Herod and the Magi
Herod the Great It is important to understand that Herod was not just “a king.” He had been declared the “King of the Jews” by the Roman Senate, a title which had been confirmed by Octavius Caesar when he became the First Man of Rome. Herod was an Idumean convert to Judaism who had ruled over… Read More »
Could Jesus Have Been a Shipbuilder?
The first minute and a half or so of this clip from The Passion of the Christ is one of the most heartwarming of the entire film (mind you, this is not exactly a cuddly film). But how accurate is it? Recently, there has been a lot of controversy online about the “masculine nature” of… Read More »
Paul – The Roman Citizen and Jewish Teacher
This Sunday, I mentioned that it was possible that the Apostle Paul’s father was a Gentile. This is a theory which cannot be absolutely proven, but it is based on two premises: 1. Paul was a Roman citizen. Three times in the book of Acts, Paul makes declarations of his citizenship: But Paul said to… Read More »
Some Thoughts on GOLIAH OF GATH
And there came out from the camp of the Philistines a champion named Goliath of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. He had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. 6… Read More »
Sermo and Homilia
In previous posts, I’ve talked about sermons and homilies and the difference between the two. This morning, a group of pastors and I were talking about sermons and preaching. If you’ve been around our church, you know that I teach in bit of an unorthodox way. It is because I believe that we pastors see… Read More »
Orthodoxy and Heteropraxis
It is very common to discuss orthodoxy or "proper teaching." It seems like every form of Christianity claims to be orthodox – to have the right doctrine. They claim their form of faith is the proper form. But there is more to being Christian than simply having "proper teaching." Faith must also be lived out.… Read More »
Irreverent Homily
Part of the manifesto is the rediscovery of preaching – the need for a switch from the medieval sermo to the ancient homilia. The Return of the Homily The sermon is a method of persuading people to believe what you want them to believe. It was a classic form of rhetoric which Jesus was apparently… Read More »
Thinking About that Familiar Communion Set
Go to any Christian bookstore or website, and you will find communion sets available in multiple setups and materials. You can get gold, silver or titanium. You can have trays with just the little juice cups and bread, or a combination. You can get them sized for whole congregations, small groups or even individual participation.… Read More »
