Some Pre-Lenten Reading

Each year as we head into the Lenten season and Ash Wednesday, it seems as if for a lot of people, their hearts turn towards the spiritual side. This year I feel will be no different, so let me get ahead of the curve and share a few items that have recently come across my desk. First up are a couple of videos. Actually it is one video broken into two parts talking about Christianity and the Mayans in Mexico. The first video starts at the Pyramid of Kukulcan [pictured above] in Chichen Itza in the Yucatan. Taken together, the two parts give a good overview of the impact of Christianity in Mexico. If you have served with me in the past, you will want to check out both of these clips. I apologize for just giving links, but the embed code has been disabled on both of these clips. Part 1. Part 2. Next up is a little post titled "Is Christianity Evolving or Eroding?" If you keep up on the latest news coming out of the Christian world, you know the name Rob Bell. Well it seems that Bell, like Brian McLaren before him, has decided to ask some questions about hell. At least that is what the dust jacket for his most recent book, "Love Wins" says. As you can imagine, that has jump started the religious discussion this Easter season. The post I've cited has collected some great posts from people on the issue. Then we have something from one of my favorite writers, Don Miller [no relation, at least not this one!]. It is titled "When Truth is the Enemy of Truth." Miller, like me, is one who likes to ask questions. The problem is, a lot of times, orthodoxy does not like questions. You can imagine how that plays out when it comes to religion. Check this one out, it is a good read. Finally, from Eugene Cho, comes this little gem. Sometimes, in our zeal as Christians, we lose sight of the fact that we are to act in love towards not just our brother, but our enemy as well. As Cho talks about contending for the Gospel. he urges us to do so without being jerks. Good counsel for all of us I'm sure.

The War on Extremism

A friend of mine shared this with me today. It is written by one of my favorite authors, Donald Miller. Sadly, he is not related. I am just posting a snippet for you here. Follow the link, read the entire article, and let me know what you think. A few nights ago, twelve friends and I attended the lighting of the Portland Christmas tree in Pioneer Square. My friends had all flown in for Thanksgiving, and we decided to join ten-thousand others who walked from all over downtown for the event. What we didn’t know is the spot where we squeezed into the crowd was 25 feet from a van filled with what a young man believed were six, fifty-gallon barrels of explosive material. As you know, the FBI had staged a sting, and as the young man made a call on his cell phone from the train station across town that would detonate the bomb, we were singing Christmas carols well within the blast zone. We didn’t hear about the threat until the following morning, and didn’t even know how close we were to the bomb until I saw a picture in the paper, taken only a few steps from the corner of Pioneer Square where we had been standing. read more...