Why am I orthodox?

I’ve mentioned in the past that I am an orthodox Christian, but I’ve neglected to explain why. What do I mean by “orthodox Christian”? Theologically I mean the vision of Christianity as explained in the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds from the Fourth Century C.E.: the statements of belief that Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, and […]

Spoiled

Well. Nuts. I hear it said that the way one learns to relate to his or her parents is the way one learns to relate to God. And I think, “Yeah, that makes sense. Your parents are your introduction to authority. Of course whatever you feel about them would subconsciously transfer to your feelings about […]

Abortion, calmly considered

Let’s be real. Calling people names like “murderer” or “religious nutbag” is not helpful when attempting to convince others of the legitimacy of your opinion. Let’s be clear. I am interested in discussing ethics and morality, not legislation. I am approaching this from my understanding of the Christian perspective, but I think there are important […]

Confessions

This is true in my heart. It isn’t true in reality. But for my heart to finally embrace reality it has to take what it believes and let it go. God, I’m sorry, and I give this all to You: You failed me. A thousand times You failed me. Ten thousand times You abandoned me. […]

Tyranny of the “Gospel of Freedom” – ending our civil religion, Part II

What does it mean to worship? The root of the word “worship” is “worth,” so the most basic meaning of worship is to ascribe worth to something. We all think some ideal, some person, or some thing has a kind of ultimate worth, and in a variety of different ways we demonstrate our opinions regarding […]

Death to the idea of “Christian America” – ending our civil religion, Part I

There is a thing in all cultures known as a civil religion, and this does not refer to Christianity or any particular “organized” religion. It is the collective beliefs that a particular culture disseminates, and it typically borrows heavily from organized religions. Defining what, exactly, the breadth of American civil religious belief covers is a […]

Legislating morality?

Specific issues, here we come. As inadequate as it is, I think I’ve done the best I could to provide a preliminary foundation in order to optimally discuss several important current affairs. In a circuitous route we’ve discussed the culture that forms us; what it means to have knowledge or know something; how we are […]