Linkathon!
ELCA pastor says porn fine if “ethically sourced”
Ed Stetzer says Trump fooling evangelicals on immigration…
Love your political frenemies…
Don’t vote-shame people, just vote…
The three kinds of people you meet on the way to the cross…
How the church could turn the tide on political polarization…
Encountering difficult passages…
Midterm elections: let us pray…
To the confused, apathetic, and undecided Christian voter…
GOP lawmaker releases manifesto calling for “biblical law”…
Joni: suffering helps me see heaven…
Jesus isn’t a Presbyterian or a Republican…
The joy of knowing politics aren’t everything…
The writing and legacy of Eugene Peterson…
I believe in…the forgiveness of sins…
Are death bed conversions valid?
If you have a link we should read, post it in the comments…
Big thanks to EricL…support him at top right…
Bolz-Weber led thousands of youth to denounce traditional sexual morality at the summer ELCA convention didn’t she?
Aslan was not safe but good, right? That is my favorite response to everyone wanting safe places. I also like to think of Jesus’ disciples in the boat, in front of multitudes with a couple of fish sandwiches, facing down the gadarene, on the cliffs of Nazareth, all those safe places he took them. They never had to worry about being shamed by the religious leaders, lawyers, scribes. Jesus is the king of unsafe. God how I hate this era of chocolate soldier discipleship.
Christianity is suppose to be terrifying but he is good enough for us to want it. Right now we have to be so palatable to the cringing public that we have to have a UN resolution to get up in the morning.
Anyway bring on the appropriately vetted porn so we can do what we really care about.
Humanity is restoring my faith in Hell.
Flamethrower Dread
Since women cannot be Christian pastors, Boltz Weber is a fraud in a collar.
But then again, the ELCA is a fraud denomination that recognizes fraud pastors.
“Vote-shaming”? Our culture’s tendency to be offended by “XYZ-shaming” has officially jumped the shark.
Many people need to be encouraged, exhorted, and even prodded, to go out and vote. The excuses people give for not voting are beyond ridiculous, especially in light of the 1.3 million+ servicemen & women who have laid down their lives in the history of our nation. Those who believe voting is a waste of time need to imagine themselves living in a land *without* the right to vote (which is many). Who would be willing to give up their right? Better to exercise that right in an election with poor options than to not have the right at all.
Bolz-Weber has said and done a lot of good things in her role as pastor. She has been instrumental in opening the church to many who would not otherwise attend.
It’s hard to tell much from a short article written with a slant, about what her complete thoughts are, but I think she is heading in the wrong direction saying there’s anything called “ethically sourced porn”.
Time will tell if that is, in fact, what she said/meant.
My father had a death-bed Salvation.
I fully intend to vote shame my grown up nephew until he gets his butt to the polls and casts his ballot.
He didn’t vote in the 2016 election because he’s in a state that he feels his vote doesn’t matter.
That’s isn’t gonna fly in our family. We vote.
What if grown up nephew has not prepared himself for the election? Knows nothing about the issues or candidates – then you still want him to vote?
Regarding Nadia Bolz-Webber a bit of possible insight… I am not privy to the outlines of her personal faith, even though my friend, Michael, went to seminary with her husband. She is, however, by her own admission a “performance pastor”, something akin to a performance artist. She has made a splash in certain quarters, but take what she says and writes and think “performance artist” before you give it credence ….
The grown up nephew who started a new job today which gets out at 5:30 which is the same time his IT networking class starts.
The one that lives in a red state without the option to early vote.
The one that knows who he will vote for, including which amendments he supports, but isn’t sure how he will fit voting into his schedule.
Quit being an assuming old git
Apparently ethically sourced porn is safe-sex consensual and probably unionized in some way. We will soon have a sinless culture because we will define away anything that makes someone feel bad unless of course they are culturally and religiously conservative. Those folks are so clearly of the devil we can soon agree to send them to rehab camps.
Yes. I knew that’s what she meant by the term. But thanks for mansplaining it ?
If you have a church where you start condoning ‘ethically sourced porn’ you just might open up the church to new people. Perhaps you could finance some of the ministries with your young adult group. I am pretty sure you could open the church that way. I am not sure it would be the church of Jesus. Lemme see, “Guys you have to be as wise as porn dealers and as harmless as condom salesmen” yeah that’s what he meant.
First off, Bolz Weber has not brought anyone into the church. She is like the devil incarnate drawing people away from the God of the Bible and into the web of the god of society, culture and itching ears.
BD,
You’re just making stuff up now. You clearly don’t know the history of her church, which btw, she is no longer pastoring.
My comments about her doing good things and getting people to attend church had nothing to do with her recent comments about porn.
As I said earlier, on this issue, if the article is correctly stating her true position, she is wrong. There is no such thing, IMO, as “safe” porn or “ethically sourced” porn.
mld,
what Lutheran denomination are you a part of?
pstrmike,
The LCMS. – Lutheran Church Missouri Synod
In Australia it’s compulsory to vote in federal and state elections. If you fail to vote without a decent excuse, you get a fine (you can leave your ballot blank if you really want). This means campaigning is about appealing to the ignorant or moderate voters rather than the lazy ones leaning your way who might not vote.
We have elections on Saturday, when more people are free, although early voting is also allowed.
As it’s compulsory, we know how many people are coming, so there is enough capacity for everyone. We don’t usually have long queues. Many polling places have a barbecue, so you vote and enjoy a ‘democracy sausage’.
We vote and we still complain. It’s the Australian way.
mld,
I have friend who is a LCMC pastor – Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ
pstrmike, they are solid. They left the craziness of the ELCA about 20 yrs ago. They will still ordain women
I’m one of the weird ones who actually likes going to a polling place to cast my vote. I have two friends who don’t vote. One of them complains on end. I just laugh at his diatribes. Then vote man!
My take on the Ed Stetzer article is he is confusing church with country. I agree with everything Stetzer says if it applies to the church but agree with very little when it comes to country. Stopping an invation into our country is not unchristian. It’s the law. Hope the Congress can pass some decent immigration legislation. This isn’t Trump’s fault.
The fact that you think there’s an invasion on the border is his fault…
Why is that Trump’s fault? I came to that conclusion without him.
There is no invasion…now that the election is over all you’re going to hear is how fast the caravan is shrinking.
The desperate will remain desperate and the problem will continue to grow.
Michael,
Have you followed how much money the Pentagon has spent to back up the charade?
The Pentagon may itemize the monies spent for this operation but it is not an “add on” expense. All of the soldiers are paid, fed and housed no matter if they are at a base in South Carolina or along the southern border. They do training and maneuvers continually, so they are using equipment, fuel, ammunition etc.
Consider this another training mission. So far I see no harm, no foul. It probably doesn’t hurt for them to train to protect our own borders instead of some foreign country’s borders.
It’s my understanding that the stage production will run into tens of millions if not more.
All to stop people from legally applying for asylum according to federal and international law.
The ruse worked and many people still believe the invasion narrative…because they want to.
Proverbs 22
It speaks to everything y’all are talking about in these comments.
Especially mockers and anger…
Boy, His Word really cuts both ways, don’t it?
I think international law requires asylum seekers to seek asylum in the first country they enter.
Mexico offered asylum, temporary visas and jobs.
The same gangs and cartels that operate in Honduras operate in Mexico.
and here.
Yes, in the same kind and degree with the same level of federal infiltration here as there…
?
Ben Shapiro made an excellent point the other day. for all of human history humans have moved in order to better their opportunity and their living conditions. It is only in recent years, historically speaking, that countries have attempted in large measure to stifle that.
When politicians found the power in manipulating the immigration issue to their benefit is when it stopped working for everybody,
I would bet. It was only one Administration ago when Joe Biden was on the other side of the fence regarding immigration.
“I think international law requires asylum seekers to seek asylum in the first country they enter.
Mexico offered asylum, temporary visas and jobs.”
Wrong on both counts…but facts don’t make much difference in this debate.
Mexico offered some of the people asylum, not all.
Some accepted, others chose not tasty in a failed state with many of the same issues.
I’ll let you look up international law yourself.
Maybe two administrations…
Ohhh, goody, a PHxP Bolz-Weber-Bash!
I guess some Democrats must have won and bashing Bolz-Weber is today’s version of wack-a-mole
https://i.imgur.com/TKiAJWX.gifv
I’ll bash anyone who is insane enough to talk about “ethically sourced porn” in a Christian context.
Good Lord…is there no end to this insanity?
Couple data points …. FWIW
Two my children work and have worked over their lifetimes with Latinos… some whose heritage as citizens go back to the nation’s founding and some whose documentation as citizen is fiction… They are very afraid of the gangs operating here – the drug cartels – at least they say they are and do not want to get on their radar.
And those whose heritage here goes way back, many having shed blood fighting in their nation’s wars, quietly express the same resentment and anger as the rest of us (irregardless of skin hue) at the chaos the border jumpers create – yes, the word has gotten out, one foot in and you’re in.
Can anyone deny that our government has not been competent so far?
If the argument is that this prosperous nation has a debt to take care of the world’s victims who are suffering now, shouldn’t we be smarter in how we manage the process? Chaos can hide a lot of nefarious stuff ? ? ?
In my corner of the continent there’s a lot of nefarious stuff – under the radar – being done by Chinese. .. kind of interesting how world unity plays out… Maybe God knew what He was doing when He scattered us! But that was then and now isn’t… then ?
Ethically sourced porn in a much tamer type of talk than a legally provided abortion. Insanity began long time ago.
One more thing…
All that political theater of sending the US military to the border is just that. Political red meat that the Pentagon and the SecDef are not keen on at all.
Also, there is _very_ little they can do other than fly border enforcement agents around, fix their vehicles, and provide intelligence due to that pesky thing known as the Posse Commitatus Act. Only National Guard and the Coast Guard can perform Law Enforcement duties (this is why previous troop deployments to the border by Bush 43, Obama, and Trump used the National Guard units of the respective border states).
so much information available, so much misinformation consumed.
filbertz, so true. I think we have entered the “Misinformation Age” the last few years.
Here is a link worth reading!
https://branthansen.com/2018/11/06/a-modest-proposal-for-christians-online/
Dave
I read Lindsay’s article. I agree with 90% of it. But Jesus never said our unity would show the world we are His.
“By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
I’m leery of unity for unity’s sake.
But certainly, if we practice those things Brant said, that the Holy Spirit says, we would be remarkable to the world. In a world full of unmemorable conversations revolving around Trump or privates, we would – by a miracle – look and be Holy and something to remember.
Jerod
Actually yes he did, ya dumb dumb…
But in John 17 there seem to be three things Jesus is asking for
Sanctification in Truth
Love for Christ and one another
Unity as a result