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 Theology

Articles focused on the beliefs, values, customs, traditions and practices of Jews and Christians
 

Oct 15, 2024

World Without God Amen

“God is dead, and we have killed him…who will wipe this blood from us?” (Nietzsche)

World Without God Amen

Oct 15, 2024

How Matthew Spins Mark

“The same facts can take on different ‘meaning’ depending on how they’re presented.

How Matthew Spins Mark

Sep 1, 2024

Mark’s Diary – Notes for a Screenplay

“And so they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were filled with awe, while those who followed behind were afraid.”

Mark’s Diary – Notes for a Screenplay

Sep 1, 2024

Is Christology a TOE

“Cosmologists cannot rely on science any more than astronomers can rely on religion. There can be no successful TOE (‘Theory of Everything’) without both. ….”

Is Christology a TOE

Sep 1, 2024

The Mustard Seed

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds find shelter in its branches.” (Matthew 13: 31 – 32)

The Mustard Seed

Aug 29, 2024

Show Us a Sign!

“We have been shown our sign…and it’s a simple one. The sign is that there are signs!”

Show Us a Sign!

Jul 15, 2024

Jeremiah

“God places his words in Jeremiah’s mouth. How can this be consistent with Jeremiah’s status as a free and independent entity?”

Jeremiah

Jul 15, 2024

Mark’s Marks of Authenticity

“There is no single work more important than the Gospel of Mark…the Intellectual History of the West hangs on it, so its authenticity is of paramount importance.”

Mark’s Marks of Authenticity

Jun 1, 2024

Jesus Christ Revolutionary

“He cured the sick and fed the hungry…because it was the right thing to do, here and now, and because it demonstrated what might be possible, universally, in a time to come.”

Jesus Christ Revolutionary

Jun 1, 2024

Job Verses God: The Trial of the Epoch

“Job v. God is the Marbury v. Madison of theological law.”

Job Verses God: The Trial of the Epoch

Jun 1, 2024

Proof of God: The Empirical Argument

“Because God is not perfectly manifest anywhere in our World, we perceive that God is present everywhere…”

Proof of God: The Empirical Argument

Jun 1, 2024

Proof of God: The Ontological Argument

“Value permeates every nook and cranny of the World. God is Value… No values – no world...”

Proof of God: The Ontological Argument

Apr 15, 2024

Marx vs. Mark

“The Gospel of Mark is no biography…It’s a call to action, a manifesto, a How-To manual for non-violent guerilla warriors everywhere, 1st century…or 21st.”

Marx vs. Mark

Apr 15, 2024

Sacramental Priesthood

“I’m willing to bet there are some people out there (actually, a lot of people) who would literally love to spend their careers revealing the presence of God to others.”

Sacramental Priesthood

Mar 1, 2024

Philip Goff

“You’ll end up living life as though you were counting cards at a Black Jack table in Las Vegas – in other words, profitably! But it’s still gambling.”   

Philip Goff

Mar 1, 2024

The Theology of Science-Fiction

Can AI have soul ?

The Theology of Science-Fiction

Jan 15, 2024

Faith Is Not Belief Without Evidence

"Faith is not belief without evidence; it's the content of a relationship with God and is based upon the private experience of God's love."

Faith Is Not Belief Without Evidence

Jan 15, 2024

A ‘New’ Old Theory of Consciousness

“The simplest unicellular species display behaviors that are clearly cognitive in nature.”

A ‘New’ Old Theory of Consciousness

Dec 1, 2023

King Christmas

“Isaiah’s vision of Eschaton is a vision of a world without conflict. Is such a world even conceivable? If it is, is it possible to conceive of Eschaton as anything other than such a world?”

King Christmas

Dec 1, 2023

Re-Imagining the Magnificat

"In our zeal to project our conceptions of The Ideal Woman onto this enigmatic first-century figure, we’ve strayed a bit from the little we do know."

Re-Imagining the Magnificat

Dec 1, 2023

The ‘O Antiphons’

“We are asking Christ to come… to teach us, rescue us, shine on us, free us and, repeated three times, to save us.”

The ‘O Antiphons’

Dec 1, 2023

Christ and the Kids

“So what is it that makes children so much better than us? First…a child is not a ‘mini-you’… Is an Octopus a mini-you? Then neither is a child.”

Christ and the Kids

Oct 15, 2023

“Is God Dead?”

“Right now, scientists and philosophers all over the world are engaged in the search for a ‘TOE’, a Theory of Everything…(but) we already have such a TOE.”

“Is God Dead?”

Oct 15, 2023

Who Are the Antichrist, the ‘Man of Lawlessness’, and the Beast?

"Clever schemes and novel doctrines won't save us. Stay faithful to the truth of God in Jesus and live with confidence, even in these shaky times."

Who Are the Antichrist, the ‘Man of Lawlessness’, and the Beast?

Oct 15, 2023

The 7th Day

“Genesis is no longer something that explains; it has become something that has to be explained away.”

The 7th Day

Oct 15, 2023

Satan, Mary, and ‘Da Judge’

“Satan glorified political power for its own sake. He defended the socio-economic status quo…Jesus’ mother proclaimed a political and economic revolution...”

Satan, Mary, and ‘Da Judge’

Sep 1, 2023

ChatGOD

"ChatGPT can be smart, but it can never be holy. In being an e-being, precisely because its intelligence is artificial, it is necessarily alienated from the Divine. It can only be 'as if,' never truly as."

ChatGOD

Sep 1, 2023

Navigating the Nexus of AI

"Imagine if AI had its own commandments, like 'Thou shalt treat all data equally.' Encouraging ethical principles in AI programming can keep its decisions in line with virtues like fairness, justice, and empathy."

Navigating the Nexus of AI

Jul 15, 2023

The Theology of Mikhail Bakunin

“Bakunin was fierce in his profession of atheism; but unlike his Marxist counterparts, he was not shy about using the language of Judeo-Christian theology to make his points.”

The Theology of Mikhail Bakunin

Jul 15, 2023

A Jewish Approach to Cognitive Dissonance

"I would like to be an intellectually honest spiritual seeker, a warm and loving and dynamic wife and mother, a supportive friend; but at the end of the day, I look in the mirror, and see an annoyed and tired dish rag, and all I want to do is have a cup of coffee and a bar of chocolate. Warm dynamic spiritual seeker aside, anyone who stands between me and my mug is in for it."

A Jewish Approach to Cognitive Dissonance

Jul 15, 2023

Eucharist

“…The spacetime world of matter and energy, 14 billion years old and almost 100 billion light years across, is not the final word.”

Eucharist

Jul 15, 2023

Korach Over Dinner

"Like most people of my generation, I cringe when I hear the M word."

Korach Over Dinner

Jun 1, 2023

Revelation

“This is possibly the shortest ‘play’ in all of literature…and yet it is arguably more important than anything Shakespeare (or even Andrew Lloyd Weber) ever wrote!

Revelation

Jun 1, 2023

God’s Will

“We can say that God wills the events that constitute the world, even though God does not in any way cause those events to occur.”

God’s Will

Jun 1, 2023

Ephesians 2:10

“In this one verse…St. Paul proposes a radically new model of what it means to be a human being.”

Ephesians 2:10

Jun 1, 2023

Apocalypse Now!

“We are not midway through the second act of a mystery play called Salvation… Brunhilda has sung; we just need to applaud!”

Apocalypse  Now!

Apr 15, 2023

Mary Magdalene, The Witness

"That Christ ushered in this new era of life and liberation in the presence of women, and that he sent them out as the first witnesses of the complete gospel story, is perhaps the boldest, most overt affirmation of their equality in his kingdom that Jesus ever delivered."

Mary Magdalene, The Witness

Apr 15, 2023

Growing Into Pentecost

"In any case, Pentecost turns out to be a big deal after all. Reformed folk can join with those claiming to be a “full-gospel church”—maybe even remind the others of some overlooked elements in that mix."

Growing Into Pentecost

Apr 15, 2023

Matzah of Hope--Passover Part One

"This matzah, which we set aside as a symbol of hope for the thousands of women who are anchored to marriages in name only, reminds us that slavery comes in many forms."

Matzah of Hope--Passover Part One

Apr 15, 2023

Harriet Tubman Joins Six Women of Courage in the Exodus Story--Passover Part Two

"Let us follow  these biblical women and Harriet Tubman’s unflinching courage. Let us be agents in our time in the political arena to support and stand with all who struggle for freedom here in America, in the Middle East, and around the world."

Harriet Tubman Joins Six Women of Courage in the Exodus Story--Passover Part Two

Mar 1, 2023

Returning to Andromeda

“What sort of God would throw candy wrappers on a pristine beach? I mean, burning someone at the stake, well maybe, but littering, no way!”

Returning to Andromeda

Mar 1, 2023

Beyond Pascal's Wager

“Once we get past skyscrapers and suspension bridges, we really have no idea what’s going on, do we?”

Beyond Pascal's Wager

Mar 1, 2023

Two-Faced God

“All gods are two faced…and that’s not blasphemy!”

Two-Faced God

Mar 1, 2023

Hell

“Nobody believes in Hell anymore…and that’s a good thing.”

Hell

Jan 15, 2023

Jericho

“Some of us were waving copies of Mao’s Little Red Book; we all should have been clutching copies of the Old Testament.”

Jericho

Jan 15, 2023

Christian Anarchism

”A heretical state is not a bad state…A heretical state is not a state at all. There are no bad states. There are only states and pseudo-states.”  

Christian Anarchism

Nov 30, 2022

Christ the King

“Sir, you are quite simply insane. We know exactly what holds our universe together; it is electromagnetism, gravity, and the strong force…not Christ.”

Christ the King

Nov 30, 2022

Job vs. James, Rex

“God is good because he’s good, not just because he’s God.”

Job vs. James, Rex

Oct 15, 2022

Faith, Hope, and Love

This excerpt from the writings of St. Paul is among the best-known passages in Judeo-Christian scripture. But what does it really mean?

Faith, Hope, and Love

Oct 15, 2022

What Did John See?

The Bible doesn’t tell us what John saw, but it does tell us that the breaking of the seventh seal was followed by half an hour of total silence. Why?

What Did John See?

Oct 15, 2022

Bible Read Backwards

What would happen if we read the Old Testament in reverse order? From back to front. What if we began with Malachi and ended with Genesis?

Bible Read Backwards

Oct 15, 2022

A Theory of Everything (TOE)

Thirty years after the death of Jesus…St. Paul quoted an already ancient Christology…a TOE.

A Theory of Everything (TOE)

Sep 1, 2022

Corinthians

How is it that God can perform the miracle of Incarnation? Or to put it more accurately, how is it that God is the miracle of Incarnation.

Corinthians

Sep 1, 2022

The Finals Psalms

Ultimately, the Kingdom of Heaven is the transfiguration of the historical realm into the eternal realm, according to God’s values.

The Finals Psalms

Jul 13, 2022

Competing Creeds

Suppose we were to express our generation's secular worldview as a 'creed,' how would it read?

Competing Creeds

Jul 13, 2022

The Great Commandment

“The second is like it…” Really? The second is like it? Like it? At first glance, this seems ridiculous. The two verses don’t look alike at all. One concerns our relationship with God, the Almighty, the creator of heaven and earth; the other concerns our relationship with the jerk down the street who doesn’t mow his lawn and plays his music loud on Saturday nights.

The Great Commandment

May 29, 2022

The Riddle of Job

If I do my job in this essay, you may become a modern-day version of Coleridge’s Ancient Mariner, who “stoppeth one of three." You’ll be spreading the truth about Job to anyone who’ll listen.

The Riddle of Job

May 29, 2022

Christology 101

“…Without Christ, the World would consist of a vast multiplicity of isolated events, a sea of ships passing in the night.”

Christology 101
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