r\n3 - Deuteronomy 14:26\r\n4 - Psalm 104:14-15\r\n5 - Genesis 27:28\r\n6 - Ephesians 5:18\r\n7 - Darwin Chandler, <em>The Royal Law of Liberty: Living in Freedom Under Christ’s Law of Love</em>, pages 252-253\r\n8 - Michael Camp, <em>I Survived the Christian Right: 10 Lessons I Learned on My Journey Home</em>, in Lesson Four.\r\n9 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Nine.\r\n10 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Two.\r\n11 - Song of Songs 1:2\r\n12 - See Lawrence, Raymond J., Jr., <em>Sexual Liberation: The Scandal of Christendom</em>, page 23, referring to Song of Songs 5:14 and 7:2.\r\n13 - Gary Wills, <em>What Jesus Meant</em>, page 78.\r\n14 - Wills, Ibid., page 78.\r\n15 - Frank Viola and George Barna, <em>Pagan Christianity: Exploring the Roots of Our Church Practices</em>, page xix.\r\n16 - A Pew poll the week of August 20, 2010 found 18 percent of Americans think President Barak Obama is a Muslim, only one third correctly identify him as a Christian, and 43 percent have no idea what his religion is. The fact that Obama and his family haven’t joined a Christian church as of the time of the poll may influence these confused perspectives and highlights how Americans often put more stock in superficial religiosity than genuine Christian charity.\r\n17 - Matthew 11:19 and 21:31\r\n18 - Luke 9:56\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-revision-7','','','2011-12-14 21:18:45','2011-12-15 05:18:45','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3165-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(3173,117,'2011-12-14 21:19:11','2011-12-15 05:19:11','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\r\n\r\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them.[1] He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\r\n\r\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom.[2] All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party.[3] Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].”[4] The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.[5]\r\n\r\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine”[6] in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging.[7] The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\r\n\r\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\r\n\r\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\r\n\r\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere,[8] this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.[9]\r\n\r\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\r\n\r\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\r\n\r\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles.[10] He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,”[11] referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia.[12] Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\r\n\r\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\r\n\r\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church,[13] nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as ekklesia, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts.[14] It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture.[15] This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.[16]\r\n\r\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores, approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives,[18] always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\r\n\r\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\r\n\r\n____________\r\n1- Matthew 11:19\r\n2 - John 2:1-10\r\n3 - Deuteronomy 14:26\r\n4 - Psalm 104:14-15\r\n5 - Genesis 27:28\r\n6 - Ephesians 5:18\r\n7 - Darwin Chandler, <em>The Royal Law of Liberty: Living in Freedom Under Christ’s Law of Love</em>, pages 252-253\r\n8 - Michael Camp, <em>I Survived the Christian Right: 10 Lessons I Learned on My Journey Home</em>, in Lesson Four.\r\n9 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Nine.\r\n10 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Two.\r\n11 - Song of Songs 1:2\r\n12 - See Lawrence, Raymond J., Jr., <em>Sexual Liberation: The Scandal of Christendom</em>, page 23, referring to Song of Songs 5:14 and 7:2.\r\n13 - Gary Wills, <em>What Jesus Meant</em>, page 78.\r\n14 - Wills, Ibid., page 78.\r\n15 - Frank Viola and George Barna, <em>Pagan Christianity: Exploring the Roots of Our Church Practices</em>, page xix.\r\n16 - A Pew poll the week of August 20, 2010 found 18 percent of Americans think President Barak Obama is a Muslim, only one third correctly identify him as a Christian, and 43 percent have no idea what his religion is. The fact that Obama and his family haven’t joined a Christian church as of the time of the poll may influence these confused perspectives and highlights how Americans often put more stock in superficial religiosity than genuine Christian charity.\r\n17 - Matthew 11:19 and 21:31\r\n18 - Luke 9:56\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-revision-8','','','2011-12-14 21:19:11','2011-12-15 05:19:11','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3165-revision-8/',0,'revision','',0),(3290,93,'2011-12-27 08:00:49','2011-12-27 16:00:49','The church where I serve made a <a href=\"http://douglassblvdcc.com/blog/2011/4/19/douglass-blvd-christian-church-votes-for-marriage-equality-a.html\">decision</a> this past year to support its ministers in refusing to sign marriage licenses until the rights of marriage could be conferred upon LGTBQ couples. The decision brought <a href=\"http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2011/04/21/160113/kentucky-church-gay-marriage/\">national attention</a>–the overwhelming majority of which was positive.\r\n\r\nOne group in particular who responded to the decision surprised me. I never saw it coming. Some of the most gratifying reactions came from the adult children of some of the older members of our congregation, which is to say, from young people who had dropped out of church a long time ago. From across the U.S. I got word from these displaced folks. They emailed, called, messaged me through social media, and, the ones who still live close by, button-holed me on the street. Their comments shared one thing in common: “I’m so proud to tell my friends that the church that did this cool thing is the church I grew up in.”\r\n\r\nThen, a couple of them proceeded to say something that was hard to hear: “I never thought I’d see a church do something so Christian.”\r\n\r\nEmbedded in that response, I think, is something worth hearing about the way an increasing number of young people experience the church. According to a recent article on <a href=\"http://sojo.net/blogs/2011/12/20/millennials-church-wake-or-were-outta-here?page=show\">Sojourners Blog</a>, Millennials are headed for the exits–even among Evangelicals. Why? According to the article, which cites <a href=\"http://www.barna.org/store?page=shop.product_details&amp;flypage=flypage.tpl&amp;product_id=128\">research</a> by the Barna Group, “Research indicates younger people are not only departing from their elders on ‘social issues,’ such as same-sex marriage and abortion, but on wealth distribution and care for the environment, as well.”\r\n\r\nOne way to look at the difference Millennials represent on these kinds of social issues is that they’ve been seduced by an increasingly secular society. From the time they were young, this thinking goes, the culture has offered Millennials a vision of human life that is often at odds with the vision claimed by churches, one focused less and less on God. Politically, “liberals” have successfully appealed to youthful passion and idealism, rendering them dewey-eyed woolgatherers who know little, either about God or about how the world “really” works. As a consequence, Millennials come to their convictions about the purpose of human life and its just embodiment either as a result of theological ignorance or theological rebellion. The implication is that if they really new about Christianity, they wouldn’t believe such outrageous things about marriage and economic equality and environmental responsibility.\r\n\r\nThere are a couple of different responses that come to mind, if this is the way you frame the problem of the disappearance of young adults. On the one hand, you could just tell young people they’re wrong, and they need to get right. In many cases, this was the strategy employed by the Greatest Generation when Baby Boomers started questioning organized religion in the 1960s and 70s. For those who think this kind of “unvarnished truth” strategy is the way to go, it might be helpful to contemplate its success when used on an earlier generation–take a look at <a href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085244/\">The Big Chill</a>, for instance.\r\n\r\nOn the other hand, you might look at the exodus of Millennials as a failure of relevance. Churches got sidetracked, started focusing on stuff Millennials found pointless–stuff like bigger buildings, keeping up social appearances for the country club set, right wing politics, etc. If you interpret irrelevance to be the reason young people don’t want anything to do with the church, you have an easy way to address the issue … be more relevant. Find cool looking people to play cool sounding music. Say “dude” a lot. Make sure you know the difference between a cappuccino and a latte. Easy.\r\n\r\nThere are couple of different branches of über relevance available, too. If you’re sympathetic to the whole <strong>mega-church movement</strong>, sprinkle some Jesus over the top of ordinary stuff young people like, and voilà, instant relevance. Christian rock climbing. Christian aerobics. Christian skateboarding. Christian Screamo bands. The possibilities are endless.\r\n\r\nIf you find an <strong>emergent</strong> emphasis more to your liking, you’ll need another set of accoutrements. Tattoos are good. Piercings and ear gauges add a nice touch. Make sure to do some outings in a pub, with lots of locally micro-brewed fare. Relevance isn’t too far off.\r\n\r\nAnd while I happen to think the emergent movement is much more theologically interesting for a whole host of <a href=\"http://dmergent.org/2010/05/23/dmergent-and-stonecampbell-heritage/\">reasons</a> other than just those things that accessorize it, like the mega-church stuff, if it’s just a marketing strategy for obtaining relevance, I think it’s doomed to drive Millennials away. Millennials have been socialized to be <a href=\"http://dmergent.org/2011/10/17/death-of-a-salesman-please/\">amazingly aware of being marketed to</a>, and they react poorly to such poses adopted solely for the purpose of “winning” their spiritual “business.”\r\n\r\nI find all of these ways of reading the departure of young adults from the church dismissive, sharing a common misconception that what’s wrong, what’s driving Millennials away from the church, resides somewhere <em>outside</em> the church (either with Millennials themselves or with the culture that produced them)–or that if it is the church’s fault, the problems are merely cosmetic, easily remedied by superficial tweaks here or there.\r\n\r\nThere’s another way of reading the generational tea leaves, however, one that places responsibility on the <em>church</em> not for failing to be relevant, but for failing to be faithful to the Jesus found in the Gospels. Maybe the problem is that Millennials hear about Jesus and then take him at his word. Maybe they really believe that stuff Jesus says st the beginning of his ministry in Luke:\r\n<blockquote>The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.</blockquote>\r\nThen, they go to church, and instead of hearing about how to live with those who’ve been kicked to the curb, how to be Christ to a world caving in on itself, they hear about how the church’s job is to maneuver itself into positions of power, respectability, relevance, etc. They hear about committee meetings and deficit budgets and why it is imperative that we “keep Christ in Christmas.” They hear a baptized politics that exhorts them to be good moral “individuals” who seek a “personal relationship with Jesus,” but their relationship to the poor and the powerless, their relationship to an economic system designed to serve the interests of those already on top at the expense of those on the bottom, their relationship to a government that starts preemptive wars based on a conceit, their relationship to God’s creation–these are largely matters of indifference to the church. These young people go to church and hear why (if they happen to be at a conservative church) gay people are going to hell, or (if they happen to be at a more “progressive” church) why it might upset the ecclesiastical apple cart if we were to say that gay people are created in the image of God–exactly the way God wanted them.\r\n\r\nAll of which is to say: Maybe it’s not Millennials who’ve left the church, so much as that the church has left Jesus–and Millennials are the only ones brave enough to recognize that the emperor has been parading about without the benefit of clothes. If that’s the case, the church would do well to quit worrying so much about whether Millennials are leaving the church, and start investing time and effort and resources into looking more like Jesus. Then Millennials might finally see something for which it would be worth sticking around.\r\n\r\n“I’m so proud to tell my friends that the church that did this cool thing is the church I grew up in” isn’t the same as, “How do I sign up to get back into church?” For any number of really important reasons, though, it’s a step in the right direction.','Why Millennials Are Leaving the Church','','publish','open','open','','why-millennials-are-leaving-the-church','','','2011-12-22 09:52:25','2011-12-22 17:52:25','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=3290',0,'post','',14),(3178,20,'2011-12-14 08:42:30','2011-12-14 16:42:30','As Christians we like to talk about the “true”<em> </em>meaning of Christmas – the birth of Jesus Christ of course.  This has made for a good Republican Christmas tv ad in the past.  Sometimes it seems as if certain Christians think it’s sufficient to just <em>mention</em> more loudly than culture what the season is really “all about.”  Doing so gives a kind of cursory feeling of living counter-culturally and of being faithful to the Great Commission.  And it’s usually accompanied by abstract proclamations of love, joy, peace and hope.  I can’t help think again of the verse about “those who give assurance of peace when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).  But we know that beneath the surface there is much more to what Christ’s advent really signifies.\r\n\r\nWe live in an age when people aren’t hearing or seeing the Christmas story as relevant anymore.  On the one hand, we don’t worry about this too much, but on the other hand, have we ever asked why?  There’s so much craziness around the holidays at church.  Living nativities for example – what does this really communicate?  Do the people putting them on even know?  I’m not meaning to be cynical here; I genuinely wonder.  No doubt there are many reasons for society’s disenchantment, but I submit that at least one of them is the failure, in church, to name and confess the biggest sins of our people – social sins like war, coercive free trade agreements with South Korea, exploitation, environmental degradation, and excessive accumulation and resource consumption, or the personal ones like lust, addiction, fear, pride and insecurity.  And I mean like<em> really</em> concretely speak of them, by giving tangible examples and talking about them in the open, admitting our brokenness and mourning over the great, great costs that society and especially the global periphery has borne as a consequence.\r\n\r\nThe other tendency one notices is paradoxically related.  You see it in evangelical contexts particularly, but not only there.  It’s the use of the <em>birth</em> of Jesus as another chance to talk about the <em>death </em>of Jesus, and how it functions as a penal substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.  The danger in this case is similar in that, while harping some on individual sins, the message usually goes straight to celebrating what we get from this exchange.  The other problem is that the real richness of the Incarnation itself is lost, and Jesus is separated too much from God the Father.  It likewise precludes any grieving of the darkness around us and in ourselves.  Much like Holy Saturday, Advent is not yet the time for triumph.  With all of the devastation, agony and uncertainty in the world, it is right and even essential to say that God has unfinished work.  And even after the resurrection, which is a central part of God’s mission, the all-important restoration of creation and the dead is still pending.\r\n\r\nThus there is at least a twofold function to the Incarnation that we can speak of without yet getting to atonement.\r\n\r\nFirst, Jesus’s birth into a political climate under the reign of the ruthless King Herod highlights the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of worldly power.  The lowliness, marginality and vulnerability that characterize Jesus’s family and historical setting invokes the theme of solidarity that he and therefore God has with the subjugated peoples of the world.  This includes especially the undocumented, the foreigner, the jobless, the sick, the elderly, the lonely, the prisoner, the troubled veteran, the homeless, the hungry and the uninsured.  As the one who’s first words at the beginning of his ministry were about proclaiming liberation to persons such as these, perhaps this is where our Christmas reflection should also begin.\r\n\r\nSecondly, the Incarnation doesn’t just say that God is <em>with</em> us and <em>for</em> us.  It also echoes, in continuity with the Jewish prophetic tradition what God is <em>against</em>:\r\n<blockquote>“All sufferers can find comfort in the solidarity of the [Incarnate One]; but only those who struggle against evil by following [his] example will discover him at their side.  To claim the comfort of the Incarnation while rejecting [God’s] way is the advocate not only cheap grace but a deceitful ideology.”<a title=\"\" href=\"#_edn1\">[i]</a></blockquote>\r\nThe manor in which Jesus experiences the realities of life on earth in the birth narratives protests all human ambitions that lead to domination, exclusion and oppression.  From sleeping with animals and fleeing to Egypt, to growing up in Nazareth and being raised by a carpenter, Jesus manifests God’s partiality for the underside of history and defends the case of the sinned-against.\r\n\r\nThe themes of solidarity with the victims and the condemnation of injustice are later supplemented by the atonement by Christ for the perpetrators.  Only God can bring complete healing and reconciliation, and it’s true that we are all perpetrators to some extent – even the poor among us.  We should not romanticize their plight.  The question is not whether we are totally innocent, however – no one is; rather, as Baylor’s Jewish liberation theologian Marc Ellis explains, it’s whether we’re moving <em>toward</em> Community on the one hand or Empire on the other.  Ellis also says that for Christians, unlike Jews, they kind of have to downplay the messianic if they want to properly emphasize the prophetic.  At least for this season and context, I think he might be right.\r\n\r\nThere is another lesson from the Incarnation then.  Henri Nouwen says that “we read the Word[/Christ] so that the Word[/Christ] can become flesh and have a whole new life in us.”  He seems to be hinting here at the idea of <em>theosis</em> – that is, our sanctification and transformation into the image of the invisible God.  This change in us, however gradual and inconsistent, also demands a conversion of some kind, a repentance or “turning around” as John the Baptist insisted.\r\n\r\nI like the words to a song my friend Tripp Fuller wrote and recently sang on his <a href=\"http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2011/12/08/advent-tnt-extravaganza/\" target=\"_blank\">podcast</a> which inspired part of this reflection:\r\n<blockquote>\"Pattern all your calculating\r\n\r\nand the world we are creating\r\n\r\nto the Advent we’re awaiting.\r\n\r\nCome Lord Jesus come.\"</blockquote>\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<hr align=\"left\" size=\"1\" width=\"33%\" />\r\n\r\n<div>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"\" href=\"#_ednref\">[i]</a> Miroslav Volf, <em>Exclusion &amp; Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation</em>, First Edition. (Abingdon Press, 1996), 24.\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n</div>','Still Waiting For Atonement This Christmas','','inherit','open','open','','3114-revision-9','','','2011-12-14 08:42:30','2011-12-14 16:42:30','',3114,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3114-revision-9/',0,'revision','',0),(3180,110,'2011-12-15 10:38:44','2011-12-15 18:38:44','In this \'de-harmonising\' series, we\'ve been attempting to see the different threads and emphases that each of the four tellings of the gospel of Jesus in the New Testament. We\'re aiming to see each one as a unique and beautiful work of art, seeing in 4-D rather than the one-dimensional picture that we can sometimes get from nativity plays.\n\nLuke is the last of the gospels in this series (have a look at Mark, John and Matthew), the one that we\'re most familiar with, the one that contributes the most to the story of Christmas that we hear retold each year. Like Matthew, it\'s only two chapters, less even, it will take you just about ###10 minutes to read.\n\nThe story that\'s told here is very different to Matthew - beginning with Zechariah and Elizabeth, the parents of John the Baptist, the angel\'s visit to Mary rather than Joseph, the shepherds and the worship of Simeon and Anna in the Temple. Rather than interpolating the the events that Matthew describes, let\'s take Luke at face value and see what he\'s trying to tell us about Jesus and the story he is going on to tell in the remaining 22 chapters.\n\nFirstly, we notice that all the characters introduced in these chapters are \'cameo parts\' for Luke. Zechariah, Elizabeth, Joseph, the Shepherds, Simeon, Anna - none of these appear again in Luke. Mary comes up once or twice in Luke\'s gospel again; John the Baptist appears a few more times, but these are not the key players in the story of Jesus. They\'re also people who would have been considered marginalised in their context.\n\nZechariah was a priest, but he must have been quite low down the ranking to be part of the rotation. He and his wife were old, and \'righteous before God\', but childless. This was a huge stigma in ancient society, seen as a curse, no matter how good someone appeared. Shepherds are well know to have been outcasts in first century Palestine - they did a dirty, manual job and were mistrusted in a similar way to Travellers or Gypsies here in the UK. Simeon and Anna, though age was respected, had chosen a lifestyle that was unusual, even weird.\n\nLuke tells us nothing of Joseph, except that he was a descendant of David. This royal lineage gives him no benefits, however, as he has to follow the command of the Emperor and travel miles to Bethlehem for the census. Mary is a young, unmarried woman - a nobody until she is \'exhalted\'. They travel to Joseph\'s \'hometown\', somewhere he should have had family, never mind a place in the inn. But an unmarried couple that were quite obviously about to have a baby was a toxic scandal that no one would touch, not even a hotellier. They camp out by the road - no mention of a stable here. Mangers were stone feeding troughs that a livestock herder would fill with enough hay or straw for his herd or flock, then leave empty when they continued on with their journey to market. It\'s an image of complete emptiness - not a cosy little shed with straw and animals looking on, nothing at all to witness or support this traumatic night. The shattered mother wraps the newborn baby in cloths to cushion him against the hard, cold stone.\n\nSurely the angelic host should have been supporting and warming Mary and Jesus, not off telling shepherds (shepherds of all people!) about the birth! But this tale sets the tone for Luke. Jesus is here for a mission, one that takes in every outcast, rejected and overlooked person everywhere. He begins as one of us - one of \'them\', the despised, yet we don\'t get the sense that we should be pitying anyone or patronising with gifts. Jesus is the gift to everyone - especially those who don\'t deserve or expect him. The most religious and rightous man in the story is struck dumb for nine months by a single angel, while filthy theiving shepherds go round telling everyone the miracle they were told about by a huge choir of angels.\n\nFor Luke, everything is about mission. The songs of Mary and Zechariah praise the mercy of God in helping Israel, keeping his promises by sending Jesus. The way this plays out is in the shepherds coming to see what they were told about, then telling everyone who would listen. While Simeon blesses Jesus, praising God for his gift, Anna goes further in telling the story of Jesus throughout Jerusalem. The tone of the story we tell at Christmas should not be the dull monotone of reading familiar lines of scripture but the excited bubbling over of people who have seen and experienced the incredible gift of God, the longed for fulfilment of promises so good we can hardly believe them. It isn\'t nice, neat or civilised. It\'s raw, difficult, messy and includes people who have never understood how they are supposed to act. Yet it\'s those people who have the energy and enthusiasm to really do justice to the incredible story.','De-harmonizing Christmas - Part 4: Luke','','inherit','open','open','','3179-revision','','','2011-12-15 10:38:44','2011-12-15 18:38:44','',3179,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/15/3179-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(3182,0,'2011-12-15 12:54:32','2011-12-15 20:54:32','faith, family, death, grief, depression\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Joy Bennett\nAUTHOR EMAIL: joy@joyinthisjourney.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://www.joyinthisjourney.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 208.102.127.207\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Joy Bennett\n    [Email] =&gt; joy@joyinthisjourney.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; http://www.joyinthisjourney.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; faith, family, death, grief, depression\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; writingjoy\n)\n','Joy Bennett - 2011-12-15 12:54:32','','publish','open','open','','fbd7b0863a3baaa7909508af97680e47','','','2011-12-15 12:54:32','2011-12-15 20:54:32','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=3182',0,'feedback','',0),(3184,117,'2011-12-14 21:21:39','2011-12-15 05:21:39','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\r\n\r\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them.[1] He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\r\n\r\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom.[2] All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party.[3] Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].”[4] The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.[5]\r\n\r\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine”[6] in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging.[7] The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\r\n\r\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\r\n\r\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\r\n\r\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere,[8] this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.[9]\r\n\r\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\r\n\r\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\r\n\r\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles.[10] He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,”[11] referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia.[12] Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\r\n\r\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\r\n\r\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church,[13] nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as <em>ekklesia</em>, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts.[14] It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture.[15] This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.[16]\r\n\r\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores, approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives,[18] always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\r\n\r\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\r\n\r\n____________\r\n1- Matthew 11:19\r\n2 - John 2:1-10\r\n3 - Deuteronomy 14:26\r\n4 - Psalm 104:14-15\r\n5 - Genesis 27:28\r\n6 - Ephesians 5:18\r\n7 - Darwin Chandler, <em>The Royal Law of Liberty: Living in Freedom Under Christ’s Law of Love</em>, pages 252-253\r\n8 - Michael Camp, <em>I Survived the Christian Right: 10 Lessons I Learned on My Journey Home</em>, in Lesson Four.\r\n9 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Nine.\r\n10 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Two.\r\n11 - Song of Songs 1:2\r\n12 - See Lawrence, Raymond J., Jr., <em>Sexual Liberation: The Scandal of Christendom</em>, page 23, referring to Song of Songs 5:14 and 7:2.\r\n13 - Gary Wills, <em>What Jesus Meant</em>, page 78.\r\n14 - Wills, Ibid., page 78.\r\n15 - Frank Viola and George Barna, <em>Pagan Christianity: Exploring the Roots of Our Church Practices</em>, page xix.\r\n16 - A Pew poll the week of August 20, 2010 found 18 percent of Americans think President Barak Obama is a Muslim, only one third correctly identify him as a Christian, and 43 percent have no idea what his religion is. The fact that Obama and his family haven’t joined a Christian church as of the time of the poll may influence these confused perspectives and highlights how Americans often put more stock in superficial religiosity than genuine Christian charity.\r\n17 - Matthew 11:19 and 21:31\r\n18 - Luke 9:56\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-revision-9','','','2011-12-14 21:21:39','2011-12-15 05:21:39','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3165-revision-9/',0,'revision','',0),(3185,117,'2011-12-15 19:38:14','2011-12-16 03:38:14','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\r\n\r\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them.[1] He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\r\n\r\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom.[2] All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party.[3] Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].”[4] The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.[5]\r\n\r\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine”[6] in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging.[7] The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\r\n\r\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\r\n\r\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\r\n\r\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere,[8] this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.[9]\r\n\r\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\r\n\r\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\r\n\r\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles.[10] He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,”[11] referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia.[12] Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\r\n\r\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\r\n\r\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church,[13] nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as <em>ekklesia</em>, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts.[14] It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture.[15] This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.[16]\r\n\r\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores, approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives,[18] always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\r\n\r\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\r\n\r\n____________\r\n1- Matthew 11:19\r\n2 - John 2:1-10\r\n3 - Deuteronomy 14:26\r\n4 - Psalm 104:14-15\r\n5 - Genesis 27:28\r\n6 - Ephesians 5:18\r\n7 - Darwin Chandler, <em>The Royal Law of Liberty: Living in Freedom Under Christ’s Law of Love</em>, pages 252-253\r\n8 - Michael Camp, <em>I Survived the Christian Right: 10 Lessons I Learned on My Journey Home</em>, in Lesson Four.\r\n9 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Nine.\r\n10 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Two.\r\n11 - Song of Songs 1:2\r\n12 - See Lawrence, Raymond J., Jr., <em>Sexual Liberation: The Scandal of Christendom</em>, page 23, referring to Song of Songs 5:14 and 7:2.\r\n13 - Gary Wills, <em>What Jesus Meant</em>, page 78.\r\n14 - Wills, Ibid., page 78.\r\n15 - Frank Viola and George Barna, <em>Pagan Christianity: Exploring the Roots of Our Church Practices</em>, page xix.\r\n16 - A Pew poll the week of August 20, 2010 found 18 percent of Americans think President Barak Obama is a Muslim, only one third correctly identify him as a Christian, and 43 percent have no idea what his religion is. The fact that Obama and his family haven’t joined a Christian church as of the time of the poll may influence these confused perspectives and highlights how Americans often put more stock in superficial religiosity than genuine Christian charity.\r\n17 - Matthew 11:19 and 21:31\r\n18 - Luke 9:56\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-revision-10','','','2011-12-15 19:38:14','2011-12-16 03:38:14','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/15/3165-revision-10/',0,'revision','',0),(3186,1,'2011-12-19 11:54:21','2011-12-19 19:54:21','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\n\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them.[1] He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\n\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom.[2] All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party.[3] Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].”[4] The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.[5]\n\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine”[6] in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging.[7] The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\n\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\n\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\n\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere,[8] this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.[9]\n\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\n\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\n\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles.[10] He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,”[11] referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia.[12] Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\n\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\n\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church,[13] nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as <em>ekklesia</em>, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts.[14] It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture.[15] This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.[16]\n\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores, approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives,[18] always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\n\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\n\n____________\n1- Matthew 11:19\n2 - John 2:1-10\n3 - Deuteronomy 14:26\n4 - Psalm 104:14-15\n5 - Genesis 27:28\n6 - Ephesians 5:18\n7 - Darwin Chandler, <em>The Royal Law of Liberty: Living in Freedom Under Christ’s Law of Love</em>, pages 252-253\n8 - Michael Camp, <em>I Survived the Christian Right: 10 Lessons I Learned on My Journey Home</em>, in Lesson Four.\n9 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Nine.\n10 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Two.\n11 - Song of Songs 1:2\n12 - See Lawrence, Raymond J., Jr., <em>Sexual Liberation: The Scandal of Christendom</em>, page 23, referring to Song of Songs 5:14 and 7:2.\n13 - Gary Wills, <em>What Jesus Meant</em>, page 78.\n14 - Wills, Ibid., page 78.\n15 - Frank Viola and George Barna, <em>Pagan Christianity: Exploring the Roots of Our Church Practices</em>, page xix.\n16 - A Pew poll the week of August 20, 2010 found 18 percent of Americans think President Barak Obama is a Muslim, only one third correctly identify him as a Christian, and 43 percent have no idea what his religion is. The fact that Obama and his family haven’t joined a Christian church as of the time of the poll may influence these confused perspectives and highlights how Americans often put more stock in superficial religiosity than genuine Christian charity.\n17 - Matthew 11:19 and 21:31\n18 - Luke 9:56\n\nPhoto Credit: dynamosquito','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-autosave','','','2011-12-19 11:54:21','2011-12-19 19:54:21','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/15/3165-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(3187,0,'2011-12-15 21:42:21','2011-12-16 05:42:21','Women\'s Equality, Moving Beyond Gender Roles\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Kristen Rosser\nAUTHOR EMAIL: kristenrosser@hotmail.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://krwordgazer.blogspot.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 71.220.199.172\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Kristen Rosser \n    [Email] =&gt; kristenrosser@hotmail.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; http://krwordgazer.blogspot.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; Women\'s Equality, Moving Beyond Gender Roles\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; krwordgazer\n)\n','Kristen Rosser - 2011-12-15 21:42:21','','publish','open','open','','5458c0b564c4cb138bc2120c650b65df','','','2011-12-15 21:42:21','2011-12-16 05:42:21','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=3187',0,'feedback','',0),(3188,1,'2011-12-12 03:02:24','2011-12-12 11:02:24','The four gospels are like the four voices of a choir, singing the song of Jesus in tight harmony. But the composition is so careful and clever that by putting them all together we miss the intricate detail of the individual melodies and counter melodies. Each one is exquisite and unique alone, while contributing to a majestic symphonic masterpiece. But sometimes we hear them all mushed together through little cheap white ear-buds, we forget the detail in each one - which in this series we hope to glimpse a little of.\r\n\r\nThe start of Matthews gospel contains some of the most treasured moments in the nativity play, but read alone, forgetting the \'rest of the story\' that you\'ve heard so many times it is fresh and compelling. Why not take a moment of your day to read the first two chapters of Matthew - it\'s less than 1500 words, it will only take about 6 minutes to read.\r\n\r\nThe two chapters can be summarised like this:\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Ancestors of Jesus</li>\r\n	<li>An angel visits Joseph (and Jesus is born)</li>\r\n	<li>Magi come to find the king of the Jews</li>\r\n	<li>An angel tells Joseph to run from murderous Herod</li>\r\n	<li>They return to Nazareth</li>\r\n</ol>\r\nNotice that the only angels are in Joseph\'s two dreams, there\'s no journey to Bethlehem written about - the journeys are the escape to Egypt and the return to Nazareth. In fact the \'main characters\' seem to have quite a small part - neither Mary, Joseph or Jesus are named more that half a dozen times between the two chapters. It\'s all happening so that the prophets\' words come true and at the direction of the angelic dreams.\r\n\r\nMatthew gives away the emphasis of his gospel telling by giving the detailed ancestry of Jesus right at the start of the book. Matthew, over and over, show Jesus coming in the light of all the Old Testament, and this list of people includes so many of the \'heroes\' of the Jewish faith by tracing Jesus back to King David and back to the fathers of the Israelite nation, to Abraham.\r\n\r\nBut then Matthew does something unexpected. Jesus is born exactly as the prophets said he would be, but the only ones looking for him are Persian \'Magicians\'. We call them \'Kings\' or \'Wise Men\' because it\'s not neat to think of them as priests of a foreign religion, but this is exactly the shock value Matthew wants us to see. Herod wanted to be thought of as \'King of the Jews\' but didn\'t appreciate the importance of this baby. His advisors, who are well read enough in religion to tell the Magi where to find Jesus are either too unbelieving or too scared of Herod to do anything but advise. So for Matthew, this distinctively Jewish good news starts with hated foreigners getting it right. The only ones who really understand Jesus and worship him are high-ranking priests in another religion entirely, while the ones who should understand are slaughtering children.\r\n\r\nMatthew\'s first couple of chapters are all about validating who Jesus is and how he will be rejected by some but surprisingly found by others who we wouldn\'t expect. Though Matthew begins with Jesus\' Jewish heritage and ancestry, it is outsiders who see the King of the Jews and even worship \'God with us\'. Jesus\' childhood in exile in Egypt is the final hint that if the Jews don\'t accept this message it will go to the rest of the world, outsiders, people who will see Jesus for who he really is.\r\n\r\nMay we not be so busy this Christmas; organising services, buying, wrapping, cooking and talking about the \'real meaning\' that we miss the \'God with us\'. And no matter how much we know of the history and ritual of worshipping God, let\'s not forget that those with no experience can sometimes find Jesus more easily than we can.','De-harmonising Christmas - Part 3: Matthew','','inherit','open','open','','3024-revision-6','','','2011-12-12 03:02:24','2011-12-12 11:02:24','',3024,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3024-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(3189,1,'2011-12-16 07:54:18','2011-12-16 15:54:18','The four gospels are like the four voices of a choir, singing the song of Jesus in tight harmony. But the composition is so careful and clever that by putting them all together we miss the intricate detail of the individual melodies and counter melodies. Each one is exquisite and unique alone, while contributing to a majestic symphonic masterpiece. But sometimes we hear them all mushed together through little cheap white ear-buds, we forget the detail in each one - which in this series we hope to glimpse a little of.\r\n\r\nThe start of Matthews gospel contains some of the most treasured moments in the nativity play, but read alone, forgetting the \'rest of the story\' that you\'ve heard so many times it is fresh and compelling. Why not take a moment of your day to read the first two chapters of Matthew - it\'s less than 1500 words, it will only take about 6 minutes to read.\r\n\r\nThe two chapters can be summarised like this:\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Ancestors of Jesus</li>\r\n	<li>An angel visits Joseph (and Jesus is born)</li>\r\n	<li>Magi come to find the king of the Jews</li>\r\n	<li>An angel tells Joseph to run from murderous Herod</li>\r\n	<li>They return to Nazareth</li>\r\n</ol>\r\nNotice that the only angels are in Joseph\'s two dreams, there\'s no journey to Bethlehem written about - the journeys are the escape to Egypt and the return to Nazareth. In fact the \'main characters\' seem to have quite a small part - neither Mary, Joseph or Jesus are named more that half a dozen times between the two chapters. It\'s all happening so that the prophets\' words come true and at the direction of the angelic dreams.\r\n\r\nMatthew gives away the emphasis of his gospel telling by giving the detailed ancestry of Jesus right at the start of the book. Matthew, over and over, show Jesus coming in the light of all the Old Testament, and this list of people includes so many of the \'heroes\' of the Jewish faith by tracing Jesus back to King David and back to the fathers of the Israelite nation, to Abraham.\r\n\r\nBut then Matthew does something unexpected. Jesus is born exactly as the prophets said he would be, but the only ones looking for him are Persian \'Magicians\'. We call them \'Kings\' or \'Wise Men\' because it\'s not neat to think of them as priests of a foreign religion, but this is exactly the shock value Matthew wants us to see. Herod wanted to be thought of as \'King of the Jews\' but didn\'t appreciate the importance of this baby. His advisors, who are well read enough in religion to tell the Magi where to find Jesus are either too unbelieving or too scared of Herod to do anything but advise. So for Matthew, this distinctively Jewish good news starts with hated foreigners getting it right. The only ones who really understand Jesus and worship him are high-ranking priests in another religion entirely, while the ones who should understand are slaughtering children.\r\n\r\nMatthew\'s first couple of chapters are all about validating who Jesus is and how he will be rejected by some but surprisingly found by others who we wouldn\'t expect. Though Matthew begins with Jesus\' Jewish heritage and ancestry, it is outsiders who see the King of the Jews and even worship \'God with us\'. Jesus\' childhood in exile in Egypt is the final hint that if the Jews don\'t accept this message it will go to the rest of the world, outsiders, people who will see Jesus for who he really is.\r\n\r\nMay we not be so busy this Christmas; organising services, buying, wrapping, cooking and talking about the \'real meaning\' that we miss the \'God with us\'. And no matter how much we know of the history and ritual of worshipping God, let\'s not forget that those with no experience can sometimes find Jesus more easily than we can.','De-harmonising Christmas - Part 3: Matthew','','inherit','open','open','','3024-revision-7','','','2011-12-16 07:54:18','2011-12-16 15:54:18','',3024,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/3024-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(3190,1,'2011-12-16 07:54:33','2011-12-16 15:54:33','The four gospels are like the four voices of a choir, singing the song of Jesus in tight harmony. But the composition is so careful and clever that by putting them all together we miss the intricate detail of the individual melodies and counter melodies. Each one is exquisite and unique alone, while contributing to a majestic symphonic masterpiece. But sometimes we hear them all mushed together through little cheap white ear-buds, we forget the detail in each one - which in this series we hope to glimpse a little of.\r\n\r\nThe start of Matthews gospel contains some of the most treasured moments in the nativity play, but read alone, forgetting the \'rest of the story\' that you\'ve heard so many times it is fresh and compelling. Why not take a moment of your day to read the first two chapters of Matthew - it\'s less than 1500 words, it will only take about 6 minutes to read.\r\n\r\nThe two chapters can be summarised like this:\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Ancestors of Jesus</li>\r\n	<li>An angel visits Joseph (and Jesus is born)</li>\r\n	<li>Magi come to find the king of the Jews</li>\r\n	<li>An angel tells Joseph to run from murderous Herod</li>\r\n	<li>They return to Nazareth</li>\r\n</ol>\r\nNotice that the only angels are in Joseph\'s two dreams, there\'s no journey to Bethlehem written about - the journeys are the escape to Egypt and the return to Nazareth. In fact the \'main characters\' seem to have quite a small part - neither Mary, Joseph or Jesus are named more that half a dozen times between the two chapters. It\'s all happening so that the prophets\' words come true and at the direction of the angelic dreams.\r\n\r\nMatthew gives away the emphasis of his gospel telling by giving the detailed ancestry of Jesus right at the start of the book. Matthew, over and over, show Jesus coming in the light of all the Old Testament, and this list of people includes so many of the \'heroes\' of the Jewish faith by tracing Jesus back to King David and back to the fathers of the Israelite nation, to Abraham.\r\n\r\nBut then Matthew does something unexpected. Jesus is born exactly as the prophets said he would be, but the only ones looking for him are Persian \'Magicians\'. We call them \'Kings\' or \'Wise Men\' because it\'s not neat to think of them as priests of a foreign religion, but this is exactly the shock value Matthew wants us to see. Herod wanted to be thought of as \'King of the Jews\' but didn\'t appreciate the importance of this baby. His advisors, who are well read enough in religion to tell the Magi where to find Jesus are either too unbelieving or too scared of Herod to do anything but advise. So for Matthew, this distinctively Jewish good news starts with hated foreigners getting it right. The only ones who really understand Jesus and worship him are high-ranking priests in another religion entirely, while the ones who should understand are slaughtering children.\r\n\r\nMatthew\'s first couple of chapters are all about validating who Jesus is and how he will be rejected by some but surprisingly found by others who we wouldn\'t expect. Though Matthew begins with Jesus\' Jewish heritage and ancestry, it is outsiders who see the King of the Jews and even worship \'God with us\'. Jesus\' childhood in exile in Egypt is the final hint that if the Jews don\'t accept this message it will go to the rest of the world, outsiders, people who will see Jesus for who he really is.\r\n\r\nMay we not be so busy this Christmas; organising services, buying, wrapping, cooking and talking about the \'real meaning\' that we miss the \'God with us\'. And no matter how much we know of the history and ritual of worshipping God, let\'s not forget that those with no experience can sometimes find Jesus more easily than we can.','De-harmonizing Christmas - Part 3: Matthew','','inherit','open','open','','3024-revision-8','','','2011-12-16 07:54:33','2011-12-16 15:54:33','',3024,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/3024-revision-8/',0,'revision','',0),(3191,1,'2011-12-16 07:54:50','2011-12-16 15:54:50','The four gospels are like the four voices of a choir, singing the song of Jesus in tight harmony. But the composition is so careful and clever that by putting them all together we miss the intricate detail of the individual melodies and counter melodies. Each one is exquisite and unique alone, while contributing to a majestic symphonic masterpiece. But sometimes we hear them all mushed together through little cheap white ear-buds, we forget the detail in each one - which in this series we hope to glimpse a little of.\r\n\r\nThe start of Matthews gospel contains some of the most treasured moments in the nativity play, but read alone, forgetting the \'rest of the story\' that you\'ve heard so many times it is fresh and compelling. Why not take a moment of your day to read the first two chapters of Matthew - it\'s less than 1500 words, it will only take about 6 minutes to read.\r\n\r\nThe two chapters can be summarised like this:\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Ancestors of Jesus</li>\r\n	<li>An angel visits Joseph (and Jesus is born)</li>\r\n	<li>Magi come to find the king of the Jews</li>\r\n	<li>An angel tells Joseph to run from murderous Herod</li>\r\n	<li>They return to Nazareth</li>\r\n</ol>\r\nNotice that the only angels are in Joseph\'s two dreams, there\'s no journey to Bethlehem written about - the journeys are the escape to Egypt and the return to Nazareth. In fact the \'main characters\' seem to have quite a small part - neither Mary, Joseph or Jesus are named more that half a dozen times between the two chapters. It\'s all happening so that the prophets\' words come true and at the direction of the angelic dreams.\r\n\r\nMatthew gives away the emphasis of his gospel telling by giving the detailed ancestry of Jesus right at the start of the book. Matthew, over and over, show Jesus coming in the light of all the Old Testament, and this list of people includes so many of the \'heroes\' of the Jewish faith by tracing Jesus back to King David and back to the fathers of the Israelite nation, to Abraham.\r\n\r\nBut then Matthew does something unexpected. Jesus is born exactly as the prophets said he would be, but the only ones looking for him are Persian \'Magicians\'. We call them \'Kings\' or \'Wise Men\' because it\'s not neat to think of them as priests of a foreign religion, but this is exactly the shock value Matthew wants us to see. Herod wanted to be thought of as \'King of the Jews\' but didn\'t appreciate the importance of this baby. His advisors, who are well read enough in religion to tell the Magi where to find Jesus are either too unbelieving or too scared of Herod to do anything but advise. So for Matthew, this distinctively Jewish good news starts with hated foreigners getting it right. The only ones who really understand Jesus and worship him are high-ranking priests in another religion entirely, while the ones who should understand are slaughtering children.\r\n\r\nMatthew\'s first couple of chapters are all about validating who Jesus is and how he will be rejected by some but surprisingly found by others who we wouldn\'t expect. Though Matthew begins with Jesus\' Jewish heritage and ancestry, it is outsiders who see the King of the Jews and even worship \'God with us\'. Jesus\' childhood in exile in Egypt is the final hint that if the Jews don\'t accept this message it will go to the rest of the world, outsiders, people who will see Jesus for who he really is.\r\n\r\nMay we not be so busy this Christmas; organising services, buying, wrapping, cooking and talking about the \'real meaning\' that we miss the \'God with us\'. And no matter how much we know of the history and ritual of worshipping God, let\'s not forget that those with no experience can sometimes find Jesus more easily than we can.','De-harmonizing Christmas - Part 3: Matthew','','inherit','open','open','','3024-revision-9','','','2011-12-16 07:54:50','2011-12-16 15:54:50','',3024,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/3024-revision-9/',0,'revision','',0),(3192,1,'2011-12-12 19:32:17','2011-12-13 03:32:17','Every year, the Christmas season brings a time of turmoil and anger, typically centered around the public display of Nativity scenes on public property. Let me say up front that I\'m not a huge fan of the \"season\" only because it\'s been supplanted by all the things it\'s not about. I am a huge fan of the Savior, coming into this world to save us, love us and show us compassion.\r\n\r\nI\'m a card carrying Southern Baptist, by the way. If it matters. I think our celebration of Christ should be bible based and closest to what He would have wanted.\r\n\r\nI am not a fan of the Nativity scene. At all. So, for a mish-mash of particulars that might resemble a fruitcake, I\'d like to give you three reasons for tearing down the Nativity scene. Everywhere. Especially in the public square. Please bear with me.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/statechurch.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3140\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/statechurch-300x239.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"258\" height=\"205\" /></a>1. Christians should be fans of the \"accomodation\" idea of religious expression. Here\'s the idea behind it, according to The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commision, an arm of the Southern Baptist Convention - \"Seeks government \'accommodation\' of individuals’ rights to express religious beliefs in government locales.\" (<a href=\"http://erlc.com/documents/pdf/restoring_religious_freedom.pdf\">Here\'s the handy, dandy PDF file explaining all the views</a>.) Most Christians don\'t have a problem with that statement. However, the meat of the issue comes in this explanation - all religions have a right to the public square, as long as they are privately funded. In other words, if the Christians can put up a display, so can Muslims, Hindus or Buddhists. Know why? Because religious freedom for one is religious freedom for all. And denial of that freedom for one is denial of freedom for all.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, some Christians get angry about that. We see people getting angry when a school won\'t let a Christian say a prayer before a ball game or a graduation ceremony. Do you know why the school just bans it? Because they know the law. The law says that if you let the Christian do it, they have to let the Buddhist do it. Frankly, they don\'t want the headache or the culture war. So, they just say, \"no prayer.\" I think it\'s a fine thing to do. The only other alternative is to ask the Christians, \"Fine, have your prayer, but we have to allow the Muslim family to have their leader pray as well.\" How do you think that would go over?\r\n\r\nI\'m all for freedom of religious expression. I say, open the floodgates. Unfortunately, the culture at large isn\'t ready for it. In turn, culture gets mad at the government for \"restricting\" freedom of religious expression when the government just doesn\'t want the darn headache. They get tired of fighting the battle every year and just say \"no\" to the hot-headed Christian majority.\r\n\r\nWorst part? How do you think the vocal Christian majority looks to those who don\'t believe as they do? Not very good. It\'s not the way to win the battle of hearts and minds.\r\n\r\n2. It\'s biblically incorrect for the most part. Yeah. Fact checking time. Evangelical Christians pride themselves for being strong in the bible. So, let\'s review the Christmas story for a moment. It\'s found in two sections of Scripture. In <a href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/search/luke+2%3A1-20/\">Luke 2:1-20</a>, we have Mary and Joseph arriving at Bethlehem, giving birth, and shepherds arriving after seeing angels who appear to them on the ground. In <a href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/search/matthew+2/\">Matthew 2</a>, we have the arrival of the magi, who came to Mary and Joseph while they were living in Jerusalem while Jesus was a young boy. Many scholars think this happened up to two years later. Yeah.\r\n\r\nLet me use a local \"live nativity\" near my house as an example. They\'ve prided themselves with their biblical accuracy. I did a drive by the other night. They\'ve even rebuilt Bethlehem. How did they do?\r\n\r\nStar over the manger - nope. The star appeared almost two years later over Jerusalem. Wise men - nope. Weren\'t at Jesus\' birth - two years later. <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/jesusmary.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-3141\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/jesusmary-300x192.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"192\" /></a>The bible actually never says there were three. Angels - nope. The angels appeared, on the ground to the shepherds, not at Jesus\' feeding trough. <a href=\"http://www.ancientsandals.com/articles/01_jesus_birth.htm\">Innkeeper</a>? Nope. Where is an innkeeper mentioned? Yeah, no room at the inn. But the inn mentioned was more like a house crammed with people during the census. It was probably more comfortable for them with the animals.\r\n\r\nWhy do we feel the need to romanticize the scene? It was a girl around <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_%28mother_of_Jesus%29\">15 years old</a> giving birth in a tough environment. The only people who showed up were nasty, stinky shepherds with their smelly sheep. But they were praising God. A humble birth for an amazing Savior among low people.\r\n\r\n3. I think there\'s a better way to concentrate our passions. Let\'s think back to the early church for a moment. Here were a bunch of men and women who had seen the risen Savior. Their lives were lived every day with the zeal and passion for Him. They showed love for one another and for others based on what Christ had done.\r\n\r\nI don\'t have any evidence for it, but I\'m pretty sure one of the other disciples didn\'t come up to Peter one day and say, \"Hey Peter, let\'s remember the birth of Jesus and put up a little play about it. Even better, let\'s put up a living crucifixion to remember <em>that</em> day.\" Why would they want to do that? They spent every day in the love and enjoyment of the presence of Jesus Christ. Their hearts overflowed with His presence in their community, their families and their relationships.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lvingnat.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3142\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lvingnat-300x206.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"206\" /></a>Do we really need to set up these ridiculous little tableaus twice a year that are mocked with error? What glorifies Christ more? A little set up that tells nothing to the world, or lives that reflect out His love to others? What if our communities of faith put the same amount of effort into the poor, the disenfranchised, the mocked, the persecuted, the homeless, the forsaken, the abandoned, the beaten, the abused, the hated of this world? What if we went to the places in our communities where Christ went first?\r\n\r\nI\'m definitely not calling for people to tear down Nativity scenes in their community ala the <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther#Peasants.27_War\">Peasant\'s War</a> that followed Martin Luther\'s stand against Rome. I am calling for rational thought when it comes to the Christian mission.\r\n\r\nI often wonder what Christ would think if He came into our communities and saw our Nativity scenes and the wars we wage over them. The time we spend keeping them on the public square. Would He be proud? Or would He simply move on to the impoverished neighborhoods to share, love and heal?','Three Reasons To Tear Down The Nativity Scene','','inherit','open','open','','3138-revision-4','','','2011-12-12 19:32:17','2011-12-13 03:32:17','',3138,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/12/3138-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(3193,1,'2011-12-18 07:34:05','2011-12-18 15:34:05','<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I have a confession to make.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I believe in the power of redemption.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I believe that redemption is available to anyone and that no one is beyond redemption.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Except when I don’t.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">You see, redemption is fine, as long as the ‘candidates’ are ‘out there’ or part of some other nebulous, non-specific entity.  I truly believe that murderers, rapists, thieves, governments, and even child predators can be redeemed someday.  For the most part, those are all ‘out there’, and don’t affect me personally.  Detachment makes it easy.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">It’s when the person to be redeemed is someone who has hurt either me or someone close to me that believing in redemption becomes difficult bordering on impossible.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In <em>The Cost of Discipleship</em>, Dietrich Bonheoffer starts off with a difficult and convicting treatise on the difference between cheap grace and costly grace.  Cheap grace is given away as a commodity, costs us nothing, and makes grace simply a bullet point in a 3-point sermon.  Costly grace is so named because it costs us <em>everything</em>.  Embracing costly grace costs us our desires, our plans, our biases, our very lives.  It’s uncomfortable.  It’s painful. It’s hard.  But most of all, it exposes our vulnerability.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I see redemption in the same light, and I’ll admit, I’m hooked on the addictiveness of cheap redemption and am even willing to pay the cost for inexpensive and slightly expensive redemption.  Costly redemption comes with a price tag that can cause us to gasp when we see it.  We gasp out of shock that the entry fee to redemption is to be paid by us, and not by ‘them’.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">That entry fee is our willingness to forgive.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The first step on someone else’s journey to redemption is our forgiveness, and that can be a cost we’re not willing to bear.  Yet, as Christians, forgiveness, true forgiveness, should flow from us in everything we do and to everyone we encounter.  In Matthew 18, Jesus tells his disciples that “<em>whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be</em><strong><em></em></strong><em>loosed in heaven</em>.” He then continues with the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant, which begins by Peter asking Jesus “<em>How many times should I forgive someone who wrongs me?  Seven times</em>?”  Jesus responds by turning Lamech’s lament (Genesis 4) on its head by saying “<em>No.  Seventy times seven</em>”.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The lesson is clear.  Just as Christ’s forgiveness sets us free, so our forgiveness sets others free, and free to seek redemption.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fourteen years ago, my ex-wife walked out on me.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Eight years ago, she walked out on our daughters.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Two weeks ago, due to the diligence of my oldest daughter, she has returned.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I admit it.   I’m still angry and hurt.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I have no idea if she wants to seek redemption.  To be honest, it really doesn’t matter.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">What matters is how I answer the question I ask myself.  The question we should all ask ourselves in this situation.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Who are we to hold redemption hostage?</p>','Holding Redemption Hostage','','inherit','open','open','','3149-autosave','','','2011-12-18 07:34:05','2011-12-18 15:34:05','',3149,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/3149-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(3194,1,'2011-12-13 12:05:43','2011-12-13 20:05:43','<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I have a confession to make.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I believe in the power of redemption.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I believe that redemption is available to anyone and that no one is beyond redemption.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">Except when I don’t.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">You see, redemption is fine, as long as the ‘candidates’ are ‘out there’ or part of some other nebulous, non-specific entity.  I truly believe that murderers, rapists, thieves, governments, and even child predators can be redeemed someday.  For the most part, those are all ‘out there’, and don’t affect me personally.  Detachment makes it easy.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">It’s when the person to be redeemed is someone who has hurt either me or someone close to me that believing in redemption becomes difficult bordering on impossible.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">In <em>The Cost of Discipleship</em>, Dietrich Bonheoffer starts off with a difficult and convicting treatise on the difference between cheap grace and costly grace.  Cheap grace is given away as a commodity, costs us nothing, and makes grace simply a bullet point in a 3-point sermon.  Costly grace is so named because it costs us <em>everything</em>.  Embracing costly grace costs us our desires, our plans, our biases, our very lives.  It’s uncomfortable.  It’s painful. It’s hard.  But most of all, it exposes our vulnerability.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I see redemption in the same light, and I’ll admit, I’m hooked on the addictiveness of cheap redemption and am even willing to pay the cost for inexpensive and slightly expensive redemption.  Costly redemption comes with a price tag that can cause us to gasp when we see it.  We gasp out of shock that the entry fee to redemption is to be paid by us, and not by ‘them’.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">That entry fee is our willingness to forgive.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">The first step on someone else’s journey to redemption is our forgiveness, and that can be a cost we’re not willing to bear.  Yet, as Christians, forgiveness, true forgiveness, should flow from us in everything we do and to everyone we encounter.  In Matthew 18, Jesus tells his disciples that “<em>whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be</em><strong><em></em></strong><em>loosed in heaven</em>.” He then continues with the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant, which begins by Peter asking Jesus “<em>How many times should I forgive someone who wrongs me?  Seven times</em>?”  Jesus responds by turning Lamech’s lament (Genesis 4) on its head by saying “<em>No.  Seventy times seven</em>”.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">The lesson is clear.  Just as Christ’s forgiveness sets us free, so our forgiveness sets others free, and free to seek redemption.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">Fourteen years ago, my ex-wife walked out on me.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">Eight years ago, she walked out on our daughters.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">Two weeks ago, due to the diligence of my oldest daughter, she has returned.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I admit it.   I’m still angry and hurt.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">I have no idea if she wants to seek redemption.  To be honest, it really doesn’t matter.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">What matters is how I answer the question I ask myself.  The question we should all ask ourselves in this situation.</p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\">Who are we to hold redemption hostage?</p>','Holding Redemption Hostage','','inherit','open','open','','3149-revision-2','','','2011-12-13 12:05:43','2011-12-13 20:05:43','',3149,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/13/3149-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(3196,112,'2011-12-21 08:00:09','2011-12-21 16:00:09','“Slowing Down And Immersing Ourselves in the Biblical Story”\r\n\r\nA Review of <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art:\r\nTransforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em>\r\nChristine Valters Paintner.\r\nPaperback: Skylight Paths, 2011.\r\n\r\nReview by Chris Smith.\r\n\r\n<em><a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-3203\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"308\" /></a></em>How do we read the Bible in this age when – as Christian Smith has persuasively argued in his recent book <em>The Bible Made Impossible</em> – some traditional approaches to scriptures are on the verge of dying off?  Is it possible for us to engage and immerse ourselves in scripture in ways other than taking it as cold, static textbook?  The ancient practice of <em>lectio divina</em> (holy reading) is surprisingly relevant for our times, and Christine Valters Paintner’s new book <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em> is an elegant and useful introduction to this approach to reading the Bible (or other texts) in today’s world. Over the last five centuries, the modernity of the Western world has served to streamline life, eliminating or minimizing practices that seem to be labor-intensive or extraneous.  The result is today’s globalized, fast-food world that is rapidly losing the capacity for attentiveness as it continually accelerates into the future.  And indeed our practices of Bible reading have followed suit with the larger culture.  Scripture is no longer a grand drama about God reconciling all creation by gathering a faithful people, but rather it has been reduced – in the most egregious cases – to a sort of self-help guide that unequivocally shows me how to be saved and make a good life for myself.  What we need in our times is a decidedly slow way of reading scripture, a way of immersing ourselves and abiding in God’s story that fits the incarnational and attentive way of Jesus.  <em>Lectio divina</em>, as Paintner describes it in this new book, offers us exactly the sort of slow and careful approach to scripture that we desperately need amidst the velocity of our times.\r\n\r\n<em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> begins with a historical introduction to the practice, which emphasizes that it was rooted in the Judaic tradition of Haggadah, an “interactive interpretation of the Scriptures by means of the free use of the text to explore its inner meaning.” Paintner also notes the monastic origins of <em>lectio divina</em>; many centuries before the invention of the printing press, when scripture was nowhere near as accessible as it is today, monks would memorize and ruminate on scripture, praying over it throughout the day and continually submitting themselves to the words of the text.  It was out of this context that the four-fold practice of <em>lectio divina</em> would be formalized among the Benedictines in the twelfth century.\r\n\r\nThe heart of Paintner’s book, the middle of its three parts, focuses on exploring each of the four steps of <em>lectio divina</em>:\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Lectio</em>: Settling and Shimmering</strong>\r\nLet go of distractions, assume a posture of prayer, and do an initial reading of the text paying attention for a particular phrase that stands out – i.e., that shimmers, “beckons you, addresses you, unnerves you, disturbs you, stirs you, or seems especially ripe with meaning” (10).</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Meditatio</em>: Savoring and Stirring</strong>\r\nSlowly read through the text again, using the phrase that stands out as a lens to guide your reading and stir your imagination</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"> <strong><em>Oratio</em>: Summoning and Serving</strong>\r\nAllow the text to speak into your own life (and the life of your church community).  What light does it shine on the present situation? What are we being compelled to do?  How is the text drawing us deeper into the life and way of Jesus?</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Contemplatio</em>: Slowing and Stilling</strong>\r\nIt is striking that following the <em>Oratio</em> stage, we do not jump up immediately and go follow the Spirit’s leading through the text, but rather, “[this] movement is about slowing yourself down and resting into the still presence of God. The idea is to simply <em>be</em>, rather than trying to <em>do </em>anything. This is a time for offering gratitude for God’s presence in this time of prayer and stilling yourself in silence” (11).</p>\r\nIn the third and final part of the book, Paintner strives to broaden our imaginations about how <em>lectio divina</em> can be a practice that pervades our lives.  She introduces the lesser known practices of <em>visio divina</em> and <em>audio divina</em> – in which we reflect on images and sounds respectively, opening our hearts and minds and being attentive to what God might be saying to us.  She also offers the idea of nature as sacred text that can be read through its own sort of <em>lectio</em>.  This chapter on nature was one of my favorites, and it resonates with a number of nature-study books that I have reviewed here over the last few years (If this chapter also resonates with you, I would recommend in particular <strong><a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-seeing-trees-ross-llewellyn-vol-4-22/\" target=\"_blank\">Kathy Ross Hugo’s <em>Seeing Trees</em></a>,</strong> which, although it does not use the language of <em>lectio</em>, does utilize trees to immerse us in a <em>lectio</em>-like conversation with all God’s creation that surrounds us wherever we are.)  The final chapter focuses on using other facets of our lives as the opportunity for <em>lectio</em>-like reflection, including dreams, our bodies and the newspaper.\r\n\r\nWhat distinguishes Paintner’s work from a host of other recent books on <em>lectio divina</em> is its focus on beauty.  Paintner is an artist and has reflected at length on the role of the arts in spiritual formation (for instance in her book <strong><em>Awakening the Creative Spirit</em></strong>, co-written with Betsey Beckman, which was <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-awakening-the-creative-spirit-by-painter-and-beckman-vol-3-26/\" target=\"_blank\">reviewed in The Englewood Review of Books here</a>).  Part of what is lost in the ever-increasing pace of Western culture, is the joy of the beautiful, and Paintner, deeply aware of this loss, presents <em>lectio divina</em> in a way that draws the reader in and compels her to immerse herself in the beauty of engaging slowly, intentionally and personally with the biblical text. <em>Lectio divina</em> is presented here in language that clearly explains what it is and how it could be practiced in a variety of contexts, but so in a way that is full of life and joy.\r\n\r\nIn the past, I have often recommended <strong>Tony Jones</strong>’s book on <em>lectio divina</em>, <strong><em>Divine Intervention</em></strong>, which also is a simple and thoughtful introduction to the practice.  Paintner’s treatment here, however, although it covers roughly similar ground, does so more eloquently, and takes a broader view that spurs our imaginations to consider <em>lectio divina</em> as a way of being, a practice that helps us slow our lives in a world that is speeding out of control.  Tony’s book was written for younger readers, and probably is preferable for younger audiences, and his work does better at imagining the place of <em>lectio</em> as a social practice within the church community, Paintner’s reticence on the place of <em>lectio</em> in the faith community is one of the few shortcomings of her book.  To be fair, she makes the general statement early in the book that “many people can read the same scriptures and each person will have a unique experience that rises up out of his or her own life context in that moment” (9), but she never develops this superb thought in the direction of what it might mean as we practice <em>lectio </em>together in the church community.\r\n\r\nI have been excited in recent years to see a rising tide of interest in slower, more attentive expressions of Christian faith.  Christine Paintner’s <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> is a lovely apologetic for recovering an historical practice of reading scripture that is not only a way of appreciating and engaging scripture that befits our times, but also a practical way of orienting our lives toward becoming a slower people, a contrast community that proclaims in our life together the good news of a caring and more meaning-full life!','Book Review: Lectio Divina: The Sacred Art','','publish','open','open','','book-review-lectio-divina-the-sacred-art','','','2011-12-19 11:58:19','2011-12-19 19:58:19','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=3196',0,'post','',0),(3209,0,'2011-12-17 15:48:07','2011-12-17 23:48:07','The futility of belief systems.\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: John Ptacek\nAUTHOR EMAIL: ptaceks@hotmail.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://www.johnptacek.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 65.30.31.100\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; John Ptacek\n    [Email] =&gt; ptaceks@hotmail.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; www.johnptacek.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; The futility of belief systems.\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; ptaceks@hotmail.com\n)\n','John Ptacek - 2011-12-17 15:48:07','','publish','open','open','','46352af95c129561c4fbe42079f42b88','','','2011-12-17 15:48:07','2011-12-17 23:48:07','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=3209',0,'feedback','',0),(3197,112,'2011-12-16 10:31:35','2011-12-16 18:31:35','','Lectio-Divina-COVER','','inherit','open','open','','lectio-divina-cover-for-web','','','2011-12-16 10:31:35','2011-12-16 18:31:35','',3196,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Lectio-Divina-COVER-for-Web.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(3198,112,'2011-12-16 10:35:28','2011-12-16 18:35:28','<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>“Slowing Down\nAnd Immersing Ourselves in the Biblical Story</strong><strong>”</strong></p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong> A Review of</strong></p>\n<strong><em><img class=\"alignleft\" style=\"margin: 10px\" src=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/images/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"277\" />Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art:\nTransforming Words\nand Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em>\nChristine Valters Paintner.\nPaperback: Skylight Paths, 2011.\n</strong>\n\n<strong>Review by Chris Smith.</strong>\n\n<strong><strong>[ Read <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/excerpt-lectio-divina-the-sacred-art-christine-valters-paintner-vol-4-24/\" target=\"_blank\">an excerpt from this book</a>... ]</strong>\n</strong>\n\n&nbsp;\n\nHow do we read the Bible in this age when – as Christian Smith has persuasively argued in his recent book <em>The Bible Made Impossible</em> – some traditional approaches to scriptures are on the verge of dying off?  Is it possible for us to engage and immerse ourselves in scripture in ways other than taking it as cold, static textbook?  The ancient practice of <em>lectio divina</em> (holy reading) is surprisingly relevant for our times, and Christine Valters Paintner’s new book <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em> is an elegant and useful introduction to this approach to reading the Bible (or other texts) in today’s world. Over the last five centuries, the modernity of the Western world has served to streamline life, eliminating or minimizing practices that seem to be labor-intensive or extraneous.  The result is today’s globalized, fast-food world that is rapidly losing the capacity for attentiveness as it continually accelerates into the future.  And indeed our practices of Bible reading have followed suit with the larger culture.  Scripture is no longer a grand drama about God reconciling all creation by gathering a faithful people, but rather it has been reduced – in the most egregious cases – to a sort of self-help guide that unequivocally shows me how to be saved and make a good life for myself.  What we need in our times is a decidedly slow way of reading scripture, a way of immersing ourselves and abiding in God’s story that fits the incarnational and attentive way of Jesus.  <em>Lectio divina</em>, as Paintner describes it in this new book, offers us exactly the sort of slow and careful approach to scripture that we desperately need amidst the velocity of our times.\n\n<em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> begins with a historical introduction to the practice, which emphasizes that it was rooted in the Judaic tradition of Haggadah, an “interactive interpretation of the Scriptures by means of the free use of the text to explore its inner meaning.” Paintner also notes the monastic origins of <em>lectio divina</em>; many centuries before the invention of the printing press, when scripture was nowhere near as accessible as it is today, monks would memorize and ruminate on scripture, praying over it throughout the day and continually submitting themselves to the words of the text.  It was out of this context that the four-fold practice of <em>lectio divina</em> would be formalized among the Benedictines in the twelfth century.\n\nThe heart of Paintner’s book, the middle of its three parts, focuses on exploring each of the four steps of <em>lectio divina</em>:\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><strong><em>Lectio</em></strong><strong>: Settling and Shimmering</strong>\nLet go of distractions, assume a posture of prayer, and do an initial reading of the text paying attention for a particular phrase that stands out – i.e., that shimmers, “beckons you, addresses you, unnerves you, disturbs you, stirs you, or seems especially ripe with meaning” (10).</p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><strong><em>Meditatio</em>: Savoring and Stirring</strong>\nSlowly read through the text again, using the phrase that stands out as a lens to guide your reading and stir your imagination</p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"> <strong><em>Oratio</em>: Summoning and Serving</strong>\nAllow the text to speak into your own life (and the life of your church community).  What light does it shine on the present situation? What are we being compelled to do?  How is the text drawing us deeper into the life and way of Jesus?</p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><strong><em>Contemplatio</em>: Slowing and Stilling</strong>\nIt is striking that following the <em>Oratio</em> stage, we do not jump up immediately and go follow the Spirit’s leading through the text, but rather, “[this] movement is about slowing yourself down and resting into the still presence of God. The idea is to simply <em>be</em>, rather than trying to <em>do </em>anything. This is a time for offering gratitude for God’s presence in this time of prayer and stilling yourself in silence” (11).</p>\nIn the third and final part of the book, Paintner strives to broaden our imaginations about how <em>lectio divina</em> can be a practice that pervades our lives.  She introduces the lesser known practices of <em>visio divina</em> and <em>audio divina</em> – in which we reflect on images and sounds respectively, opening our hearts and minds and being attentive to what God might be saying to us.  She also offers the idea of nature as sacred text that can be read through its own sort of <em>lectio</em>.  This chapter on nature was one of my favorites, and it resonates with a number of nature-study books that I have reviewed here over the last few years (If this chapter also resonates with you, I would recommend in particular <strong><a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-seeing-trees-ross-llewellyn-vol-4-22/\" target=\"_blank\">Kathy Ross Hugo’s <em>Seeing Trees</em></a>,</strong> which, although it does not use the language of <em>lectio</em>, does utilize trees to immerse us in a <em>lectio</em>-like conversation with all God’s creation that surrounds us wherever we are.)  The final chapter focuses on using other facets of our lives as the opportunity for <em>lectio</em>-like reflection, including dreams, our bodies and the newspaper.\n\nWhat distinguishes Paintner’s work from a host of other recent books on <em>lectio divina</em> is its focus on beauty.  Paintner is an artist and has reflected at length on the role of the arts in spiritual formation (for instance in her book <strong><em>Awakening the Creative Spirit</em></strong>, co-written with Betsey Beckman, which was <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-awakening-the-creative-spirit-by-painter-and-beckman-vol-3-26/\" target=\"_blank\">reviewed in The Englewood Review of Books here</a>).  Part of what is lost in the ever-increasing pace of Western culture, is the joy of the beautiful, and Paintner, deeply aware of this loss, presents <em>lectio divina</em> in a way that draws the reader in and compels her to immerse herself in the beauty of engaging slowly, intentionally and personally with the biblical text. <em>Lectio divina</em> is presented here in language that clearly explains what it is and how it could be practiced in a variety of contexts, but so in a way that is full of life and joy.\n\nIn the past, I have often recommended <strong>Tony Jones</strong>’s book on <em>lectio divina</em>, <strong><em>Divine Intervention</em></strong>, which also is a simple and thoughtful introduction to the practice.  Paintner’s treatment here, however, although it covers roughly similar ground, does so more eloquently, and takes a broader view that spurs our imaginations to consider <em>lectio divina</em> as a way of being, a practice that helps us slow our lives in a world that is speeding out of control.  Tony’s book was written for younger readers, and probably is preferable for younger audiences, and his work does better at imagining the place of <em>lectio</em> as a social practice within the church community, Paintner’s reticence on the place of <em>lectio</em> in the faith community is one of the few shortcomings of her book.  To be fair, she makes the general statement early in the book that “many people can read the same scriptures and each person will have a unique experience that rises up out of his or her own life context in that moment” (9), but she never develops this superb thought in the direction of what it might mean as we practice <em>lectio </em>together in the church community.\n\nI have been excited in recent years to see a rising tide of interest in slower, more attentive expressions of Christian faith.  Christine Paintner’s <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> is a lovely apologetic for recovering an historical practice of reading scripture that is not only a way of appreciating and engaging scripture that befits our times, but also a practical way of orienting our lives toward becoming a slower people, a contrast community that proclaims in our life together the good news of a caring and more meaning-full life!','Book Review: Lectio Divina: The Sacred Art - Christine Valters Paintner.','','inherit','open','open','','3196-revision','','','2011-12-16 10:35:28','2011-12-16 18:35:28','',3196,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/3196-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(3199,1,'2011-12-19 11:57:16','2011-12-19 19:57:16','“Slowing Down And Immersing Ourselves in the Biblical Story”\r\n\r\nA Review of <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art:\r\nTransforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em>\r\nChristine Valters Paintner.\r\nPaperback: Skylight Paths, 2011.\r\n\r\nReview by Chris Smith.\r\n\r\n<em><a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-3203\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"308\" /></a></em>How do we read the Bible in this age when – as Christian Smith has persuasively argued in his recent book <em>The Bible Made Impossible</em> – some traditional approaches to scriptures are on the verge of dying off?  Is it possible for us to engage and immerse ourselves in scripture in ways other than taking it as cold, static textbook?  The ancient practice of <em>lectio divina</em> (holy reading) is surprisingly relevant for our times, and Christine Valters Paintner’s new book <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em> is an elegant and useful introduction to this approach to reading the Bible (or other texts) in today’s world. Over the last five centuries, the modernity of the Western world has served to streamline life, eliminating or minimizing practices that seem to be labor-intensive or extraneous.  The result is today’s globalized, fast-food world that is rapidly losing the capacity for attentiveness as it continually accelerates into the future.  And indeed our practices of Bible reading have followed suit with the larger culture.  Scripture is no longer a grand drama about God reconciling all creation by gathering a faithful people, but rather it has been reduced – in the most egregious cases – to a sort of self-help guide that unequivocally shows me how to be saved and make a good life for myself.  What we need in our times is a decidedly slow way of reading scripture, a way of immersing ourselves and abiding in God’s story that fits the incarnational and attentive way of Jesus.  <em>Lectio divina</em>, as Paintner describes it in this new book, offers us exactly the sort of slow and careful approach to scripture that we desperately need amidst the velocity of our times.\r\n\r\n<em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> begins with a historical introduction to the practice, which emphasizes that it was rooted in the Judaic tradition of Haggadah, an “interactive interpretation of the Scriptures by means of the free use of the text to explore its inner meaning.” Paintner also notes the monastic origins of <em>lectio divina</em>; many centuries before the invention of the printing press, when scripture was nowhere near as accessible as it is today, monks would memorize and ruminate on scripture, praying over it throughout the day and continually submitting themselves to the words of the text.  It was out of this context that the four-fold practice of <em>lectio divina</em> would be formalized among the Benedictines in the twelfth century.\r\n\r\nThe heart of Paintner’s book, the middle of its three parts, focuses on exploring each of the four steps of <em>lectio divina</em>:\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Lectio</em>: Settling and Shimmering</strong>\r\nLet go of distractions, assume a posture of prayer, and do an initial reading of the text paying attention for a particular phrase that stands out – i.e., that shimmers, “beckons you, addresses you, unnerves you, disturbs you, stirs you, or seems especially ripe with meaning” (10).</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Meditatio</em>: Savoring and Stirring</strong>\r\nSlowly read through the text again, using the phrase that stands out as a lens to guide your reading and stir your imagination</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"> <strong><em>Oratio</em>: Summoning and Serving</strong>\r\nAllow the text to speak into your own life (and the life of your church community).  What light does it shine on the present situation? What are we being compelled to do?  How is the text drawing us deeper into the life and way of Jesus?</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Contemplatio</em>: Slowing and Stilling</strong>\r\nIt is striking that following the <em>Oratio</em> stage, we do not jump up immediately and go follow the Spirit’s leading through the text, but rather, “[this] movement is about slowing yourself down and resting into the still presence of God. The idea is to simply <em>be</em>, rather than trying to <em>do </em>anything. This is a time for offering gratitude for God’s presence in this time of prayer and stilling yourself in silence” (11).</p>\r\nIn the third and final part of the book, Paintner strives to broaden our imaginations about how <em>lectio divina</em> can be a practice that pervades our lives.  She introduces the lesser known practices of <em>visio divina</em> and <em>audio divina</em> – in which we reflect on images and sounds respectively, opening our hearts and minds and being attentive to what God might be saying to us.  She also offers the idea of nature as sacred text that can be read through its own sort of <em>lectio</em>.  This chapter on nature was one of my favorites, and it resonates with a number of nature-study books that I have reviewed here over the last few years (If this chapter also resonates with you, I would recommend in particular <strong><a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-seeing-trees-ross-llewellyn-vol-4-22/\" target=\"_blank\">Kathy Ross Hugo’s <em>Seeing Trees</em></a>,</strong> which, although it does not use the language of <em>lectio</em>, does utilize trees to immerse us in a <em>lectio</em>-like conversation with all God’s creation that surrounds us wherever we are.)  The final chapter focuses on using other facets of our lives as the opportunity for <em>lectio</em>-like reflection, including dreams, our bodies and the newspaper.\r\n\r\nWhat distinguishes Paintner’s work from a host of other recent books on <em>lectio divina</em> is its focus on beauty.  Paintner is an artist and has reflected at length on the role of the arts in spiritual formation (for instance in her book <strong><em>Awakening the Creative Spirit</em></strong>, co-written with Betsey Beckman, which was <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-awakening-the-creative-spirit-by-painter-and-beckman-vol-3-26/\" target=\"_blank\">reviewed in The Englewood Review of Books here</a>).  Part of what is lost in the ever-increasing pace of Western culture, is the joy of the beautiful, and Paintner, deeply aware of this loss, presents <em>lectio divina</em> in a way that draws the reader in and compels her to immerse herself in the beauty of engaging slowly, intentionally and personally with the biblical text. <em>Lectio divina</em> is presented here in language that clearly explains what it is and how it could be practiced in a variety of contexts, but so in a way that is full of life and joy.\r\n\r\nIn the past, I have often recommended <strong>Tony Jones</strong>’s book on <em>lectio divina</em>, <strong><em>Divine Intervention</em></strong>, which also is a simple and thoughtful introduction to the practice.  Paintner’s treatment here, however, although it covers roughly similar ground, does so more eloquently, and takes a broader view that spurs our imaginations to consider <em>lectio divina</em> as a way of being, a practice that helps us slow our lives in a world that is speeding out of control.  Tony’s book was written for younger readers, and probably is preferable for younger audiences, and his work does better at imagining the place of <em>lectio</em> as a social practice within the church community, Paintner’s reticence on the place of <em>lectio</em> in the faith community is one of the few shortcomings of her book.  To be fair, she makes the general statement early in the book that “many people can read the same scriptures and each person will have a unique experience that rises up out of his or her own life context in that moment” (9), but she never develops this superb thought in the direction of what it might mean as we practice <em>lectio </em>together in the church community.\r\n\r\nI have been excited in recent years to see a rising tide of interest in slower, more attentive expressions of Christian faith.  Christine Paintner’s <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> is a lovely apologetic for recovering an historical practice of reading scripture that is not only a way of appreciating and engaging scripture that befits our times, but also a practical way of orienting our lives toward becoming a slower people, a contrast community that proclaims in our life together the good news of a caring and more meaning-full life!','Book Review: Lectio Divina: The Sacred Art','','inherit','open','open','','3196-autosave','','','2011-12-19 11:57:16','2011-12-19 19:57:16','',3196,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/3196-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(3202,1,'2011-12-16 14:08:04','2011-12-16 22:08:04','“Slowing Down And Immersing Ourselves in the Biblical Story”\r\n\r\nA Review of\r\n\r\nLectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer\r\nChristine Valters Paintner.\r\nPaperback: Skylight Paths, 2011.\r\n\r\nReview by Chris Smith.\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">[ Read <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/excerpt-lectio-divina-the-sacred-art-christine-valters-paintner-vol-4-24/\" target=\"_blank\">an excerpt from this book</a>... ]<strong>\r\n</strong></p>\r\n<strong><em><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/images/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"277\" /></em></strong>How do we read the Bible in this age when – as Christian Smith has persuasively argued in his recent book <em>The Bible Made Impossible</em> – some traditional approaches to scriptures are on the verge of dying off?  Is it possible for us to engage and immerse ourselves in scripture in ways other than taking it as cold, static textbook?  The ancient practice of <em>lectio divina</em> (holy reading) is surprisingly relevant for our times, and Christine Valters Paintner’s new book <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em> is an elegant and useful introduction to this approach to reading the Bible (or other texts) in today’s world. Over the last five centuries, the modernity of the Western world has served to streamline life, eliminating or minimizing practices that seem to be labor-intensive or extraneous.  The result is today’s globalized, fast-food world that is rapidly losing the capacity for attentiveness as it continually accelerates into the future.  And indeed our practices of Bible reading have followed suit with the larger culture.  Scripture is no longer a grand drama about God reconciling all creation by gathering a faithful people, but rather it has been reduced – in the most egregious cases – to a sort of self-help guide that unequivocally shows me how to be saved and make a good life for myself.  What we need in our times is a decidedly slow way of reading scripture, a way of immersing ourselves and abiding in God’s story that fits the incarnational and attentive way of Jesus.  <em>Lectio divina</em>, as Paintner describes it in this new book, offers us exactly the sort of slow and careful approach to scripture that we desperately need amidst the velocity of our times.\r\n\r\n<em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> begins with a historical introduction to the practice, which emphasizes that it was rooted in the Judaic tradition of Haggadah, an “interactive interpretation of the Scriptures by means of the free use of the text to explore its inner meaning.” Paintner also notes the monastic origins of <em>lectio divina</em>; many centuries before the invention of the printing press, when scripture was nowhere near as accessible as it is today, monks would memorize and ruminate on scripture, praying over it throughout the day and continually submitting themselves to the words of the text.  It was out of this context that the four-fold practice of <em>lectio divina</em> would be formalized among the Benedictines in the twelfth century.\r\n\r\nThe heart of Paintner’s book, the middle of its three parts, focuses on exploring each of the four steps of <em>lectio divina</em>:\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Lectio</em></strong><strong>: Settling and Shimmering</strong>\r\nLet go of distractions, assume a posture of prayer, and do an initial reading of the text paying attention for a particular phrase that stands out – i.e., that shimmers, “beckons you, addresses you, unnerves you, disturbs you, stirs you, or seems especially ripe with meaning” (10).</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Meditatio</em>: Savoring and Stirring</strong>\r\nSlowly read through the text again, using the phrase that stands out as a lens to guide your reading and stir your imagination</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"> <strong><em>Oratio</em>: Summoning and Serving</strong>\r\nAllow the text to speak into your own life (and the life of your church community).  What light does it shine on the present situation? What are we being compelled to do?  How is the text drawing us deeper into the life and way of Jesus?</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Contemplatio</em>: Slowing and Stilling</strong>\r\nIt is striking that following the <em>Oratio</em> stage, we do not jump up immediately and go follow the Spirit’s leading through the text, but rather, “[this] movement is about slowing yourself down and resting into the still presence of God. The idea is to simply <em>be</em>, rather than trying to <em>do </em>anything. This is a time for offering gratitude for God’s presence in this time of prayer and stilling yourself in silence” (11).</p>\r\nIn the third and final part of the book, Paintner strives to broaden our imaginations about how <em>lectio divina</em> can be a practice that pervades our lives.  She introduces the lesser known practices of <em>visio divina</em> and <em>audio divina</em> – in which we reflect on images and sounds respectively, opening our hearts and minds and being attentive to what God might be saying to us.  She also offers the idea of nature as sacred text that can be read through its own sort of <em>lectio</em>.  This chapter on nature was one of my favorites, and it resonates with a number of nature-study books that I have reviewed here over the last few years (If this chapter also resonates with you, I would recommend in particular <strong><a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-seeing-trees-ross-llewellyn-vol-4-22/\" target=\"_blank\">Kathy Ross Hugo’s <em>Seeing Trees</em></a>,</strong> which, although it does not use the language of <em>lectio</em>, does utilize trees to immerse us in a <em>lectio</em>-like conversation with all God’s creation that surrounds us wherever we are.)  The final chapter focuses on using other facets of our lives as the opportunity for <em>lectio</em>-like reflection, including dreams, our bodies and the newspaper.\r\n\r\nWhat distinguishes Paintner’s work from a host of other recent books on <em>lectio divina</em> is its focus on beauty.  Paintner is an artist and has reflected at length on the role of the arts in spiritual formation (for instance in her book <strong><em>Awakening the Creative Spirit</em></strong>, co-written with Betsey Beckman, which was <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-awakening-the-creative-spirit-by-painter-and-beckman-vol-3-26/\" target=\"_blank\">reviewed in The Englewood Review of Books here</a>).  Part of what is lost in the ever-increasing pace of Western culture, is the joy of the beautiful, and Paintner, deeply aware of this loss, presents <em>lectio divina</em> in a way that draws the reader in and compels her to immerse herself in the beauty of engaging slowly, intentionally and personally with the biblical text. <em>Lectio divina</em> is presented here in language that clearly explains what it is and how it could be practiced in a variety of contexts, but so in a way that is full of life and joy.\r\n\r\nIn the past, I have often recommended <strong>Tony Jones</strong>’s book on <em>lectio divina</em>, <strong><em>Divine Intervention</em></strong>, which also is a simple and thoughtful introduction to the practice.  Paintner’s treatment here, however, although it covers roughly similar ground, does so more eloquently, and takes a broader view that spurs our imaginations to consider <em>lectio divina</em> as a way of being, a practice that helps us slow our lives in a world that is speeding out of control.  Tony’s book was written for younger readers, and probably is preferable for younger audiences, and his work does better at imagining the place of <em>lectio</em> as a social practice within the church community, Paintner’s reticence on the place of <em>lectio</em> in the faith community is one of the few shortcomings of her book.  To be fair, she makes the general statement early in the book that “many people can read the same scriptures and each person will have a unique experience that rises up out of his or her own life context in that moment” (9), but she never develops this superb thought in the direction of what it might mean as we practice <em>lectio </em>together in the church community.\r\n\r\nI have been excited in recent years to see a rising tide of interest in slower, more attentive expressions of Christian faith.  Christine Paintner’s <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> is a lovely apologetic for recovering an historical practice of reading scripture that is not only a way of appreciating and engaging scripture that befits our times, but also a practical way of orienting our lives toward becoming a slower people, a contrast community that proclaims in our life together the good news of a caring and more meaning-full life!','Book Review: Lectio Divina: The Sacred Art','','inherit','open','open','','3196-revision-3','','','2011-12-16 14:08:04','2011-12-16 22:08:04','',3196,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/3196-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(3201,1,'2011-12-16 10:37:47','2011-12-16 18:37:47','<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>“Slowing Down\r\nAnd Immersing Ourselves in the Biblical Story</strong><strong>”</strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong> A Review of</strong></p>\r\n<strong><em><img class=\"alignleft\" style=\"margin: 10px\" src=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/images/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"277\" />Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art:\r\nTransforming Words\r\nand Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em>\r\nChristine Valters Paintner.\r\nPaperback: Skylight Paths, 2011.\r\n</strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>Review by Chris Smith.</strong>\r\n\r\n<strong><strong>[ Read <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/excerpt-lectio-divina-the-sacred-art-christine-valters-paintner-vol-4-24/\" target=\"_blank\">an excerpt from this book</a>... ]</strong>\r\n</strong>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nHow do we read the Bible in this age when – as Christian Smith has persuasively argued in his recent book <em>The Bible Made Impossible</em> – some traditional approaches to scriptures are on the verge of dying off?  Is it possible for us to engage and immerse ourselves in scripture in ways other than taking it as cold, static textbook?  The ancient practice of <em>lectio divina</em> (holy reading) is surprisingly relevant for our times, and Christine Valters Paintner’s new book <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em> is an elegant and useful introduction to this approach to reading the Bible (or other texts) in today’s world. Over the last five centuries, the modernity of the Western world has served to streamline life, eliminating or minimizing practices that seem to be labor-intensive or extraneous.  The result is today’s globalized, fast-food world that is rapidly losing the capacity for attentiveness as it continually accelerates into the future.  And indeed our practices of Bible reading have followed suit with the larger culture.  Scripture is no longer a grand drama about God reconciling all creation by gathering a faithful people, but rather it has been reduced – in the most egregious cases – to a sort of self-help guide that unequivocally shows me how to be saved and make a good life for myself.  What we need in our times is a decidedly slow way of reading scripture, a way of immersing ourselves and abiding in God’s story that fits the incarnational and attentive way of Jesus.  <em>Lectio divina</em>, as Paintner describes it in this new book, offers us exactly the sort of slow and careful approach to scripture that we desperately need amidst the velocity of our times.\r\n\r\n<em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> begins with a historical introduction to the practice, which emphasizes that it was rooted in the Judaic tradition of Haggadah, an “interactive interpretation of the Scriptures by means of the free use of the text to explore its inner meaning.” Paintner also notes the monastic origins of <em>lectio divina</em>; many centuries before the invention of the printing press, when scripture was nowhere near as accessible as it is today, monks would memorize and ruminate on scripture, praying over it throughout the day and continually submitting themselves to the words of the text.  It was out of this context that the four-fold practice of <em>lectio divina</em> would be formalized among the Benedictines in the twelfth century.\r\n\r\nThe heart of Paintner’s book, the middle of its three parts, focuses on exploring each of the four steps of <em>lectio divina</em>:\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><strong><em>Lectio</em></strong><strong>: Settling and Shimmering</strong>\r\nLet go of distractions, assume a posture of prayer, and do an initial reading of the text paying attention for a particular phrase that stands out – i.e., that shimmers, “beckons you, addresses you, unnerves you, disturbs you, stirs you, or seems especially ripe with meaning” (10).</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><strong><em>Meditatio</em>: Savoring and Stirring</strong>\r\nSlowly read through the text again, using the phrase that stands out as a lens to guide your reading and stir your imagination</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"> <strong><em>Oratio</em>: Summoning and Serving</strong>\r\nAllow the text to speak into your own life (and the life of your church community).  What light does it shine on the present situation? What are we being compelled to do?  How is the text drawing us deeper into the life and way of Jesus?</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><strong><em>Contemplatio</em>: Slowing and Stilling</strong>\r\nIt is striking that following the <em>Oratio</em> stage, we do not jump up immediately and go follow the Spirit’s leading through the text, but rather, “[this] movement is about slowing yourself down and resting into the still presence of God. The idea is to simply <em>be</em>, rather than trying to <em>do </em>anything. This is a time for offering gratitude for God’s presence in this time of prayer and stilling yourself in silence” (11).</p>\r\nIn the third and final part of the book, Paintner strives to broaden our imaginations about how <em>lectio divina</em> can be a practice that pervades our lives.  She introduces the lesser known practices of <em>visio divina</em> and <em>audio divina</em> – in which we reflect on images and sounds respectively, opening our hearts and minds and being attentive to what God might be saying to us.  She also offers the idea of nature as sacred text that can be read through its own sort of <em>lectio</em>.  This chapter on nature was one of my favorites, and it resonates with a number of nature-study books that I have reviewed here over the last few years (If this chapter also resonates with you, I would recommend in particular <strong><a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-seeing-trees-ross-llewellyn-vol-4-22/\" target=\"_blank\">Kathy Ross Hugo’s <em>Seeing Trees</em></a>,</strong> which, although it does not use the language of <em>lectio</em>, does utilize trees to immerse us in a <em>lectio</em>-like conversation with all God’s creation that surrounds us wherever we are.)  The final chapter focuses on using other facets of our lives as the opportunity for <em>lectio</em>-like reflection, including dreams, our bodies and the newspaper.\r\n\r\nWhat distinguishes Paintner’s work from a host of other recent books on <em>lectio divina</em> is its focus on beauty.  Paintner is an artist and has reflected at length on the role of the arts in spiritual formation (for instance in her book <strong><em>Awakening the Creative Spirit</em></strong>, co-written with Betsey Beckman, which was <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-awakening-the-creative-spirit-by-painter-and-beckman-vol-3-26/\" target=\"_blank\">reviewed in The Englewood Review of Books here</a>).  Part of what is lost in the ever-increasing pace of Western culture, is the joy of the beautiful, and Paintner, deeply aware of this loss, presents <em>lectio divina</em> in a way that draws the reader in and compels her to immerse herself in the beauty of engaging slowly, intentionally and personally with the biblical text. <em>Lectio divina</em> is presented here in language that clearly explains what it is and how it could be practiced in a variety of contexts, but so in a way that is full of life and joy.\r\n\r\nIn the past, I have often recommended <strong>Tony Jones</strong>’s book on <em>lectio divina</em>, <strong><em>Divine Intervention</em></strong>, which also is a simple and thoughtful introduction to the practice.  Paintner’s treatment here, however, although it covers roughly similar ground, does so more eloquently, and takes a broader view that spurs our imaginations to consider <em>lectio divina</em> as a way of being, a practice that helps us slow our lives in a world that is speeding out of control.  Tony’s book was written for younger readers, and probably is preferable for younger audiences, and his work does better at imagining the place of <em>lectio</em> as a social practice within the church community, Paintner’s reticence on the place of <em>lectio</em> in the faith community is one of the few shortcomings of her book.  To be fair, she makes the general statement early in the book that “many people can read the same scriptures and each person will have a unique experience that rises up out of his or her own life context in that moment” (9), but she never develops this superb thought in the direction of what it might mean as we practice <em>lectio </em>together in the church community.\r\n\r\nI have been excited in recent years to see a rising tide of interest in slower, more attentive expressions of Christian faith.  Christine Paintner’s <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> is a lovely apologetic for recovering an historical practice of reading scripture that is not only a way of appreciating and engaging scripture that befits our times, but also a practical way of orienting our lives toward becoming a slower people, a contrast community that proclaims in our life together the good news of a caring and more meaning-full life!','Book Review: Lectio Divina: The Sacred Art - Christine Valters Paintner.','','inherit','open','open','','3196-revision-2','','','2011-12-16 10:37:47','2011-12-16 18:37:47','',3196,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/3196-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(3203,1,'2011-12-16 14:23:12','2011-12-16 22:23:12','','Paintner-Lectio','','inherit','open','open','','paintner-lectio','','','2011-12-16 14:23:12','2011-12-16 22:23:12','',3196,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Paintner-Lectio.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(3204,1,'2011-12-16 14:21:57','2011-12-16 22:21:57','“Slowing Down And Immersing Ourselves in the Biblical Story”\r\n\r\nA Review of <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em>\r\nChristine Valters Paintner.\r\nPaperback: Skylight Paths, 2011.\r\n\r\nReview by Chris Smith.\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">[ Read <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/excerpt-lectio-divina-the-sacred-art-christine-valters-paintner-vol-4-24/\" target=\"_blank\">an excerpt from this book</a>... ]</p>\r\n<em><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/images/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"308\" /></em>How do we read the Bible in this age when – as Christian Smith has persuasively argued in his recent book <em>The Bible Made Impossible</em> – some traditional approaches to scriptures are on the verge of dying off?  Is it possible for us to engage and immerse ourselves in scripture in ways other than taking it as cold, static textbook?  The ancient practice of <em>lectio divina</em> (holy reading) is surprisingly relevant for our times, and Christine Valters Paintner’s new book <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em> is an elegant and useful introduction to this approach to reading the Bible (or other texts) in today’s world. Over the last five centuries, the modernity of the Western world has served to streamline life, eliminating or minimizing practices that seem to be labor-intensive or extraneous.  The result is today’s globalized, fast-food world that is rapidly losing the capacity for attentiveness as it continually accelerates into the future.  And indeed our practices of Bible reading have followed suit with the larger culture.  Scripture is no longer a grand drama about God reconciling all creation by gathering a faithful people, but rather it has been reduced – in the most egregious cases – to a sort of self-help guide that unequivocally shows me how to be saved and make a good life for myself.  What we need in our times is a decidedly slow way of reading scripture, a way of immersing ourselves and abiding in God’s story that fits the incarnational and attentive way of Jesus.  <em>Lectio divina</em>, as Paintner describes it in this new book, offers us exactly the sort of slow and careful approach to scripture that we desperately need amidst the velocity of our times.\r\n\r\n<em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> begins with a historical introduction to the practice, which emphasizes that it was rooted in the Judaic tradition of Haggadah, an “interactive interpretation of the Scriptures by means of the free use of the text to explore its inner meaning.” Paintner also notes the monastic origins of <em>lectio divina</em>; many centuries before the invention of the printing press, when scripture was nowhere near as accessible as it is today, monks would memorize and ruminate on scripture, praying over it throughout the day and continually submitting themselves to the words of the text.  It was out of this context that the four-fold practice of <em>lectio divina</em> would be formalized among the Benedictines in the twelfth century.\r\n\r\nThe heart of Paintner’s book, the middle of its three parts, focuses on exploring each of the four steps of <em>lectio divina</em>:\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Lectio</em>: Settling and Shimmering</strong>\r\nLet go of distractions, assume a posture of prayer, and do an initial reading of the text paying attention for a particular phrase that stands out – i.e., that shimmers, “beckons you, addresses you, unnerves you, disturbs you, stirs you, or seems especially ripe with meaning” (10).</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Meditatio</em>: Savoring and Stirring</strong>\r\nSlowly read through the text again, using the phrase that stands out as a lens to guide your reading and stir your imagination</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"> <strong><em>Oratio</em>: Summoning and Serving</strong>\r\nAllow the text to speak into your own life (and the life of your church community).  What light does it shine on the present situation? What are we being compelled to do?  How is the text drawing us deeper into the life and way of Jesus?</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Contemplatio</em>: Slowing and Stilling</strong>\r\nIt is striking that following the <em>Oratio</em> stage, we do not jump up immediately and go follow the Spirit’s leading through the text, but rather, “[this] movement is about slowing yourself down and resting into the still presence of God. The idea is to simply <em>be</em>, rather than trying to <em>do </em>anything. This is a time for offering gratitude for God’s presence in this time of prayer and stilling yourself in silence” (11).</p>\r\nIn the third and final part of the book, Paintner strives to broaden our imaginations about how <em>lectio divina</em> can be a practice that pervades our lives.  She introduces the lesser known practices of <em>visio divina</em> and <em>audio divina</em> – in which we reflect on images and sounds respectively, opening our hearts and minds and being attentive to what God might be saying to us.  She also offers the idea of nature as sacred text that can be read through its own sort of <em>lectio</em>.  This chapter on nature was one of my favorites, and it resonates with a number of nature-study books that I have reviewed here over the last few years (If this chapter also resonates with you, I would recommend in particular <strong><a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-seeing-trees-ross-llewellyn-vol-4-22/\" target=\"_blank\">Kathy Ross Hugo’s <em>Seeing Trees</em></a>,</strong> which, although it does not use the language of <em>lectio</em>, does utilize trees to immerse us in a <em>lectio</em>-like conversation with all God’s creation that surrounds us wherever we are.)  The final chapter focuses on using other facets of our lives as the opportunity for <em>lectio</em>-like reflection, including dreams, our bodies and the newspaper.\r\n\r\nWhat distinguishes Paintner’s work from a host of other recent books on <em>lectio divina</em> is its focus on beauty.  Paintner is an artist and has reflected at length on the role of the arts in spiritual formation (for instance in her book <strong><em>Awakening the Creative Spirit</em></strong>, co-written with Betsey Beckman, which was <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-awakening-the-creative-spirit-by-painter-and-beckman-vol-3-26/\" target=\"_blank\">reviewed in The Englewood Review of Books here</a>).  Part of what is lost in the ever-increasing pace of Western culture, is the joy of the beautiful, and Paintner, deeply aware of this loss, presents <em>lectio divina</em> in a way that draws the reader in and compels her to immerse herself in the beauty of engaging slowly, intentionally and personally with the biblical text. <em>Lectio divina</em> is presented here in language that clearly explains what it is and how it could be practiced in a variety of contexts, but so in a way that is full of life and joy.\r\n\r\nIn the past, I have often recommended <strong>Tony Jones</strong>’s book on <em>lectio divina</em>, <strong><em>Divine Intervention</em></strong>, which also is a simple and thoughtful introduction to the practice.  Paintner’s treatment here, however, although it covers roughly similar ground, does so more eloquently, and takes a broader view that spurs our imaginations to consider <em>lectio divina</em> as a way of being, a practice that helps us slow our lives in a world that is speeding out of control.  Tony’s book was written for younger readers, and probably is preferable for younger audiences, and his work does better at imagining the place of <em>lectio</em> as a social practice within the church community, Paintner’s reticence on the place of <em>lectio</em> in the faith community is one of the few shortcomings of her book.  To be fair, she makes the general statement early in the book that “many people can read the same scriptures and each person will have a unique experience that rises up out of his or her own life context in that moment” (9), but she never develops this superb thought in the direction of what it might mean as we practice <em>lectio </em>together in the church community.\r\n\r\nI have been excited in recent years to see a rising tide of interest in slower, more attentive expressions of Christian faith.  Christine Paintner’s <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> is a lovely apologetic for recovering an historical practice of reading scripture that is not only a way of appreciating and engaging scripture that befits our times, but also a practical way of orienting our lives toward becoming a slower people, a contrast community that proclaims in our life together the good news of a caring and more meaning-full life!','Book Review: Lectio Divina: The Sacred Art','','inherit','open','open','','3196-revision-4','','','2011-12-16 14:21:57','2011-12-16 22:21:57','',3196,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/3196-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(3205,1,'2011-12-16 14:23:41','2011-12-16 22:23:41','“Slowing Down And Immersing Ourselves in the Biblical Story”\r\n\r\nA Review of <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em>\r\nChristine Valters Paintner.\r\nPaperback: Skylight Paths, 2011.\r\n\r\nReview by Chris Smith.\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">[ Read <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/excerpt-lectio-divina-the-sacred-art-christine-valters-paintner-vol-4-24/\" target=\"_blank\">an excerpt from this book</a>... ]</p>\r\n<em><a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-3203\" title=\"Paintner-Lectio\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"308\" /></a></em>How do we read the Bible in this age when – as Christian Smith has persuasively argued in his recent book <em>The Bible Made Impossible</em> – some traditional approaches to scriptures are on the verge of dying off?  Is it possible for us to engage and immerse ourselves in scripture in ways other than taking it as cold, static textbook?  The ancient practice of <em>lectio divina</em> (holy reading) is surprisingly relevant for our times, and Christine Valters Paintner’s new book <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em> is an elegant and useful introduction to this approach to reading the Bible (or other texts) in today’s world. Over the last five centuries, the modernity of the Western world has served to streamline life, eliminating or minimizing practices that seem to be labor-intensive or extraneous.  The result is today’s globalized, fast-food world that is rapidly losing the capacity for attentiveness as it continually accelerates into the future.  And indeed our practices of Bible reading have followed suit with the larger culture.  Scripture is no longer a grand drama about God reconciling all creation by gathering a faithful people, but rather it has been reduced – in the most egregious cases – to a sort of self-help guide that unequivocally shows me how to be saved and make a good life for myself.  What we need in our times is a decidedly slow way of reading scripture, a way of immersing ourselves and abiding in God’s story that fits the incarnational and attentive way of Jesus.  <em>Lectio divina</em>, as Paintner describes it in this new book, offers us exactly the sort of slow and careful approach to scripture that we desperately need amidst the velocity of our times.\r\n\r\n<em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> begins with a historical introduction to the practice, which emphasizes that it was rooted in the Judaic tradition of Haggadah, an “interactive interpretation of the Scriptures by means of the free use of the text to explore its inner meaning.” Paintner also notes the monastic origins of <em>lectio divina</em>; many centuries before the invention of the printing press, when scripture was nowhere near as accessible as it is today, monks would memorize and ruminate on scripture, praying over it throughout the day and continually submitting themselves to the words of the text.  It was out of this context that the four-fold practice of <em>lectio divina</em> would be formalized among the Benedictines in the twelfth century.\r\n\r\nThe heart of Paintner’s book, the middle of its three parts, focuses on exploring each of the four steps of <em>lectio divina</em>:\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Lectio</em>: Settling and Shimmering</strong>\r\nLet go of distractions, assume a posture of prayer, and do an initial reading of the text paying attention for a particular phrase that stands out – i.e., that shimmers, “beckons you, addresses you, unnerves you, disturbs you, stirs you, or seems especially ripe with meaning” (10).</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Meditatio</em>: Savoring and Stirring</strong>\r\nSlowly read through the text again, using the phrase that stands out as a lens to guide your reading and stir your imagination</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"> <strong><em>Oratio</em>: Summoning and Serving</strong>\r\nAllow the text to speak into your own life (and the life of your church community).  What light does it shine on the present situation? What are we being compelled to do?  How is the text drawing us deeper into the life and way of Jesus?</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Contemplatio</em>: Slowing and Stilling</strong>\r\nIt is striking that following the <em>Oratio</em> stage, we do not jump up immediately and go follow the Spirit’s leading through the text, but rather, “[this] movement is about slowing yourself down and resting into the still presence of God. The idea is to simply <em>be</em>, rather than trying to <em>do </em>anything. This is a time for offering gratitude for God’s presence in this time of prayer and stilling yourself in silence” (11).</p>\r\nIn the third and final part of the book, Paintner strives to broaden our imaginations about how <em>lectio divina</em> can be a practice that pervades our lives.  She introduces the lesser known practices of <em>visio divina</em> and <em>audio divina</em> – in which we reflect on images and sounds respectively, opening our hearts and minds and being attentive to what God might be saying to us.  She also offers the idea of nature as sacred text that can be read through its own sort of <em>lectio</em>.  This chapter on nature was one of my favorites, and it resonates with a number of nature-study books that I have reviewed here over the last few years (If this chapter also resonates with you, I would recommend in particular <strong><a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-seeing-trees-ross-llewellyn-vol-4-22/\" target=\"_blank\">Kathy Ross Hugo’s <em>Seeing Trees</em></a>,</strong> which, although it does not use the language of <em>lectio</em>, does utilize trees to immerse us in a <em>lectio</em>-like conversation with all God’s creation that surrounds us wherever we are.)  The final chapter focuses on using other facets of our lives as the opportunity for <em>lectio</em>-like reflection, including dreams, our bodies and the newspaper.\r\n\r\nWhat distinguishes Paintner’s work from a host of other recent books on <em>lectio divina</em> is its focus on beauty.  Paintner is an artist and has reflected at length on the role of the arts in spiritual formation (for instance in her book <strong><em>Awakening the Creative Spirit</em></strong>, co-written with Betsey Beckman, which was <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-awakening-the-creative-spirit-by-painter-and-beckman-vol-3-26/\" target=\"_blank\">reviewed in The Englewood Review of Books here</a>).  Part of what is lost in the ever-increasing pace of Western culture, is the joy of the beautiful, and Paintner, deeply aware of this loss, presents <em>lectio divina</em> in a way that draws the reader in and compels her to immerse herself in the beauty of engaging slowly, intentionally and personally with the biblical text. <em>Lectio divina</em> is presented here in language that clearly explains what it is and how it could be practiced in a variety of contexts, but so in a way that is full of life and joy.\r\n\r\nIn the past, I have often recommended <strong>Tony Jones</strong>’s book on <em>lectio divina</em>, <strong><em>Divine Intervention</em></strong>, which also is a simple and thoughtful introduction to the practice.  Paintner’s treatment here, however, although it covers roughly similar ground, does so more eloquently, and takes a broader view that spurs our imaginations to consider <em>lectio divina</em> as a way of being, a practice that helps us slow our lives in a world that is speeding out of control.  Tony’s book was written for younger readers, and probably is preferable for younger audiences, and his work does better at imagining the place of <em>lectio</em> as a social practice within the church community, Paintner’s reticence on the place of <em>lectio</em> in the faith community is one of the few shortcomings of her book.  To be fair, she makes the general statement early in the book that “many people can read the same scriptures and each person will have a unique experience that rises up out of his or her own life context in that moment” (9), but she never develops this superb thought in the direction of what it might mean as we practice <em>lectio </em>together in the church community.\r\n\r\nI have been excited in recent years to see a rising tide of interest in slower, more attentive expressions of Christian faith.  Christine Paintner’s <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> is a lovely apologetic for recovering an historical practice of reading scripture that is not only a way of appreciating and engaging scripture that befits our times, but also a practical way of orienting our lives toward becoming a slower people, a contrast community that proclaims in our life together the good news of a caring and more meaning-full life!','Book Review: Lectio Divina: The Sacred Art','','inherit','open','open','','3196-revision-5','','','2011-12-16 14:23:41','2011-12-16 22:23:41','',3196,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/3196-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(3210,110,'2011-12-18 09:44:07','2011-12-18 17:44:07','In this \'de-harmonising\' series, we\'ve been attempting to see the different threads and emphases that each of the four tellings of the gospel of Jesus in the New Testament. We\'re aiming to see each one as a unique and beautiful work of art, seeing in 4-D rather than the one-dimensional picture that we can sometimes get from nativity plays.\n\nLuke is the last of the gospels in this series (have a look at <a title=\"De-harmonizing Christmas – Part 1: Mark\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/11/29/de-harmonizing-christmas-part-1-mark/\">Mark</a>, <a title=\"De-harmonizing Christmas – Part 2: John\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/12/05/de-harmonizing-christmas-part-2-john/\">John</a> and <a title=\"De-harmonizing Christmas – Part 3: Matthew\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/de-harmonizing-christmas-part-3-matthew/\">Matthew</a>), the one that we\'re most familiar with, the one that contributes the most to the story of Christmas that we hear retold each year. Like Matthew, <a title=\"Luke 1-2 NIV - Biblegateway.com\" href=\"http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke%201-2&amp;version=NIV\" target=\"_blank\">Luke tells the story of Jesus\' birth</a> in only two chapters, less even, it will take you about 13 minutes to read.\n\nThe story that\'s told here is very different to Matthew - beginning with Zechariah and Elizabeth, the parents of John the Baptist, the angel\'s visit to Mary rather than Joseph, the shepherds and the worship of Simeon and Anna in the Temple. Rather than interpolating the events that Matthew describes, let\'s take Luke at face value and see what he\'s trying to tell us about Jesus and the story he is going on to tell in the remaining 22 chapters.\n\nFirstly, we notice that all the characters introduced in these chapters are \'cameo parts\' for Luke. Zechariah, Elizabeth, Joseph, the Shepherds, Simeon, Anna - none of these appear again in Luke. Mary comes up once or twice in Luke\'s gospel again; John the Baptist appears a few more times, but these are not the key players in the story of Jesus. They\'re also people who would have been considered marginalised in their context.\n\nZechariah was a priest, but he must have been quite low down the ranking to be part of the rotation. He and his wife were old, and \'righteous before God\', but childless. This was a huge stigma in ancient society, seen as a curse, no matter how good someone appeared. Shepherds are well known to have been outcasts in first century Palestine - they did a dirty, manual job and were mistrusted in a similar way to Travellers or Gypsies here in the UK. Simeon and Anna, though age was respected, had chosen a lifestyle that was unusual, even weird.\n\nLuke tells us nothing of Joseph, except that he was a descendant of David. This royal lineage gives him no benefits, however, as he has to follow the command of the Emperor and travel miles to Bethlehem for the census. Mary is a young, unmarried woman - a nobody until she is \'exalted\'. They travel to Joseph\'s \'hometown\', somewhere he should have had family, never mind a place in the inn. But an unmarried couple that were quite obviously about to have a baby was a toxic scandal that no one would touch, not even a hotelier. They camp out by the road - no mention of a stable here. Mangers were stone feeding troughs that a livestock herder would fill with enough hay or straw for his herd or flock, then leave empty when they continued on with their journey to market. It\'s an image of complete emptiness - not a cosy little shed with straw and animals looking on, nothing at all to witness or support this traumatic night. The shattered mother wraps the newborn baby in cloths to cushion him against the hard, cold stone.\n\nSurely the angelic host should have been supporting and warming Mary and Jesus, not off telling shepherds (shepherds of all people!) about the birth! But this tale sets the tone for Luke. Jesus is here for a mission, one that takes in every outcast, rejected and overlooked person everywhere. He begins as one of us - one of \'them\', the despised, yet we don\'t get the sense that we should be pitying anyone or patronising with gifts. Jesus is the gift to everyone - especially those who don\'t deserve or expect him. The most religious and righteous man in the story is struck dumb for nine months by a single angel, while filthy thieving shepherds go round telling everyone the miracle they were told about by a huge choir of angels.\n\nFor Luke, everything is about mission. The songs of Mary and Zechariah praise the mercy of God in helping Israel, keeping his promises by sending Jesus. The way this plays out is in the shepherds coming to see what they were told about, then telling everyone who would listen. While Simeon blesses Jesus, praising God for his gift, Anna goes further in telling the story of Jesus throughout Jerusalem. The tone of the story we tell at Christmas should not be the dull monotone of reading familiar lines of scripture but the excited bubbling over of people who have seen and experienced the incredible gift of God, the longed for fulfilment of promises so good we can hardly believe them. It isn\'t nice, neat or civilised. It\'s raw, difficult, messy and includes people who have never understood how they are supposed to act. Yet it\'s those people who have the energy and enthusiasm to really do justice to the incredible story.','De-harmonizing Christmas - Part 4: Luke','','inherit','open','open','','3179-revision-3','','','2011-12-18 09:44:07','2011-12-18 17:44:07','',3179,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/18/3179-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(3211,110,'2011-12-18 09:44:17','2011-12-18 17:44:17','In this \'de-harmonising\' series, we\'ve been attempting to see the different threads and emphases that each of the four tellings of the gospel of Jesus in the New Testament. We\'re aiming to see each one as a unique and beautiful work of art, seeing in 4-D rather than the one-dimensional picture that we can sometimes get from nativity plays.\r\n\r\nLuke is the last of the gospels in this series (have a look at <a title=\"De-harmonizing Christmas – Part 1: Mark\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/11/29/de-harmonizing-christmas-part-1-mark/\">Mark</a>, <a title=\"De-harmonizing Christmas – Part 2: John\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/12/05/de-harmonizing-christmas-part-2-john/\">John</a> and <a title=\"De-harmonizing Christmas – Part 3: Matthew\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/de-harmonizing-christmas-part-3-matthew/\">Matthew</a>), the one that we\'re most familiar with, the one that contributes the most to the story of Christmas that we hear retold each year. Like Matthew, <a title=\"Luke 1-2 NIV - Biblegateway.com\" href=\"http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke%201-2&amp;version=NIV\" target=\"_blank\">Luke tells the story of Jesus\' birth</a> in only two chapters, less even, it will take you about 13 minutes to read.\r\n\r\nThe story that\'s told here is very different to Matthew - beginning with Zechariah and Elizabeth, the parents of John the Baptist, the angel\'s visit to Mary rather than Joseph, the shepherds and the worship of Simeon and Anna in the Temple. Rather than interpolating the events that Matthew describes, let\'s take Luke at face value and see what he\'s trying to tell us about Jesus and the story he is going on to tell in the remaining 22 chapters.\r\n\r\nFirstly, we notice that all the characters introduced in these chapters are \'cameo parts\' for Luke. Zechariah, Elizabeth, Joseph, the Shepherds, Simeon, Anna - none of these appear again in Luke. Mary comes up once or twice in Luke\'s gospel again; John the Baptist appears a few more times, but these are not the key players in the story of Jesus. They\'re also people who would have been considered marginalised in their context.\r\n\r\nZechariah was a priest, but he must have been quite low down the ranking to be part of the rotation. He and his wife were old, and \'righteous before God\', but childless. This was a huge stigma in ancient society, seen as a curse, no matter how good someone appeared. Shepherds are well known to have been outcasts in first century Palestine - they did a dirty, manual job and were mistrusted in a similar way to Travellers or Gypsies here in the UK. Simeon and Anna, though age was respected, had chosen a lifestyle that was unusual, even weird.\r\n\r\nLuke tells us nothing of Joseph, except that he was a descendant of David. This royal lineage gives him no benefits, however, as he has to follow the command of the Emperor and travel miles to Bethlehem for the census. Mary is a young, unmarried woman - a nobody until she is \'exalted\'. They travel to Joseph\'s \'hometown\', somewhere he should have had family, never mind a place in the inn. But an unmarried couple that were quite obviously about to have a baby was a toxic scandal that no one would touch, not even a hotelier. They camp out by the road - no mention of a stable here. Mangers were stone feeding troughs that a livestock herder would fill with enough hay or straw for his herd or flock, then leave empty when they continued on with their journey to market. It\'s an image of complete emptiness - not a cosy little shed with straw and animals looking on, nothing at all to witness or support this traumatic night. The shattered mother wraps the newborn baby in cloths to cushion him against the hard, cold stone.\r\n\r\nSurely the angelic host should have been supporting and warming Mary and Jesus, not off telling shepherds (shepherds of all people!) about the birth! But this tale sets the tone for Luke. Jesus is here for a mission, one that takes in every outcast, rejected and overlooked person everywhere. He begins as one of us - one of \'them\', the despised, yet we don\'t get the sense that we should be pitying anyone or patronising with gifts. Jesus is the gift to everyone - especially those who don\'t deserve or expect him. The most religious and righteous man in the story is struck dumb for nine months by a single angel, while filthy thieving shepherds go round telling everyone the miracle they were told about by a huge choir of angels.\r\n\r\nFor Luke, everything is about mission. The songs of Mary and Zechariah praise the mercy of God in helping Israel, keeping his promises by sending Jesus. The way this plays out is in the shepherds coming to see what they were told about, then telling everyone who would listen. While Simeon blesses Jesus, praising God for his gift, Anna goes further in telling the story of Jesus throughout Jerusalem. The tone of the story we tell at Christmas should not be the dull monotone of reading familiar lines of scripture but the excited bubbling over of people who have seen and experienced the incredible gift of God, the longed for fulfilment of promises so good we can hardly believe them. It isn\'t nice, neat or civilised. It\'s raw, difficult, messy and includes people who have never understood how they are supposed to act. Yet it\'s those people who have the energy and enthusiasm to really do justice to the incredible story.','De-harmonizing Christmas - Part 4: Luke','','inherit','open','open','','3179-revision-4','','','2011-12-18 09:44:17','2011-12-18 17:44:17','',3179,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/18/3179-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(3214,1,'2011-12-19 11:40:22','2011-12-19 19:40:22','Anyone who knows me knows that when a particular subject interests me, I go out and read every single thing I can about that subject until it becomes an obsession and it is all I ever talk about. Yeah, I’m that nerdy!\n\nLately the subject that has become my obsession is the history of Christianity. Turns out it’s a lot more complicated than the short history lesson a lot of evangelical churches teach: God wrote the Bible, the Catholics came along and ruined things, Luther and Calvin saved the day, the end. There’s a whole two-thousand year history that’s full of different doctrines, ideas, theologies, and schisms that have shaped the religion throughout the years. In fact, I think Christianity is still evolving right now as I write this.\n\nUnfortunately, some of the things I have read had made me question a lot of my theology.\n\nThis is why I have mixed feelings about biblical scholar Marcus Borg. On one hand, his book <em>Reading the Bible Again For the First Time</em> has definitely taught me how to take the Bible seriously without interpreting every story literally. But on the other hand, when he questions the historical accuracy of anything that the Apostle’s Creed confirms, that’s when I get a little anxious.\n\nFor example, since this is the Advent season I’ve had the virgin birth on my mind a lot lately. Only two of the gospels mention anything about Jesus’ birth--Matthew and Luke--and none of the New Testament books written prior to Matthew and Luke say anything about Jesus’ birth. Also, both Matthew and Luke have different details about what exactly happened on that first Christmas morning. And then of course, there’s the fact that in the original Hebrew, Isaiah 7:14 could mean either “virgin” or “young girl.” (Hat tip: <em>Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time</em>, chapter 2).\n\nOf course since we can’t go back in time to give Mary a physical examination, there’s no way of knowing for sure whether or not she really was a virgin. But since I’ve always been the over-analytical type, I can’t help but wonder, “If the virgin birth isn’t factual, what about the incarnation? How else could God come to earth as a human?”\n\nI can’t help but think about what Martin Luther King Jr said about science and religion:\n<blockquote><em>“Science investigates; religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge which is power; religion gives man wisdom which is control. Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values. The two are not rivals. They are complementary. Science keeps religion from sinking into the valley of crippling irrationalism and paralyzing obscurantism. Religion prevents science from falling into the marsh of obsolete materialism and moral nihilism.”</em></blockquote>\nAnd I think the same can be applied to history. We need historical fact in order to distinguish myth from reality. Of course all facts need interpretation, and this where faith comes in. The book of Hebrews tells us that “faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (11:1). When there are gaps in the facts, or the facts leave gaps in our previously-held theology, faith fills in those gaps. It does not ignore the facts; it merely says that God is much bigger than all of our questions, all of our doubts, and all of our tiny little theological boxes.\n\nLike I said, we have no way of looking up Mary’s medical records, but maybe we don’t need to. Faith is enough to reassure us that Jesus is still God-with-us.\n\n<em>Photo Credit: christmaswithak/</em>','Letting Faith Fill In The Gaps','','inherit','open','open','','3161-autosave','','','2011-12-19 11:40:22','2011-12-19 19:40:22','',3161,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/19/3161-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(3215,1,'2011-12-19 11:37:29','2011-12-19 19:37:29','','rock_gaps','','inherit','open','open','','rock_gaps','','','2011-12-19 11:37:29','2011-12-19 19:37:29','',3161,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/rock_gaps.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(3216,1,'2011-12-14 15:50:16','2011-12-14 23:50:16','Anyone who knows me knows that when a particular subject interests me, I go out and read every single thing I can about that subject until it becomes an obsession and it is all I ever talk about. Yeah, I’m that nerdy!\r\n\r\nLately the subject that has become my obsession is the history of Christianity. Turns out it’s a lot more complicated than the short history lesson a lot of evangelical churches teach: God wrote the Bible, the Catholics came along and ruined things, Luther and Calvin saved the day, the end. There’s a whole two-thousand year history that’s full of different doctrines, ideas, theologies, and schisms that have shaped the religion throughout the years. In fact, I think Christianity is still evolving right now as I write this.\r\n\r\nUnfortunately, some of the things I have read had made me question a lot of my theology.\r\n\r\nThis is why I have mixed feelings about biblical scholar Marcus Borg. On one hand, his book <em>Reading the Bible Again For the First Time</em> has definitely taught me how to take the Bible seriously without interpreting every story literally. But on the other hand, when he questions the historical accuracy of anything that the Apostle’s Creed confirms, that’s when I get a little anxious.\r\n\r\nFor example, since this is the Advent season I’ve had the virgin birth on my mind a lot lately. Only two of the gospels mention anything about Jesus’ birth--Matthew and Luke--and none of the New Testament books written prior to Matthew and Luke say anything about Jesus’ birth. Also, both Matthew and Luke have different details about what exactly happened on that first Christmas morning. And then of course, there’s the fact that in the original Hebrew, Isaiah 7:14 could mean either “virgin” or “young girl.” (Hat tip: <em>Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time</em>, chapter 2).\r\n\r\nOf course since we can’t go back in time to give Mary a physical examination, there’s no way of knowing for sure whether or not she really was a virgin. But since I’ve always been the over-analytical type, I can’t help but wonder, “If the virgin birth isn’t factual, what about the incarnation? How else could God come to earth as a human?”\r\n\r\nI can’t help but think about what Martin Luther King Jr said about science and religion:\r\n<blockquote><em>“Science investigates; religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge which is power; religion gives man wisdom which is control. Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values. The two are not rivals. They are complementary. Science keeps religion from sinking into the valley of crippling irrationalism and paralyzing obscurantism. Religion prevents science from falling into the marsh of obsolete materialism and moral nihilism.”</em></blockquote>\r\nAnd I think the same can be applied to history. We need historical fact in order to distinguish myth from reality. Of course all facts need interpretation, and this where faith comes in. The book of Hebrews tells us that “faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (11:1). When there are gaps in the facts, or the facts leave gaps in our previously-held theology, faith fills in those gaps. It does not ignore the facts; it merely says that God is much bigger than all of our questions, all of our doubts, and all of our tiny little theological boxes.\r\n\r\nLike I said, we have no way of looking up Mary’s medical records, but maybe we don’t need to. Faith is enough to reassure us that Jesus is still God-with-us.','Letting Faith Fill In The Gaps','','inherit','open','open','','3161-revision-2','','','2011-12-14 15:50:16','2011-12-14 23:50:16','',3161,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/14/3161-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(3217,1,'2011-12-19 11:52:50','2011-12-19 19:52:50','','beer_barrel','','inherit','open','open','','beer_barrel','','','2011-12-19 11:52:50','2011-12-19 19:52:50','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/beer_barrel.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(3218,1,'2011-12-15 19:50:29','2011-12-16 03:50:29','<strong>Rethinking a Messiah’s Miracle</strong>\r\n\r\nWWJB? It’s a legitimate question. Jesus drank with the best of them.[1] He made choice wine from water at a wedding in Cana—and lots of it. About 150 gallons. In case you’re wondering, that’s about 800 bottles. And it was good stuff.\r\n\r\n“You saved the best for last,” said the master of the banquet to the bridegroom.[2] All proof that Jesus approved of earthly celebrations and drinking, despite the fact that some fundamentalists make the ludicrous claim that his wine wasn’t fermented. It was. The Greek word used is oinos, which means fermented drink derived from grapes. In fact, in the Torah, God told the Israelites to use a portion of their tithe to buy food, wine, and strong drink—whatever their appetites craved—for an annual party.[3] Like the Cana wedding, it was a time of rejoicing, which the Psalmist echoed when he said “He makes wine that gladdens the heart of man [and woman].”[4] The scriptures tell us the abundance of wine is a divine blessing.[5]\r\n\r\nDon’t get nervous, teetotalers. God does not approve of alcohol abuse. Paul told his hearers “don’t get drunk with wine”[6] in the Greek continuous tense; meaning don’t be in the habit of overindulging.[7] The implication is, it’s fine to tie one on with restraint once in a while, as the Israelites were encouraged to do once a year; just beware of the dangers of drunkenness, in other words, alcoholism. It will ruin your life. Today, unlike biblical times, it is complicated by the deadly combination of drinking and driving.\r\n\r\nBut what of societies where moderate imbibing is practiced responsibly? If Jesus was invited to a wedding in Belgium or Germany or the home of an American microbrewer, and his mother Mary was worried because they ran out of beer, what would he brew? You can bet your bottom dollar it wouldn’t be Bud Lite.\r\n\r\nAs a microbrew enthusiast I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Just as the water-into-wine miracle teaches us about God’s lavish provision, his concern over a host’s embarrassment about a poorly planned wedding party, and the importance of bounteous celebrations of life and love, our delving into a WWJB scenario will uncover eye-opening revelations. Ones you can test out in real life. And, if you’re inclined, at the local pub.\r\n\r\nWe already began with what he wouldn’t brew. Let’s explore that further. As much as I love the Canadian Ale, La Fin du Monde, a robust, flavorful triple-fermentation with a nine percent wallop, I doubt Jesus would brew it. Why? The English translation of this French-named beer is “The End of the World.” My contention is Jesus doesn’t want to send us that message. Some Evangelical Christians delight in saying his return is imminent along with seven years of harrowing tribulation with nothing to look forward to but Judgment Day. They then use this claim to convince you to “accept Jesus” so you’re spared the horror. As I have written elsewhere,[8] this interpretation of New Testament eschatology is misguided and naïve. Jesus spoke of the end of the age, meaning the era of Jewish Temple worship (which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD), not the end of the world. Lavish provision and celebrations of life are still in play. We may need to limit them for ourselves at times, but not due to a looming apocalyptic global catastrophe, but rather so we can show concern for the poor and empower them to join the party. Spiritual manipulation through fear is not what Jesus is about, which also highlights how his teaching on hell is misinterpreted.[9]\r\n\r\nMight I suggest Jesus would favor brewing up a batch of European varieties such as the Floreffe Special Reserve, a rich dark beer seasoned with anise spice and orange peel. At eight percent alcohol content, this Belgium Ale is a joy to drain and represents a choice brew that would easily match the words of the party master when he says, “You saved the best for last.” Perhaps we should do the same. No, we can’t always do what Jesus did, but at times we can emulate his example. We can bless others by “saving the best gifts for last” and love our neighbors to the end with increasing kindness, beyond their expectations.\r\n\r\nI wonder if Jesus would give us a taste of his sense of humor. If not a Belgium beer, I imagine him turning water from kegs into one of my favorite Pacific Northwest microbrews. Perhaps a Silver City (near Seattle, WA) Scotch Ale, aged in American Oak with a tinge of whiskey. He would anticipate the lovemaking of the bride and groom that would occur later that night and honor them and their guests with this award-winning choice appropriately named, Fat Woody. After tasting it, the banquet master would laugh at the bridegroom (remember, in the story, he doesn’t realize the wine comes from Jesus and not the groom), when he recognizes the exceptional beer and remembers its name.\r\n\r\n“Scandalous to even think of such a thing,” an uptight believer might say. Yet, dwell on this: If Jesus shared with the crowds a scripture appropriate for a wedding, he wouldn’t be constrained by many of the mistranslations we have in our modern Bibles.[10] He may remember the Song of Songs when Solomon writes “Your love is more delightful than wine,”[11] referring to a beautiful maiden doling over her man. Knowing the scriptures like the back of his hand, he might recall the man and woman describing each other’s nude bodies. You read that right: Nude. First, there is the reference to the woman’s breasts being like clusters of fruit. Then, even though our modern translations use the words “navel” or “body” in a couple passages, the correct Hebrew words in the manuscripts from which we derive ours were euphemisms for female and male genitalia.[12] Gotta be naked to notice those. At times our modern Bibles are incorrect and Song of Songs is a tad pornographic—in good taste.\r\n\r\nWhat are some more possibilities? Being concerned with getting to the original truth, perhaps he would create something from the oldest brewery in the world—the origin of beer—the Bavarian Wiehenstephan. Its malty, Dark Wheat Beer, would be worthy of a King. Or maybe an American version of a great German beer, like the Silver City Oktoberfest, an amber lager with a rich malty sweetness. Then there’s the infamous Portland, Oregon Deschutes Brewery. One of their reserve brews like the Imperial Stout, called The Abyss (one beer writer calls it precious stuff), would fit the bill. With delightful hints of molasses, licorice, and chocolate flavors, this 11 percenter would be a fine choice for Jesus to craft, although I trust the banquet master would insist it be served in smaller glasses to encourage moderation.\r\n\r\nI’m struck how this miracle—Jesus’ first—and most of his good works, were not performed in churches or synagogues, but among the riffraff and ragamuffins; in homes, at parties, and among common folk outdoors. In fact, most people are surprised to hear that Jesus didn’t found a new religion or an institutional church,[13] nor expect his followers to set up a Christian version of the synagogue. His “church” he spoke of was known in Greek as <em>ekklesia</em>, which merely means a gathering of people under a common cause. The same word is used for a “mob” in the book of Acts.[14] It is not a human institution with professional salaried clergy, a clergy-laity distinction, meetings in buildings, church budgets, hierarchal leadership, and legalistic requirements, such as tithing; most of these were elements the later Roman church adopted and borrowed from pagan culture.[15] This doesn’t mean modern churches are bad (although they can become so and even oppressive when an environment of legalism is allowed to breed), just that they’re optional.[16]\r\n\r\nWhy dwell on an alternate scenario of the Master’s first miracle? It just might help us see past the religious lens most of us peer through when we imagine Jesus. He is just as likely to create fine microbrews as wine at a party (perhaps more so since most beer is significantly lower in alcohol content than wine). He was known to hang out with gluttons and whores, approved of august celebrations, reminded us he didn’t come to destroy lives,[18] always remembered the poor, and read from a version of the Bible that celebrates human sexuality, rather graphically.\r\n\r\nWWJB? We keep coming back to what he would not brew to answer that question. He would make fine wine, craft choice beer, nurture unselfish love, but never, I contend, brew a spirit of religion that cultivates fear, spiritual manipulation, and a legalistic approach to life.\r\n\r\n____________\r\n1- Matthew 11:19\r\n2 - John 2:1-10\r\n3 - Deuteronomy 14:26\r\n4 - Psalm 104:14-15\r\n5 - Genesis 27:28\r\n6 - Ephesians 5:18\r\n7 - Darwin Chandler, <em>The Royal Law of Liberty: Living in Freedom Under Christ’s Law of Love</em>, pages 252-253\r\n8 - Michael Camp, <em>I Survived the Christian Right: 10 Lessons I Learned on My Journey Home</em>, in Lesson Four.\r\n9 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Nine.\r\n10 - Camp, Ibid, in Lesson Two.\r\n11 - Song of Songs 1:2\r\n12 - See Lawrence, Raymond J., Jr., <em>Sexual Liberation: The Scandal of Christendom</em>, page 23, referring to Song of Songs 5:14 and 7:2.\r\n13 - Gary Wills, <em>What Jesus Meant</em>, page 78.\r\n14 - Wills, Ibid., page 78.\r\n15 - Frank Viola and George Barna, <em>Pagan Christianity: Exploring the Roots of Our Church Practices</em>, page xix.\r\n16 - A Pew poll the week of August 20, 2010 found 18 percent of Americans think President Barak Obama is a Muslim, only one third correctly identify him as a Christian, and 43 percent have no idea what his religion is. The fact that Obama and his family haven’t joined a Christian church as of the time of the poll may influence these confused perspectives and highlights how Americans often put more stock in superficial religiosity than genuine Christian charity.\r\n17 - Matthew 11:19 and 21:31\r\n18 - Luke 9:56\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','What Would Jesus Brew?','','inherit','open','open','','3165-revision-11','','','2011-12-15 19:50:29','2011-12-16 03:50:29','',3165,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/15/3165-revision-11/',0,'revision','',0),(3219,1,'2011-12-17 14:01:49','2011-12-17 22:01:49','“Slowing Down And Immersing Ourselves in the Biblical Story”\r\n\r\nA Review of <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art:\r\nTransforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em>\r\nChristine Valters Paintner.\r\nPaperback: Skylight Paths, 2011.\r\n\r\nReview by Chris Smith.\r\n\r\n<em><a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-3203\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"308\" /></a></em>How do we read the Bible in this age when – as Christian Smith has persuasively argued in his recent book <em>The Bible Made Impossible</em> – some traditional approaches to scriptures are on the verge of dying off?  Is it possible for us to engage and immerse ourselves in scripture in ways other than taking it as cold, static textbook?  The ancient practice of <em>lectio divina</em> (holy reading) is surprisingly relevant for our times, and Christine Valters Paintner’s new book <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em> is an elegant and useful introduction to this approach to reading the Bible (or other texts) in today’s world. Over the last five centuries, the modernity of the Western world has served to streamline life, eliminating or minimizing practices that seem to be labor-intensive or extraneous.  The result is today’s globalized, fast-food world that is rapidly losing the capacity for attentiveness as it continually accelerates into the future.  And indeed our practices of Bible reading have followed suit with the larger culture.  Scripture is no longer a grand drama about God reconciling all creation by gathering a faithful people, but rather it has been reduced – in the most egregious cases – to a sort of self-help guide that unequivocally shows me how to be saved and make a good life for myself.  What we need in our times is a decidedly slow way of reading scripture, a way of immersing ourselves and abiding in God’s story that fits the incarnational and attentive way of Jesus.  <em>Lectio divina</em>, as Paintner describes it in this new book, offers us exactly the sort of slow and careful approach to scripture that we desperately need amidst the velocity of our times.\r\n\r\n<em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> begins with a historical introduction to the practice, which emphasizes that it was rooted in the Judaic tradition of Haggadah, an “interactive interpretation of the Scriptures by means of the free use of the text to explore its inner meaning.” Paintner also notes the monastic origins of <em>lectio divina</em>; many centuries before the invention of the printing press, when scripture was nowhere near as accessible as it is today, monks would memorize and ruminate on scripture, praying over it throughout the day and continually submitting themselves to the words of the text.  It was out of this context that the four-fold practice of <em>lectio divina</em> would be formalized among the Benedictines in the twelfth century.\r\n\r\nThe heart of Paintner’s book, the middle of its three parts, focuses on exploring each of the four steps of <em>lectio divina</em>:\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><strong><em>Lectio</em>: Settling and Shimmering</strong>\r\nLet go of distractions, assume a posture of prayer, and do an initial reading of the text paying attention for a particular phrase that stands out – i.e., that shimmers, “beckons you, addresses you, unnerves you, disturbs you, stirs you, or seems especially ripe with meaning” (10).</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><strong><em>Meditatio</em>: Savoring and Stirring</strong>\r\nSlowly read through the text again, using the phrase that stands out as a lens to guide your reading and stir your imagination</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"> <strong><em>Oratio</em>: Summoning and Serving</strong>\r\nAllow the text to speak into your own life (and the life of your church community).  What light does it shine on the present situation? What are we being compelled to do?  How is the text drawing us deeper into the life and way of Jesus?</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><strong><em>Contemplatio</em>: Slowing and Stilling</strong>\r\nIt is striking that following the <em>Oratio</em> stage, we do not jump up immediately and go follow the Spirit’s leading through the text, but rather, “[this] movement is about slowing yourself down and resting into the still presence of God. The idea is to simply <em>be</em>, rather than trying to <em>do </em>anything. This is a time for offering gratitude for God’s presence in this time of prayer and stilling yourself in silence” (11).</p>\r\nIn the third and final part of the book, Paintner strives to broaden our imaginations about how <em>lectio divina</em> can be a practice that pervades our lives.  She introduces the lesser known practices of <em>visio divina</em> and <em>audio divina</em> – in which we reflect on images and sounds respectively, opening our hearts and minds and being attentive to what God might be saying to us.  She also offers the idea of nature as sacred text that can be read through its own sort of <em>lectio</em>.  This chapter on nature was one of my favorites, and it resonates with a number of nature-study books that I have reviewed here over the last few years (If this chapter also resonates with you, I would recommend in particular <strong><a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-seeing-trees-ross-llewellyn-vol-4-22/\" target=\"_blank\">Kathy Ross Hugo’s <em>Seeing Trees</em></a>,</strong> which, although it does not use the language of <em>lectio</em>, does utilize trees to immerse us in a <em>lectio</em>-like conversation with all God’s creation that surrounds us wherever we are.)  The final chapter focuses on using other facets of our lives as the opportunity for <em>lectio</em>-like reflection, including dreams, our bodies and the newspaper.\r\n\r\nWhat distinguishes Paintner’s work from a host of other recent books on <em>lectio divina</em> is its focus on beauty.  Paintner is an artist and has reflected at length on the role of the arts in spiritual formation (for instance in her book <strong><em>Awakening the Creative Spirit</em></strong>, co-written with Betsey Beckman, which was <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-awakening-the-creative-spirit-by-painter-and-beckman-vol-3-26/\" target=\"_blank\">reviewed in The Englewood Review of Books here</a>).  Part of what is lost in the ever-increasing pace of Western culture, is the joy of the beautiful, and Paintner, deeply aware of this loss, presents <em>lectio divina</em> in a way that draws the reader in and compels her to immerse herself in the beauty of engaging slowly, intentionally and personally with the biblical text. <em>Lectio divina</em> is presented here in language that clearly explains what it is and how it could be practiced in a variety of contexts, but so in a way that is full of life and joy.\r\n\r\nIn the past, I have often recommended <strong>Tony Jones</strong>’s book on <em>lectio divina</em>, <strong><em>Divine Intervention</em></strong>, which also is a simple and thoughtful introduction to the practice.  Paintner’s treatment here, however, although it covers roughly similar ground, does so more eloquently, and takes a broader view that spurs our imaginations to consider <em>lectio divina</em> as a way of being, a practice that helps us slow our lives in a world that is speeding out of control.  Tony’s book was written for younger readers, and probably is preferable for younger audiences, and his work does better at imagining the place of <em>lectio</em> as a social practice within the church community, Paintner’s reticence on the place of <em>lectio</em> in the faith community is one of the few shortcomings of her book.  To be fair, she makes the general statement early in the book that “many people can read the same scriptures and each person will have a unique experience that rises up out of his or her own life context in that moment” (9), but she never develops this superb thought in the direction of what it might mean as we practice <em>lectio </em>together in the church community.\r\n\r\nI have been excited in recent years to see a rising tide of interest in slower, more attentive expressions of Christian faith.  Christine Paintner’s <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> is a lovely apologetic for recovering an historical practice of reading scripture that is not only a way of appreciating and engaging scripture that befits our times, but also a practical way of orienting our lives toward becoming a slower people, a contrast community that proclaims in our life together the good news of a caring and more meaning-full life!','Book Review: Lectio Divina: The Sacred Art','','inherit','open','open','','3196-revision-7','','','2011-12-17 14:01:49','2011-12-17 22:01:49','',3196,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/17/3196-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(3220,1,'2011-12-19 11:58:17','2011-12-19 19:58:17','“Slowing Down And Immersing Ourselves in the Biblical Story”\r\n\r\nA Review of <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art:\r\nTransforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em>\r\nChristine Valters Paintner.\r\nPaperback: Skylight Paths, 2011.\r\n\r\nReview by Chris Smith.\r\n\r\n<em><a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-3203\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Paintner-Lectio.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"308\" /></a></em>How do we read the Bible in this age when – as Christian Smith has persuasively argued in his recent book <em>The Bible Made Impossible</em> – some traditional approaches to scriptures are on the verge of dying off?  Is it possible for us to engage and immerse ourselves in scripture in ways other than taking it as cold, static textbook?  The ancient practice of <em>lectio divina</em> (holy reading) is surprisingly relevant for our times, and Christine Valters Paintner’s new book <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer</em> is an elegant and useful introduction to this approach to reading the Bible (or other texts) in today’s world. Over the last five centuries, the modernity of the Western world has served to streamline life, eliminating or minimizing practices that seem to be labor-intensive or extraneous.  The result is today’s globalized, fast-food world that is rapidly losing the capacity for attentiveness as it continually accelerates into the future.  And indeed our practices of Bible reading have followed suit with the larger culture.  Scripture is no longer a grand drama about God reconciling all creation by gathering a faithful people, but rather it has been reduced – in the most egregious cases – to a sort of self-help guide that unequivocally shows me how to be saved and make a good life for myself.  What we need in our times is a decidedly slow way of reading scripture, a way of immersing ourselves and abiding in God’s story that fits the incarnational and attentive way of Jesus.  <em>Lectio divina</em>, as Paintner describes it in this new book, offers us exactly the sort of slow and careful approach to scripture that we desperately need amidst the velocity of our times.\r\n\r\n<em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> begins with a historical introduction to the practice, which emphasizes that it was rooted in the Judaic tradition of Haggadah, an “interactive interpretation of the Scriptures by means of the free use of the text to explore its inner meaning.” Paintner also notes the monastic origins of <em>lectio divina</em>; many centuries before the invention of the printing press, when scripture was nowhere near as accessible as it is today, monks would memorize and ruminate on scripture, praying over it throughout the day and continually submitting themselves to the words of the text.  It was out of this context that the four-fold practice of <em>lectio divina</em> would be formalized among the Benedictines in the twelfth century.\r\n\r\nThe heart of Paintner’s book, the middle of its three parts, focuses on exploring each of the four steps of <em>lectio divina</em>:\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Lectio</em>: Settling and Shimmering</strong>\r\nLet go of distractions, assume a posture of prayer, and do an initial reading of the text paying attention for a particular phrase that stands out – i.e., that shimmers, “beckons you, addresses you, unnerves you, disturbs you, stirs you, or seems especially ripe with meaning” (10).</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Meditatio</em>: Savoring and Stirring</strong>\r\nSlowly read through the text again, using the phrase that stands out as a lens to guide your reading and stir your imagination</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"> <strong><em>Oratio</em>: Summoning and Serving</strong>\r\nAllow the text to speak into your own life (and the life of your church community).  What light does it shine on the present situation? What are we being compelled to do?  How is the text drawing us deeper into the life and way of Jesus?</p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><em>Contemplatio</em>: Slowing and Stilling</strong>\r\nIt is striking that following the <em>Oratio</em> stage, we do not jump up immediately and go follow the Spirit’s leading through the text, but rather, “[this] movement is about slowing yourself down and resting into the still presence of God. The idea is to simply <em>be</em>, rather than trying to <em>do </em>anything. This is a time for offering gratitude for God’s presence in this time of prayer and stilling yourself in silence” (11).</p>\r\nIn the third and final part of the book, Paintner strives to broaden our imaginations about how <em>lectio divina</em> can be a practice that pervades our lives.  She introduces the lesser known practices of <em>visio divina</em> and <em>audio divina</em> – in which we reflect on images and sounds respectively, opening our hearts and minds and being attentive to what God might be saying to us.  She also offers the idea of nature as sacred text that can be read through its own sort of <em>lectio</em>.  This chapter on nature was one of my favorites, and it resonates with a number of nature-study books that I have reviewed here over the last few years (If this chapter also resonates with you, I would recommend in particular <strong><a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-seeing-trees-ross-llewellyn-vol-4-22/\" target=\"_blank\">Kathy Ross Hugo’s <em>Seeing Trees</em></a>,</strong> which, although it does not use the language of <em>lectio</em>, does utilize trees to immerse us in a <em>lectio</em>-like conversation with all God’s creation that surrounds us wherever we are.)  The final chapter focuses on using other facets of our lives as the opportunity for <em>lectio</em>-like reflection, including dreams, our bodies and the newspaper.\r\n\r\nWhat distinguishes Paintner’s work from a host of other recent books on <em>lectio divina</em> is its focus on beauty.  Paintner is an artist and has reflected at length on the role of the arts in spiritual formation (for instance in her book <strong><em>Awakening the Creative Spirit</em></strong>, co-written with Betsey Beckman, which was <a href=\"http://erb.kingdomnow.org/featured-awakening-the-creative-spirit-by-painter-and-beckman-vol-3-26/\" target=\"_blank\">reviewed in The Englewood Review of Books here</a>).  Part of what is lost in the ever-increasing pace of Western culture, is the joy of the beautiful, and Paintner, deeply aware of this loss, presents <em>lectio divina</em> in a way that draws the reader in and compels her to immerse herself in the beauty of engaging slowly, intentionally and personally with the biblical text. <em>Lectio divina</em> is presented here in language that clearly explains what it is and how it could be practiced in a variety of contexts, but so in a way that is full of life and joy.\r\n\r\nIn the past, I have often recommended <strong>Tony Jones</strong>’s book on <em>lectio divina</em>, <strong><em>Divine Intervention</em></strong>, which also is a simple and thoughtful introduction to the practice.  Paintner’s treatment here, however, although it covers roughly similar ground, does so more eloquently, and takes a broader view that spurs our imaginations to consider <em>lectio divina</em> as a way of being, a practice that helps us slow our lives in a world that is speeding out of control.  Tony’s book was written for younger readers, and probably is preferable for younger audiences, and his work does better at imagining the place of <em>lectio</em> as a social practice within the church community, Paintner’s reticence on the place of <em>lectio</em> in the faith community is one of the few shortcomings of her book.  To be fair, she makes the general statement early in the book that “many people can read the same scriptures and each person will have a unique experience that rises up out of his or her own life context in that moment” (9), but she never develops this superb thought in the direction of what it might mean as we practice <em>lectio </em>together in the church community.\r\n\r\nI have been excited in recent years to see a rising tide of interest in slower, more attentive expressions of Christian faith.  Christine Paintner’s <em>Lectio Divina, The Sacred Art</em> is a lovely apologetic for recovering an historical practice of reading scripture that is not only a way of appreciating and engaging scripture that befits our times, but also a practical way of orienting our lives toward becoming a slower people, a contrast community that proclaims in our life together the good news of a caring and more meaning-full life!','Book Review: Lectio Divina: The Sacred Art','','inherit','open','open','','3196-revision-8','','','2011-12-19 11:58:17','2011-12-19 19:58:17','',3196,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/19/3196-revision-8/',0,'revision','',0),(3221,1,'2011-12-18 09:45:26','2011-12-18 17:45:26','In this \'de-harmonising\' series, we\'ve been attempting to see the different threads and emphases that each of the four tellings of the gospel of Jesus in the New Testament. We\'re aiming to see each one as a unique and beautiful work of art, seeing in 4-D rather than the one-dimensional picture that we can sometimes get from nativity plays.\r\n\r\nLuke is the last of the gospels in this series (have a look at <a title=\"De-harmonizing Christmas – Part 1: Mark\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/11/29/de-harmonizing-christmas-part-1-mark/\">Mark</a>, <a title=\"De-harmonizing Christmas – Part 2: John\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/12/05/de-harmonizing-christmas-part-2-john/\">John</a> and <a title=\"De-harmonizing Christmas – Part 3: Matthew\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/12/16/de-harmonizing-christmas-part-3-matthew/\">Matthew</a>), the one that we\'re most familiar with, the one that contributes the most to the story of Christmas that we hear retold each year. Like Matthew, <a title=\"Luke 1-2 NIV - Biblegateway.com\" href=\"http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke%201-2&amp;version=NIV\" target=\"_blank\">Luke tells the story of Jesus\' birth</a> in only two chapters, less even, it will take you about 13 minutes to read.\r\n\r\nThe story that\'s told here is very different to Matthew - beginning with Zechariah and Elizabeth, the parents of John the Baptist, the angel\'s visit to Mary rather than Joseph, the shepherds and the worship of Simeon and Anna in the Temple. Rather than interpolating the events that Matthew describes, let\'s take Luke at face value and see what he\'s trying to tell us about Jesus and the story he is going on to tell in the remaining 22 chapters.\r\n\r\nFirstly, we notice that all the characters introduced in these chapters are \'cameo parts\' for Luke. Zechariah, Elizabeth, Joseph, the Shepherds, Simeon, Anna - none of these appear again in Luke. Mary comes up once or twice in Luke\'s gospel again; John the Baptist appears a few more times, but these are not the key players in the story of Jesus. They\'re also people who would have been considered marginalised in their context.\r\n\r\nZechariah was a priest, but he must have been quite low down the ranking to be part of the rotation. He and his wife were old, and \'righteous before God\', but childless. This was a huge stigma in ancient society, seen as a curse, no matter how good someone appeared. Shepherds are well known to have been outcasts in first century Palestine - they did a dirty, manual job and were mistrusted in a similar way to Travellers or Gypsies here in the UK. Simeon and Anna, though age was respected, had chosen a lifestyle that was unusual, even weird.\r\n\r\nLuke tells us nothing of Joseph, except that he was a descendant of David. This royal lineage gives him no benefits, however, as he has to follow the command of the Emperor and travel miles to Bethlehem for the census. Mary is a young, unmarried woman - a nobody until she is \'exalted\'. They travel to Joseph\'s \'hometown\', somewhere he should have had family, never mind a place in the inn. But an unmarried couple that were quite obviously about to have a baby was a toxic scandal that no one would touch, not even a hotelier. They camp out by the road - no mention of a stable here. Mangers were stone feeding troughs that a livestock herder would fill with enough hay or straw for his herd or flock, then leave empty when they continued on with their journey to market. It\'s an image of complete emptiness - not a cosy little shed with straw and animals looking on, nothing at all to witness or support this traumatic night. The shattered mother wraps the newborn baby in cloths to cushion him against the hard, cold stone.\r\n\r\nSurely the angelic host should have been supporting and warming Mary and Jesus, not off telling shepherds (shepherds of all people!) about the birth! But this tale sets the tone for Luke. Jesus is here for a mission, one that takes in every outcast, rejected and overlooked person everywhere. He begins as one of us - one of \'them\', the despised, yet we don\'t get the sense that we should be pitying anyone or patronising with gifts. Jesus is the gift to everyone - especially those who don\'t deserve or expect him. The most religious and righteous man in the story is struck dumb for nine months by a single angel, while filthy thieving shepherds go round telling everyone the miracle they were told about by a huge choir of angels.\r\n\r\nFor Luke, everything is about mission. The songs of Mary and Zechariah praise the mercy of God in helping Israel, keeping his promises by sending Jesus. The way this plays out is in the shepherds coming to see what they were told about, then telling everyone who would listen. While Simeon blesses Jesus, praising God for his gift, Anna goes further in telling the story of Jesus throughout Jerusalem. The tone of the story we tell at Christmas should not be the dull monotone of reading familiar lines of scripture but the excited bubbling over of people who have seen and experienced the incredible gift of God, the longed for fulfilment of promises so good we can hardly believe them. It isn\'t nice, neat or civilised. It\'s raw, difficult, messy and includes people who have never understood how they are supposed to act. Yet it\'s those people who have the energy and enthusiasm to really do justice to the incredible story.','De-harmonizing Christmas - Part 4: Luke','','inherit','open','open','','3179-revision-5','','','2011-12-18 09:45:26','2011-12-18 17:45:26','',3179,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/18/3179-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(3533,35,'2012-01-04 08:22:31','2012-01-04 16:22:31','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/DSC_0712-Copy.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-3534 alignright\" title=\"DSC_0712 - Copy\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/DSC_0712-Copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"100\" height=\"150\" /></a>Today is my fifty-seventh birthday.  My hair is polished silver.  Though I am no longer sleek, I’m sexy and adore my Victoria’s Secret lingerie. I’m not an intellectual, but intelligent and love conversations that engage my brain.  My greatest lessons have been learned from experience, and I’ve earned my wisdom the hard way.  Last year, my first book was published, and I am living my life’s dream at last as a passionate, full-time author.  And my culture considers me insignificant because I’m no longer twenty or thirty-something, nor on the brink of disaster as forty-something.  What the hell do they know, and why don’t they know it?  Not just because young adults say so, but many middle-aged and senior women believe it.\r\n\r\nSeven years ago, I wrote this poem for my fiftieth birthday:\r\n<blockquote>Five-Oh\r\n\r\nMy experience is hanging\r\n\r\nout of drawers,\r\n\r\ngrowing under the bed\r\n\r\nin effusive excess,\r\n\r\ntwirling from ceiling fans,\r\n\r\ndripping from my tears.\r\n\r\nI’ve stored it up for years\r\n\r\nuntil my birthday\r\n\r\ndevalued all I know,\r\n\r\nany truth and wisdom\r\n\r\ngained only through error\r\n\r\nand trial-sized experiments\r\n\r\nrendered innocuous\r\n\r\nby cultural consensus\r\n\r\nthat counts me up to forty-nine\r\n\r\nthen subtracts.</blockquote>\r\nI began coloring my hair in my early twenties, not because I didn’t like what I had, but for fun.  After thirty years of this, I gave myself an early present six months before my fiftieth birthday:  I decided to grow my hair color out, because I hadn’t a clue what was hidden underneath.  I figured that if my natural color sucked, I would disguise it again.  What I discovered was delightful.  Granted, this lovely silver shade came gradually, and the transition might have been dreadful.  But the bottom line was I love how my hair looks today, and will never change it again.\r\n\r\nCompliments abounded.  You know who hated it?  <em>Only women</em>.  This one fortyish woman with rabies chewed me out, degrading me for “letting myself go” and being unnecessarily unattractive.  I was appalled, not because I was embarrassed or hurt, but because of how effectively the anti-aging lie had stolen part of her self-esteem.  That slam wasn’t about me; it was her self-evaluation.\r\n\r\nAny product labeled “anti-aging” or “age-defying” aren’t for men.  A men’s skin-care product that claimed to make them “look ten years younger” would have a very limited market.  Guys don’t wear make-up.  Why do women?  Do I really have to tell you the answer?\r\n\r\nWho buys that stuff?  Who tends to lie about their age?  Who keeps plastic surgeons in business?  If you’re a fifty-plus woman, think about it.  Getting older isn’t a disease; it’s a natural aspect of life.  Have you unconsciously decided birthdays determine your worth?  The current life-expectancy for women in the United States is eighty-one years.  That’s a long time to live as a second-class citizen, increasingly without value or a voice in our society. It’s our choice.\r\n\r\nYes, everyone has better-looking bodies when we’re young.  But if my beauty is based on not having wrinkles, I’m screwed.  If I have to look like a Victoria’s Secret model to buy their lingerie, the company better tell the sales clerks, because I tend to buy what I try on and they always take my money.  So why don’t some of their models look like me?  Those girls are going to have to change careers in a few years unless the company changes.  Who has to power to change that?  Us.  All at once?  No.  “Us” means one person at a time.  You have to decide what <em>you</em> want, how <em>you</em> want to live.  Are you really living authentically?\r\n\r\nI’m a child of the 60’s, a genuine hippie (still am).  I didn’t wear make-up until I graduated from college and got a job for which I had to wear a suit, pantyhose, and make-up.  Been there/did that for a lot of years, got burned out, and found a job at a ridiculously low wage so I could dump the make-up, etc. and look like myself again.\r\n\r\nNow I work at home as a full-time author and can wear a swimsuit and fuzzy bunny slippers to work if I want.  Yet I wore a tiny bit of make-up for my professional photos to look….well, professional, but still 95% like the authentic me.  When I’m asked to speak at a traditional church or conference, I wear slacks instead of jeans, or a dress (albeit bohemian).\r\n\r\nBut do you know why I wear no make-up, have silver hair, and dress like I do?  Because that’s the inner me expressed on the outside.  Do you know why I wear slinky lingerie?  Not for Bud, even though he likes it, but because I like how it makes me feel.  I buy really good skin care products, but NEVER anything that degrades who I am, because I’m already beautiful, for that’s how God made me.  My age doesn’t determine my significance.  My abilities don’t define my worth.  And any marketing company, person, or institution who tells me differently, to hell with them.  But not to hell with me.','Anti Anti-Aging','','publish','open','open','','anti-anti-aging','','','2012-01-04 08:22:31','2012-01-04 16:22:31','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=3533',0,'post','',8),(3226,121,'2011-12-19 18:39:38','2011-12-20 02:39:38','<em><a href=\"http://feeds.feedburner.com/JoyInThisJourney\" rel=\"alternate\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1115\" src=\"http://joyinthisjourney.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/rollercoaster.jpg\" alt=\"roller coaster\" width=\"230\" height=\"337\" /></a></em>Dear friend, <strong>You possess a rock-solid certainty </strong>of the truth and accuracy of your faith. <strong>This is a gift.</strong> Did you know that? Certainty is not a universal thing. <strong>I long for it.</strong> But, at least for now, I don\'t have it. Sometimes I think you fail to understand that about those of us who are less certain. <strong>I often wonder if you think doubters <em>want </em>to doubt,</strong> that we like this uncertain world and make a conscious choice to stay there. Is this why you declare your answers to my questions as though pummeling them into me with a sledgehammer? <strong>It\'s as if you think that saying it hard enough or often enough will transform doubt into certainty.</strong> Sometimes when you speak about doubt, <strong>it sounds like you think doubt is contagious.</strong> And not only contagious but deadly. Like you think it must be isolated at minimum and ideally, destroyed. I may not know <em>for certain </em>what God has said on certain issues, but<strong> I know this</strong>. <em><strong>You have never doubted. </strong></em>If you had, you would know better. You would know that it doesn\'t work that way. It isn\'t that easy. <em>If only it were that easy.</em> <strong>For those of us who wrestle with doubt, </strong><strong>your confident faith is like a lush amusement park in the middle of the Nevada desert. </strong>Inside, everyone is smiling, riding, eating, splashing in refreshing water fountains, having fun. I am stuck on the outside. I want the carefree joy I see on your face. I\'m parched, starving, my skin is burned and cracking from the sun and the heat. <strong></strong> <strong>But I can\'t find the way in. </strong> I stagger along the perimeter, searching for a way in. Hope rises as I spot something... I\'ve finally found it!... only to be shattered again ... it\'s a mirage dissolving into dust. Or a new question sends me on another detour.... waaaaay out into the desert. Do you get it? <strong>When you scold or rebuke or pound on me for doubting, it\'s like you\'re yelling \"Why aren\'t you in here, you stupid person? GET IN HERE.\" </strong> <strong>But you don\'t tell me <em>how</em>. </strong> That doesn\'t work, does it? <strong>I need directions,</strong> a map, the secret word, a key, the keypad code, <em>something</em> that will lead me to the gate and, at long last, gain me entry. I <em>want </em>to get in. I want that confidence and peace that you have. I just haven\'t found it yet.','I Want In','','inherit','open','open','','3225-revision','','','2011-12-19 18:39:38','2011-12-20 02:39:38','',3225,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/19/3225-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(3262,1,'2011-12-20 09:51:52','2011-12-20 17:51:52','','streetlight','','inherit','open','open','','streetlight','','','2011-12-20 09:51:52','2011-12-20 17:51:52','',3239,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/streetlight.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(3227,1,'2011-12-20 09:39:10','2011-12-20 17:39:10','<em></em>Dear friend,\n\n<strong>You possess a rock-solid certainty </strong>of the truth and accuracy of your faith. <strong>This is a gift.</strong> Did you know that? Certainty is not a universal thing.\n\n<strong>I long for it.</strong> But, at least for now, I don\'t have it.\n\nSometimes I think you fail to understand that about those of us who are less certain.\n\n<strong>I often wonder if you think doubters <em>want </em>to doubt,</strong> that we like this uncertain world and make a conscious choice to stay there.\n\nIs this why you declare your answers to my questions as though pummeling them into me with a sledgehammer? <strong>It\'s as if you think that saying it hard enough or often enough will transform doubt into certainty.</strong>\n\nSometimes when you speak about doubt, <strong>it sounds like you think doubt is contagious.</strong> And not only contagious but deadly. Like you think it must be isolated at minimum and ideally, destroyed.\n\nI may not know <em>for certain </em>what God has said on certain issues, but<strong> I know this</strong>. <em><strong>You have never doubted. </strong></em>If you had, you would know better.\n\nYou would know that it doesn\'t work that way.\n\nIt isn\'t that easy.\n\n<em>If only it were that easy.</em>\n\n<strong>For those of us who wrestle with doubt, </strong><strong>your confident faith is like a lush amusement park in the middle of the Nevada desert. </strong>Inside, everyone is smiling, riding, eating, splashing in refreshing water fountains, having fun.\n\nI am stuck on the outside. I want the carefree joy I see on your face. I\'m parched, starving, my skin is burned and cracking from the sun and the heat. <strong></strong>\n\n<strong>But I can\'t find the way in. </strong>\n\nI stagger along the perimeter, searching for a way in. Hope rises as I spot something... I\'ve finally found it!... only to be shattered again ... it\'s a mirage dissolving into dust. Or a new question sends me on another detour.... waaaaay out into the desert.\n\nDo you get it?\n\n<strong>When you scold or rebuke or pound on me for doubting, it\'s like you\'re yelling \"Why aren\'t you in here, you stupid person? GET IN HERE.\" </strong>\n\n<strong>But you don\'t tell me <em>how</em>.\n</strong>\n\nThat doesn\'t work, does it?\n\n<strong>I  need directions,</strong> a map, the secret word, a key, the keypad code, <em>something</em> that will lead me to the gate and, at long last, gain me entry.\n\nI <em>want </em>to get in. I want that confidence and peace that you have.\n\nI just haven\'t found it yet.','I Want In','','inherit','open','open','','3225-autosave','','','2011-12-20 09:39:10','2011-12-20 17:39:10','',3225,'http://provoketive.com/2011/12/19/3225-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(3260,1,'2011-12-20 09:38:44','2011-12-20 17:38:44','','lonely_pier','','inherit','open','open','','lonely_pier','','','2011-12-20 09:38:44','2011-12-20 17:38:44','',3225,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/lonely_pier.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(3228,31,'2011-12-20 14:40:36','2011-12-20 22:40:36','The coyote, dressed only in pink bathrobe, polishes a pair of heavy-duty black work boots in her mildewed bedroom. The single incandescent bulb lighting the room dangles from a twisted wire and makes the already small room seem to shrink. Her hands begin to shake and she steadies them against the claustrophobia only by focusing on the meticulous cadence of a stiff brush scuffing over her boots’ steel toes. Few things she fears more than being confined, but every time she picks up a job, she gambles with her fears, knowing she could end up in a cinderblock cell much worse than the one she calls home. But she can’t help it. She is good at what she does, and with her pixieish figure, her long raven black hair and deep brown eyes, the border guards are rarely suspicious of her. And when they are, all it usually takes is a casual flutter of her lashes or a suggestive hand on an arm before the guards let her pass.\r\n\r\nStill, the thought of prison sends a shiver down her bare spine, despite the desert heat. Restless, the coyote stands, allowing the bathrobe to drop to the floor in a damp heap, revealing a pair of intricate wings tattooed on her slender back. The ink begins at her shoulder blades and curves down her back to the outside of each thigh. She picks up a crumpled pack of Camel menthols from the dresser, fishes out a bent cigarette and pushes it between two chapped lips. A flame flickers to life and the cigarette glows as she pulls in the first, biting, beautiful smoke into her lungs.\r\n\r\nShe puts the cigarette to the wick of a red candle. It sputters and flares, revealing a faded icon of St. Christopher propped against the wall behind the candle. The image is of a bearded man, walking staff in his hand, a child on his back, traveling. It has always brought her comfort. She replaces the menthol to her lips, sucks and closes her eyes. She has made the trip across the border between Mexico and the United States hundreds of times, and her prayer never changes: that this trip would be no different than the last one, wholly uneventful.\r\n\r\nThe coyote opens her eyes, exhales the smoke, and embraces the urgency creeping through her body. She quickly dresses, lightweight beige cargo pants and a simple blue-checkered button down shirt. She packs a small knapsack with a change of clothes, a water bottle, iodine tablets, hearty snacks and a light blanket. She grabs a wad of cash, separated into five different bundles by paper clips, and shoves it into her cargo pants. It is enough, with a little leftover for incidentals, to pay the local gangs and police officers in hopes they will be left alone on the Mexican side of the border. She has two hours, plenty of time to make the bribes and meet her cargo a few miles from the border in an empty field.\r\n\r\nSeven men and two women are waiting for her when she arrives in the field, late. They are dressed as they always are, in sweatpants or tattered jeans and ill-fitting shirts with the names of American sports teams splashed across the fronts. Each has a knapsack — an old backpack, a pillowcase, an oversized purse — slung over a shoulder or resting by feet. They are startled to see the coyote approaching them; their grips on their knapsacks tighten and the coyote can tell the fight-or-flight instinct has kicked in.\r\n\r\n“Who are you and where did you come from?” a young man in his 20s calls out.\r\n\r\n“Don’t be afraid. I’m with you,” she replies. “I’m your coyote.”\r\n\r\n“But you just appeared,” the man continues, puzzled. “I didn’t hear a car approaching and I certainly didn’t see you walking up, and there’s nowhere to hide out here.”\r\n\r\nThe man gestures at the expansive plains, covered with little more than a few mesquite trees and scrawny grasses that stretch from horizon to horizon.\r\n\r\n“You would be surprised exactly what can be hidden out here,” the coyote replies. She stops in front of the small group, assesses them and calculates about how long she thinks the trip will take. Everyone looks fit, even the women, and she hopes they can manage the crossing in a week, maybe less with a little luck, she thinks, rubbing the St. Christopher medallion that hangs on a silver chain from her neck.\r\n\r\n“We were expecting a man,” a teenager says, his voice sullen.\r\n\r\n“You’re welcome to leave, then,” the coyote shoots back icily, pulling her long hair back into tail. “For the rest of you, my name is Gabby and I’m the best coyote by half around here, and that’s all you need to know about me. The trip will take us somewhere between 7 and 10 days if we don’t run into trouble or get lost or have to stop to rest too often.\r\n\r\n“I’m here because I want to help you get across the border and, with all the increased border patrols on the other side, you can’t do it alone any more. I’m here because I know that after the trade agreement happened, jobs quit paying enough to put food on a family table. I will not leave you or forsake you in the desert. Either we all make it or we all get sent back.  The trip is hard. You will suffer. You will want to go back. But we will go on together. We will make it. Listen to me. Do what I say, when I say, and we should all be fine. Any questions?”\r\n\r\nThe small group of men and women shuffle and glance at their feet, at each other and finally at Gabby. They have lots of questions, but none that Gabby could answer. Would they encounter armed ranchers looking for target practice? Rattlesnakes? Angry wild boar? Would there be a place to refill their water bottles with water that wouldn’t make them all sick? How can it be that they would really be able to cross under her lead? But no one could manage to ask any of those questions, as if to ask them would make the reality of the task in front of them more real.\r\n\r\nInstead, a soft voice spoke, one of the women. “Thank you, Gabby, for helping us. Let it be just as you said. We will follow you.”\r\n\r\nThe days that follow blur together like the land around them, into seamless streak of bleakness. The group walks in the dark, stumbling over rocks and into each other, their movements barely enough to keep them warm in the chilled desert nights. During the day, with the oppressive heat, they seek cover to keep them hidden and shade under knobbly, stumpy mesquite trees to keep them cool.\r\n\r\nAfter two days, the group’s water bottles begin to run dry and several have eaten through too much of the dried beef and fruit they had brought with them. The rations of food left out by well-intentioned groups have been spoiled by local guards, the skins of water, slashed and drained. So, some of the men hunt during breaks from walking with slingshots for small game. On the third night of travel, thirsty and hungry, Gabby leads them to a pump and trough for cattle.\r\n\r\n“We’ll have to use this. It’s our only choice. There won’t be another chance for water until we make it across the border and several miles into America,” she announces. “Rest and refill. It will be your last chance to do both until we are safely across.”\r\n\r\nOne of the men pumps the handle and dirty, foul-smelling water spews out into the trough. <a href=\"http://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/?GCOI=80140100496740\">Thirst, though, overcomes the natural revulsion and the group refills their bottles with the muddy, brackish water.</a>\r\n\r\nGabby pulls aside one of the young women, the one who thanked her when they began their trek.\r\n\r\n“Ave?” she says. “Ave. That’s your name, right?”\r\n\r\nThe woman smiles and nods. She has long black hair, demure porcelain features and a creamy complexion rouged from the hard travel. “Yes. Have I done something wrong?”\r\n\r\n“Put these in your water,” Gabby says, placing two small iodine tablets into Ave’s free hand. “There’s no choice but to drink that putrid mess, but, at least, don’t drink it untreated.”\r\n\r\nRelief washes over the young girl’s face. She drops the small white tables into her bottle. “Thank you, Gabby, thank you,” Ave says, eyes and lashes moist. “You’re an angel.”\r\n\r\n“They will all have diarrhea by tonight. It’s not safe to drink straight from the pump, especially for someone in your condition,” Gabby says, taking Ave’s bottle from her. “Here, shake it like this and it will help the tablets dissolve more quickly. I’d rather the rest of them not know I gave these to you.”\r\n\r\nGabby hands the bottle back to Ave, who immediately takes a drink.\r\n\r\n“What do you mean ‘my condition?’” Ave asks, capping the bottle.\r\n\r\nGabby raises a thin eyebrow and gives Ave an apprising look. The young girl, in response, withers, in shame or fear Gabby cannot tell. Staring at the ground, Ave begins to shrink away.\r\n\r\n“No, no, Ave, don’t be afraid. It’s okay,” Gabby says, reaching out a steadying arm onto the girl’s shoulder. “I know you’re pregnant.”\r\n\r\nAve stutters; her thin, rose lips quiver. She glances around and whispers urgently, “How do you know that? I haven’t told anyone yet. Not even my boyfriend.”\r\n\r\nGabby shrugs. “I can tell these things, Ave. Everything will be okay. I promise. I will get you through this journey. Ave, how old are you?”\r\n\r\n“I’m 19,” Ave replies, forcing herself to stand taller.\r\n\r\nGabby stifles a laugh. “If you’re 19, then I’m ancient. How old are you really?”\r\n\r\n“I’m almost 14,” Ave replies, bowing her head again. “But please don’t send me home. I’m sorry I lied about my age, but I had to cross and I couldn’t do it alone.”\r\n\r\nGabby shakes her head. “No, I’m not going to send you home, but why would you come on such a strenuous trek and take a chance with your health and the health of that baby?”\r\n\r\nTears begin to crest over Ave’s long black lashes. “I had no choice. My boyfriend, José, made the trip last month, and I still haven’t heard from him. He doesn’t know I’m pregnant, and I don’t have anyone back home who would understand. Even my parents would think I was slut if I told them, which I haven’t.”\r\n\r\n“So you’re a runaway?” Gabby interrupts.\r\n\r\nAve nods. “You don’t understand, though. If they found out, they would kick me out, and José’s family won’t believe it\'s their son’s baby since he’s been gone for a month.”\r\n\r\n“So where are you going, then?”\r\n\r\n“To my cousin Isabella’s house,” Ave replies. “She lives in the hill country outside San Antonio. She’s the only one who will understand what’s going on. I have a phone card in my pack and I’ll call her when we get across to come pick me up.”\r\n\r\n“Does she know you’re coming?”\r\n\r\nAve shakes her head. “But I can stay with her until I can find a way over to Alabama. I have friends there who work in some factories. José said he was hoping to make it there, so maybe I will find him there.”\r\n\r\n“Transporting a undocumented crosser is dangerous business for you and for your cousin. Why not just get a job back home and raise the baby in safety and security?”\r\n\r\n“Safety? Security?” Ave snorts in derision. “The <em>maquiladoras</em> won’t hire a pregnant woman. Even if they do, when they find out I’m with child, they’ll just fire me. Pregnancies cost too much for them.\r\n\r\n“Besides, I want to see my baby grow up. Most of the women there can’t have babies any more and if they can, then they are born dead. The women start coughing, get sick. All so we can put together televisions bigger than you for a few <em>pesos</em>. You say the trip across the border is dangerous, but it is no more so than staying behind in my village, alone, poor and dying.”\r\n\r\nAve is weeping into her dirty hands now, and the other crossers are beginning to notice. Gabby closes around her with strong arms and shushes her. “Don’t be afraid, Ave. We will get you across. And when you get to Alabama, be careful. It’s a dangerous place. If you can avoid it, do. But, look, okay, calm down. It’s okay. Here, take this and wear it. It will keep you safe. God will be with you when you have it on.”\r\n\r\nGabby lifts the St. Christopher medallion from around her neck and places it around Ave’s long, slender neck. “Do you really think God will be with me?” Ave responds, the innocence of hope reviving her.\r\n\r\nThe coyote places a hand on Ave’s belly. “I think God already is with you. This child is a miracle and he has a saint for a mother. God is with you and so am I. So are all of us. God is watching over us, Ave, and if he’s not, or gets distracted, well, then we’ll just have to look out for each other. So don’t be afraid.”\r\n\r\nAve nods. “Let it be so, then.”\r\n\r\n“With any luck, we’ll be in America in 24 hours. The river is not far from here.”\r\n\r\nThe story continues tomorrow ... <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/christmasundocumentedlogo.jpg\">\r\n</a>','Christmas, Undocumented: Annunciation, Part I','','publish','open','open','','christmas-undocumented-annunciation-part-i','','','2011-12-20 14:43:53','2011-12-20 22:43:53','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=3228',0,'post','',0),(3229,31,'2011-12-19 21:12:17','2011-12-20 05:12:17','','christmasundocumentedlogo','','inherit','open','open','','christmasundocumentedlogo','','','2011-12-19 21:12:17','2011-12-20 05:12:17','',3228,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/christmasundocumentedlogo.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),