Have a Wonderful Easter Morning!
Mark 16: 1-8 When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. 3 And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” 4 And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. 5 And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. 6 And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.” 8 And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. Read More »
An Uneasy Synthesis of Heritage Streams
I stumbled - literally - upon an article by Luke Keefer, Professor of Church History and Theology at Ashland Theological Seminary. Luke Keefer is also an incredible Brethren in Christ pastor, missionary, and scholar. I met Luke Keefer back in 1996 and 1997, I believe. The first meeting took place at Ashland theological Seminary, during a conference by I. Howard Marshall; the second meeting occurred at the General Conference of the Brethren in Christ, at Messiah College. I was a very young convert to Christianity in those days. He was/is a brilliant mind. I remember listening to theological conversations that were way, way over my head. Most of this conversation occurred between my father, a BIC pastor, my then mentor, another BIC pastor, and Keefer. It all went over my head back in those days. I won’t even mention I. Howard Marshall’s conference discussions. He may as well have been on another planet (he was talking Pauline Epistles during his conference). That was then; this is now. I can more than keep pace with theological conversations today, after ten years of catch up. Read More »
Ready, Aim, Fire!
It appears as if my family and I are going to be spending more time in Lancaster City after my graduation from seminary! I graduate from seminary on May 12th, but all grades for graduating students must be turned in by the last week of April. The last week in April is in three weeks! So, I’ll be done in a few short weeks, Lord willing. Graduation is the first piece of my calendar puzzle. Read More »
Paying Attention to Resources is Good
Ben Gray just published a post re: his blog’s (Open Switch) use of Media Temple server resources. Ben is an awesome guy, as many, many people are aware. There is good reason for his standing in this community: he regularly helps us all do better! Ben outlined the troubles re: his site’s GPU issues at Media Temple and helped the community in the process, again! He helped me, to be sure. Thanks to Ben’s post and subsequent comments, I discovered that I too have a resource hog squatting on my server space at Media Temple. It’s name: MINT! Granted, I put it there, but I had no idea. Check out the resource graphic (Note: Media Temple customers can access this graphic and other important resource info by going to Urchin Analytics, “Pages & Files”, then go to “Page Query Terms” and then look at the top scripts in the list): Read More »
What Did a Seminary Education Do for Me?
Seminary has helped me prepare for a life of service by offering me time to shape and build more than a few indispensable tools that are absolutely required for this postmodern world in which we move, live, breathe and minister. I will, in a few short weeks, be handed my M.Div. I earned it at Lancaster Theological Seminary, a progressive, if not religiously liberal, institution. No, I’m not in agreement with everything that happens at LTS, but that is not the point. So, what is the point? Read More »
Judaism, Rabbinic Wisdom, and Dachau
I just completed a required research paper for my Judaism class. I mentioned it in an earlier post, but the point is so worth repeating: I am thrilled to be enrolled in a semester long seminary course re: Judaism that is actually facilitated by a Rabbi, and not a Christian. Trust me, the Rabbi and I both know and acknowledge where we each stand regarding Jesus of Nazareth as Messiah, but that is not the point. The point is Judaism. I want to learn as much as I can about Judaism, and that can only occur if an actual adherent of the faith is teaching it to me. Period. I am less and less a fan of religious courses taught by individuals who have little or zero personal investment in the religion being taught. Seriously. I do not want a Christian teaching me Judaism, any more than I want an atheist teaching me Christianity. Read More »
The Week’s Must Read Blog Posts 04032007
Monday Morning Medicine: “Do you remember Jacob? I love how John Orberg tells the story of Jacob. Consider Jacob. He was no spiritual giant. His dad never cared for him much because, according to the Meyers-Briggs, he had an INFP temperament and liked to hang around indoors.” Read More »
Redesign, Readability and Craft Standards
If you feed-read, exclusively, then you probably missed all of the action-packed redesign efforts manifesting around here lately. I have been busy changing, tweaking, and realigning, between all of my seminary requirements. I think I am finished with this version of lofitribe now. I have spent the last three days seriously working on readability improvements (i.e., typography). No, I’m certainly no expert on the subject of web typography, by any stretch of the imagination. I am creeping toward novice, actually. I do think, however, that things ’round here read better than ever before. I’ll simply finish with this: Typography is beyond important if you are aiming at quality standards as concerns your site’s readability. I recently learned as much, and I am still learning it. Read More »
The Mischaracterization of Generation X
A bit of back-story: A question concerning Generation X (aka Gen X) was presented to students during a recent M.Div seminar regarding Church, Administration, Finance, and Evangelism. We were instructed to break into small groups and search for an answer to the question presented. I’ll reproduce the original question here, and the answer offered by me, but first I must admit that I’m continually amazed at the constant misunderstanding and mischaracterization aimed at the generation in question (Gen X), especially when the answer to the same old, tired question is so, so simple. Read More »
MDG: Brethren in Christ Christology
Ministerial Ethics class requirements include the perusal of my denomination’s Code of Ethics. The Manual of Doctrine and Government of the Brethren in Christ Church is really solid theological reading. I especially appreciate Section IV (Jesus Christ and Salvation). Read More »
