Is God always angry? For Palm Sunday -- which begins Holy Week's march toward Good Friday -- we continue our differentiation from the American Christian legacy that we are "sinners in the hands of an angry God", with a focus on alternative ways to believe in the power of Jesus' crucifixion.
Read MoreHealth, wealth, and prosperity messaging is not just that of celebrity televangelists like Joel Osteen. More subtle examples are in nearly any church that teaches or models praying for others, and in secular settings like the self-help industry. What does it look like to give up those subtle messages and find the reassurance they promise in more reliable beliefs?
Read MoreInspired by Discord comments and personally shared reflections from our first two messages on belonging, Hayley and Vince expand on various themes.
Read MoreSpecial guest Natasha Huang, a hospital chaplain, joins us remotely to talk about spiritual practice, God, and community in the midst of grief. (Image from Shifaaz Shamoon on Unsplash)
Read MoreIn challenge or pain, all people long to experience empathy. And yet, when we're faced with the opportunity to empathize with another, we can accidentally minimize all too easily. Hayley unpacks how, in 21st century America, the Bible can be used to empathize or minimize. (Image from @keeleyshawart)
Read MoreEveryone has biases. When confronted with our own, it's normal to feel embarrassed or defensive. But learning to embrace changing our minds is an essential life skill. Jesus' life and teachings have more to say on this than you might think...
Read MoreHow can anyone believe in a loving and powerful God when there is so much evil and suffering in the world? If the common religious response that "it's all a part of God's plan" is not satisfying to you (or has hurt you personally), you are not alone. For week 1 of Lent, we experiment with an alternative way to believe in a loving and powerful God -- that doesn't bypass people's pain, that is consistent with Jesus' picture of God, and that invites intellectual curiosity rather than shuts it down.
Read MoreOn the weekend our country remembers Dr. King, we do a book report on Howard Thurman's "Jesus and the Disinherited" -- reportedly the book Dr. King kept in his pocket during the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Thurman is one of the most important theologians in American history, but unfortunately not as well known as he ought to be. (Photo: Book jacket for "Jesus and the Disinherited" by Howard Thurman)
Read MoreThe season of Advent in the church calendar encourages us to annually come back to the theme of "waiting", suggesting how core it is to learn to "wait well" in order to "live well". Hayley and Vince unpack some helpful and some harmful spiritual perspectives on waiting they've encountered (and perhaps you have too?)
Read MoreWhether it’s from the self-help industry or Christian messaging, toxically simple takes on “how to rest & recharge” or on “the three steps to a (fill in the blank) life” abound. Hayley helps us scour the Jesus tradition for more realistic and helpful outlooks on life.
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