Christopher Jamison, the Abbot of Worth, in the Inaugural “Noah Lecture” has spoken about ways that people of faith might act to lead society out of the present financial and global climate crises. He points the finger of blame at our willingness to start believing that “greed is good” and says that we need to return to the basics of moral theology.
Bishop Trevor Mwamba of Botswana spoke of “delusions of grandeur” among some of the African primates and noted that many church members throughout the continent had not been consulted about issues of human sexuality, and were “frankly not bothered with the debate.”
The Bible says – the prophets and apostles and martyrs and saints say – Jesus says – and we say it every Sunday – that what God wants is us. Starting with nothing, God made us for himself. Yes, God wants us.
Perhaps it isn’t too early to prepare for Christmas by considering why Mary’s face is so central to the visual world of Christianity. However secularized the so called ‘Holidays’ are becoming, the mail that will soon be pouring into mailboxes will certainly contain some cards showing her gazing out at us, or returning the smile of her baby son. Let’s prepare to receive them with fresh insight.
I wish that we in the Episcopal Church were just a bit bolder about what it is that we do believe; that we could put out our message with more fervor and enthusiasm. For example, I believe that we have allowed those who are outside our church to define us, usually negatively. What if we spoke with more clarity about our dedication to our baptismal covenant, and about our belief in the creeds?
Some contemporary Christian theologians propose that traditional ideas about God’s omnipotence are incorrect. God must therefore rely upon human cooperation to accomplish God’s purposes on earth. God abhors evil and suffering, but both persist, even after we persevere in collective prayer, because you and I fail to act as God’s hands, feet, and voice.
The love of God is not fair. No, the love of God is not fair. It’s more than that, it’s enormous, it’s gracious, it’s true, no matter what. Paul knows this. He writes about the love of God from prison, and while he knows that neither life nor the love of God are fair, they are indeed much more important than that.
Does the church ‘mean business’? Do we accept that our main business today is with meaning, the struggle to find meaning, and the mission to help people discover the gift of meaning through the good news that has Christ at its heart? Are we still in the business of being saved and saving others? I wonder sometimes because of the negativity or indifference with which many Episcopalians react to the very concept of being saved.
Between the Monster and the Saint is the latest in a series of meditations on the nature of morality by the former bishop of Edinburgh – a man who, for many conservative Christians, has stretched the definition of liberal theology past breaking point, while remaining for many non-believers the most humane and persuasive apologist for faith.
Sacrifice is one of those biblical concepts that make people uncomfortable. We don’t like it, and we’re glad we don’t do it any more. How is killing an animal going to help anything, and why would that make God happy? Chapter after chapter in the latter portion of the Torah detail exacting rules for cutting up critters. Needless to say, our lectionaries skip those.