What's more disturbing is the cultural bias where many Christians definition of public morality reflects Jerry Falwell more than Jesus.
Lennart, I heard you had an epic rant on Facebook. Care to share? :-) E Sent from my iPhone On Nov 7, 2012, at 21:50, "David R. Block" <[email protected]> wrote: > It may have some merit. I have yet to find, despite being in what is > sometimes called the "belt buckle of the Bible Belt," an overtly political > sermon except on "Right to Life Sunday" which is the Sunday before the > anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Anti-divorce sermons yes, anti-gay marriage > sermons no. But most feel that if you can read the Bible you already know > what it says about gays, and it's pretty much against them, much less > marriage of them. > > David > > "The principal villain in rising health care costs is the government. Not > pharmaceutical companies, not doctors, but government."--Neal Boortz > > On 11/7/2012 7:57 AM, Dr. Ernie Prabhakar wrote: >> Nice Radical Centrist take... >> >> Beyond Evangelical | The Blog of Frank Viola >> Following Jesus Beyond the Culture Wars >> I wrote the following post on Saturday, November 3, 2012 . . . 3 days before >> the world knew who the next USA President would be. And at Jonathan >> Merritt’s suggestion, I decided to wait and publish it today. >> >> Here it is . . . >> >> – >> >> Saturday: November 3, 2012 >> >> When I publish this post on Wednesday, the United States will know who their >> next President is for the next four years. >> >> Upon learning this news, one part of my country is so angry right now their >> eyes are crossing. Others are so depressed they feel lower than a whale’s >> navel. >> >> Still others are euphoric . . . or relieved. >> >> And then there are those who aren’t paying attention and don’t care two >> hoots. >> >> A reminder to all: Jesus of Nazareth is still on the throne. Everything is >> under His control. Whether “your man” won or lost, Jesus is our ultimate >> hope for this world. >> >> That said, a new book that may help Americans to think through where their >> country stands politically is Jonathan Merritt’s A Faith of Our Own: >> Following Jesus Beyond the Culture Wars. >> >> (The title of this post comes straight from Merritt’s book.) >> >> In some ways, Jonathan Merritt’s book is a follow-up to Carl F. Henry’s >> classic work, The Uneasy Conscience of Modern Evangelicalism, Hal Miller’s >> seminal piece The Uneasy Conscience of Modern Evangelicalism, and James >> Barr’s Beyond Fundamentalism . . . only with a stronger political emphasis >> added to it. >> >> Kristen Powers, Fox News Political and USA Today contributor, wrote the >> Foreword to Merritt’s book. >> >> Cal Thomas (USA Today columnist and Fox News contributor), Ed Stetzer >> (president of LifeWay Research), and Ronald Sider (author of Rich Christians >> in an Age of Hunger) wrote strong endorsements. >> >> In addition, New Testament scholar Scot McKnight highlighted Merritt’s book >> numerous times on his blog. >> >> Last week, I interviewed Jonathan Merritt on his new book. Here it is . . . >> >> >> >> Jonathan, why did you write this book and what is the main thesis? >> >> Jonathan Merritt: I wrote this book because I saw so many young Christians >> who had grown frustrated by what the Christian movement in America had >> become. Their disillusionment stems, in part, from the American church’s >> partisan political entanglement. These Christians love Jesus but they don’t >> think the church should be the handmaiden of either political party. >> >> I understand the frustration of my peers because I grew up in the >> inner-sanctum of the religious right. My dad was President of the largest >> protestant denomination in America, the Southern Baptist Convention. >> >> Jerry Falwell was a family friend who paid for my college education. Growing >> up in this context, I witnessed the way the church has become intertwined >> with partisan politics. A Faith of Our Own provides hope that there is a >> better way. >> >> Any work that challenges traditional or status quo thinking is going to be >> attacked. And some who can’t refute an argument on its own merits will >> misrepresent it by creating straw man scenarios. Has your book been >> misrepresented at all? If so, what have the misrepresentations been and what >> is your response to them? >> >> Jonathan Merritt: Yes. Such is the burden of most any creative work, I >> suppose. Some say this book is anti-religious right. That isn’t true. I >> believe the Christian Left is equally complicit, and I point that out. >> >> Others say it is pietistic, that I encourage Christians to become apolitical >> and do good works instead. This is not true either, for following Jesus >> cannot be purely a private matter. >> >> Others claim that I’m just promoting political liberalism. That’s also >> false. When I call for a ceasefire in the culture wars, I’m not asking >> people to keep fighting, just for the other side. I’m talking about a >> different approach altogether. >> >> The fact that the book has endorsements from those on the Right and the Left >> should clue any thinking person into the fact that the above assertions are >> misrepresentations of your book. Thanks for clarifying your position for >> those who may be swayed by inaccurate reviews before reading the book >> themselves. Moving on, what do you see happening with the future of >> evangelicalism? >> >> Jonathan Merritt: Contrary to what some believe, evangelicalism is not (and >> has never been) monolithic. I think it will continue to be a banner under >> which a range of Christians will be able to gather. As this book shows, >> however, I think we are seeing a less-partisan, less-polemical, less-power >> hungry expression of the faith arise. And this, I believe, is a good turn. >> >> I agree. That’s what I’m observing as well in the broader body of Christ as >> I travel and speak into different settings. What does “a faith of your own” >> mean and how do God’s people move “beyond the culture wars,” as you put it? >> >> Jonathan Merritt: The title of the book, comes from a story of a faith >> struggle I had in seminary. A friend recommended Faust by Goethe and I read >> the following quote: “That which you have received as heritage, now discover >> for yourself, and thus you shall make it your own.” >> >> In that moment, I realized that I could maintain respect for the faith of my >> father and grandfathers but I also needed to make it my own. As it turns >> out, this is a call to all those who desire to follow Jesus in this era. >> When considering Christian history, Albert Schweitzer once said, “Each >> successive epoch found its own thoughts on Jesus, which was indeed the only >> way it could make him live.” >> >> Who specifically should read your book and why? >> >> Jonathan Merritt: A Faith of Our Own is for Christians who are discouraged, >> disillusioned, or disenchanted with how partisan the American church has >> become. Unlike similar books–that curse the darkness without lighting a >> candle–this book will force readers to dream and hope. >> >> That’s much the same audience for my book, Beyond Evangelical, which has >> resonated with countless Christians who are disaffected by the Christian >> Right and the Christian Left categories. In that regard, voices like yours, >> Scot McKnight, Roger Olson, N.T. Wright, Leonard Sweet, Greg Boyd, and the >> late Michael Spencer are resonating with more and more evangelicals today >> who are looking for a way beyond the Right and Left paradigms. >> >> See also 20 Reasons Why the Christian Right & the Christian Left Won’t Adopt >> Me >> >> You just finished reading Following Jesus Beyond the Culture Wars. Share the >> post using the links below. >> >> >> >> >> >> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/wordpress/viola/~3/ltj_K7x8VyY/ >> Sent with Reeder >> >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> -- >> Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community >> <[email protected]> >> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism >> Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org > > -- > Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community > <[email protected]> > Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism > Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org
