Are You The Keymaker
Ghostbusters, Gozer, and Jesus
Read the entire article at Are You the Key Master? - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
Ghostbusters, Gozer, and Jesus
When I was a kid, a young kid, say five years old, my dad was approached by one of our neighbors, who wanted to know if everything was OK in our house. My dad was perplexed because, on our quiet cul-de-sac, everything was always OK. Nothing exciting ever happened and that was how the residents on the quiet cul-de-sac liked things………………………
The Best Boss You'll Ever Have
I was told I was beloved and worthy and so I began to believe it and act accordingly.
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THE BEST BOSS YOU’LL EVER HAVE
I was told I was beloved and worthy and so I began to believe it and act accordingly.
SARAH CONDON / 8.23.23
The following excerpt comes from Churchy: The Real Life Adventures of a Wife, Mom, and Priest:
In 2013 the Harvard Business Review published a study called “If Your Boss Thinks You’re Awesome, You Will Become More Awesome.” Their research proved what every low (wo)man on the totem pole already knew: If your boss treats you like a great employee, it will make you less likely to be a bad one. Results showed the quality of peoples’ leadership within a company being vastly better if their boss believed that they were, in fact, awesome. Conversely, the harder your bosses are on you, the less effective your work and leadership were in the eyes of your peers. In other words, if your boss speaks a word of worthiness over you, you begin to believe you are worthy.
Most of us have work experience that speaks to this dichotomy. In my first grown-up job, I had a boss who would stand at the door every day and tell me if I was late. Most mornings I was not. And so she would begrudgingly grumble out a “Good morning, Sarah.” However, when I was running behind she would bark out, “TWO MINUTES LATE!” to me at the door followed by a “You’re lucky we are so forgiving!”
Forgiving indeed…………………………..
NT Wright on Easter Atonement and the Message of the Cross
Easter message for the church.
Read the entire article at N.T. Wright on Easter, Atonement and the Message of the Cross - RELEVANT (relevantmagazine.com)
Whether you’ve been around Christianity for years or are new to faith, you probably know the Easter story. It goes something like this: Humans are sinners; Jesus died as a sacrifice, paying for our sins; and then three days later, Jesus came to life again — the result of which is that His followers can go to heaven when they die. But what if we’re getting it all wrong?
“Many people have grown up assuming that is what the cross is all about,” says world-renowned theologian, scholar and author of The Day the Revolution Began, N.T. Wright. “And the awful thing is that this message about an angry God and an innocent victim has a lot more in common with ancient Pagan thought than with ancient Jewish or Christian thought.”……………………
Are Aliens Saved by the Blood of the Lamb Too?
Recent polls have found that 65% of Americans now believe that aliens exist.
Read the whole article here Are Aliens Saved by the Blood of the Lamb Too? - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
If you haven’t been following the news coming out of the congressional hearings on UFOs, the (possible) revelations from the whistleblower last week are pretty wild stuff. As if stolen from the X-files, we’ve heard allegations of aircraft of “non-human” origin, “a multi-decade [UFO] crash retrieval and reverse-engineering program,” and the discovery of “non-human biologics.” These come on top of the decades of mysterious footage of floating vessels and hypersonic fly-bys. For some, the question isn’t whether aliens exist, but how far down the conspiracy-theory rabbit hole goes. The truth is not only “out there,” but has occasionally come for a visit.
Given the seemingly infinite number of galaxies we can now observe, courtesy of the James Webb Space Telescope, the possibility of intelligent alien life can feel more probable than impossible. Or at the very least, the niche extraterrestrial fandom that has long found themselves as the butt of jokes — only the mentally ill wear tinfoil hats — have more reason to feel their suspicions vindicated.
If aliens showed up tomorrow on the White House lawn, how would their possible existence shift Christian theology? Which beliefs would now appear implausible and what would be left after the dust settled?
This thought experiment isn’t merely hypothetical. As silly as it is for me to even be writing an article about extraterrestrials, recent polls have found that 65% of Americans now believe that aliens exist, only a smidge lower than the 81% who believe in God. To say nothing of the decades of movies, TV, books, or comics depicting alien encounters. One can ponder why most now think there is extraterrestrial ………………….
High anthropology and the bait and switch gospel
A high anthropology approach to religion can be devastating, as it sets unrealistic expectations for human behavior and leads to burnout and disillusionment.
Read the whole article at High Anthropology and the Bait and Switch Gospel - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
High anthropology is the tie that binds together nearly every account of religious burnout and disillusionment. It is the foundation of legalistic and oppressive forms of religion, without which they cannot find oxygen. A high anthropology approach to religion devastates. I am speaking mainly about Christianity, but you can encounter instances of it in many traditions. Anytime you hear someone refer to a former religious observance with some form of “I just couldn’t keep it up anymore,” you are in the vicinity of high anthropology.
Dramatic tales of deconversion and denouncement are the
When Cain and Able Meet Again
We cannot forget that even scripture does not get the final word. Heaven does.
Read the whole article at When Cain and Abel Meet Again - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
SARAH CONDON / 7.17.23
This reflection originally appeared in today’s entry of Daily Grace: The Mockingbird Devotional, Vol. 2:
Now the man knew his wife Eve, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have produced a man with the help of the LORD.” Next she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a tiller of the ground. In the course of time Cain brought to the LORD an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel for his part brought of the firstlings of his flock, their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell …
Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let us go out to the field.” And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel, and killed him. (Gen 4:1-5, 8)
It can be very tempting to read the Old and New Testaments like a before-and-after home makeover: No one understood the space before the designers came in! What’s with the old carpets and wallpaper? Was this even a real house?………………………………………
The Press Conference from the Cross
What’s Life Really All About?
Read the whole article here. https://mbird.com/sports/the-press-conference-from-the-cross/
From politics to sports, the press conference is generally a scripted affair. There are certain things you mustn’t talk about — namely, religion, sex and especially death. Things run smoothly when a public figure simply stands at a podium and is asked questions about what they could have done better or how best to move forward. The answers are full of catchphrases and conventional jargon about needing to focus on the right things and to “keep doing the hard work.” It is often a one-size-fits-all ordeal where nothing of substance is ever actually said. Every once in a while, however, the veil is lifted and the interaction feels all-too-human. In those times, it can feel as revelatory as a fiery sermon on a sleepy Sunday.
Two days after a heartbreaking loss to the Miami Heat in the NBA playoffs, Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla was asked how he was coping. What exactly was he doing to stave off the gloom? Was he watching movies or taking long walks? His response was astonishing. “Honestly,” he said, interrupting the reporter before the question was finished, “I met three girls under the age of twenty-one with terminal cancer. Watching a girl dying; and smiling and enjoying being with……………..
Naughty By Nature
Grace abounds precisely where sin abounds.
Read this article at this link Naughty By Nature - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
NAUGHTY BY NATURE
Grace abounds precisely where sin abounds.
The author of this page reflects on his experience of attending a concert where he was exposed to moralism and activism from the opening acts. He compares this to the biblical story of Moses and the golden calf, and argues that he prefers the pagan party over the religious law. He then discusses the problem of evil and suffering in the world, and how Paul’s writings in the New Testament offer a critique of moralism and a solution through grace. He concludes by saying that grace is the only antidote to living in an evil world, and that God’s love is shown through the cross of Jesus.
Weird, Out of Touch, Merciless, and Absolutely Essential
The church is dead. Long live the church?
Read this article at this link Weird, Out-of-Touch, Merciless … and Absolutely Essential - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
"Weird, Out of Touch, Merciless, and Absolutely Essential"
On first glance, these words may seem like harsh criticisms of the Church. However, a deeper examination reveals that these traits are not only accurate, but are also virtues that make the Church essential to our lives.
How to Win a Rap Battle (With the Devil)
When the Devil Throws Your Sins in Your Face
When the Devil Throws Your Sins in Your Face
Read the whole article at How to Win a Rap Battle (With the Devil) - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
There’s a famous scene at the end of 8 Mile, the early 2000s hip-hop drama based on the backstory of Eminem. In a crowded basement, two rival rappers, Papa Doc and Rabbit (played by Eminem), face off in a freestyle contest, both of them trying to tear down the other’s ego in a battle of wits. The key is to reveal the other’s weaknesses. Any material that could be used to discred
We Need Less Goliath and More Bathsheba
I became like God’s child David, whom the Lord pardoned of his adultery and murder. I became like Noah, Abraham, Judah, Aaron, Gideon, and so many more wayward children.
I became like God’s child David, whom the Lord pardoned of his adultery and murder. I became like Noah, Abraham, Judah, Aaron, Gideon, and so many more wayward children.
Read the whole article at https://www.1517.org/articles/we-need-less-goliath-and-more-bathsheba-1
hen I was a kid, I roamed the alleys and nearby fields with a pocket full of pebbles and a slingshot in hand. My grandfather had carved me the slingshot from the fork of a mesquite tree. I’d even burned my name into the wood using the sun and a magnifying glass.
As you might expect, my favorite Sunday School story was David and Goliath. In my make-believe world, I was that boy from Bethlehem, and sparrows the Philistine giants. It felt good to be the hero who takes down the foe. I was but a boy. I was new to the world. I loved Bible stories about saints who co………………………………….
The Beautiful Irony Of The Cross
When God Was Numbered With the Transgressors
When God Was Numbered With the Transgressors
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In any of the crucifixion narratives in the Gospels, the character that intrigues me most is Pontius Pilate. In many ways, he’s often cast as the villain of the story. He’s the Claude Frollo in this classic tale, with the quiet, unassuming Jesus, of course, standing as our consummate hero. But when you examine Pilate’s activity within the accounts of Jesus’s execution, he’s far more of a complicated figure than we like to remember. Especially according………………………
The Urgent Hope of Unreasonable Mercy (Video)
The grace of God does not wait to be invited by those it comes to save.
The grace of God does not wait to be invited by those it comes to save.
David Zahl talk from the January Mbird Orlando Conference:
The Light has Come To Stay
The resurrection rips through all of my intellectual questions.
Read whole article at The Light Has Come to Stay - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
This reflection originally appeared in Daily Grace: The Mockingbird Devotional, Vol. 2.
“But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her. (John 20:17-18)
There is a local legend of a preacher in Jackson, Mississippi. He stood up to offer a word on Easter Sunday, simply leaned into the mic and said, “It’s all true,” then sat down. I have heard people tell this story two ways. Some people talk about that minister like he was a lazy so-and-so with little regard for the pageantry of Easter. Such a day demands a well thought-out sermon befitting the hats, lilies, and plastic eggs! And then there are the people…………..
The Transfiguration in the Garden of Gethsemane
In the garden, Jesus is confronted by two opposing wills that act in a hideous union.
Read the whole article at The Transfiguration in the Garden of Gethsemane - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
Every year during Passover week, Jerusalem would be filled with approximately 200,000 Jewish pilgrims. Nearly all of them, like Jesus and his friends and family, would’ve been poor. Throughout that holy week, these hundreds of thousands of pilgrims would gather at table and temple and they would remember. They would remember how they’d once suffered bondage under another empire, and how God had heard their outrage and sent someone to save them.
They would remember how God had promised them, “I will be your God and you will be my People.” Always.
They would remember how with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm God had delivered them from a Caesar called Pharaoh. Passover was a political powder keg, so every year Pontius Pilate would do his damnedest to keep Passover in the past tense. At the beginning of Passover week, Pilate would journey from his seaport home in the west to Jerusalem, escorted by a military triumph, a shock-and-awe storm-trooping parade of horses and chariots and troops armed to the teeth and prisoners bound hand and foot. All of it led by imperial banners that dared as much as declared “Caesar is Lord.”
So when Jesus, at the………………………..
The Calm Before The Storm
Jesus enters with all the pomp of a future King and departs as the butt of the joke.
Jesus enters with all the pomp of a future King and departs as the butt of the joke.
Read the whole article at The Calm Before the Storm - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
What experiences do you have on your bucket list? You know, that list we humans make of those things that we want to do before we die — whether it’s skydiving, seeing that band we’ve always loved (I see you U2), stepping our foot in Fenway Park, traveling abroad, or visiting all 50 states. This next Tuesday I am checking off the bucket-list item at the top of my list. I’m going to the grandest cathedral in American sport, Augusta National, and the Masters tournament. I joked with my Dad on Sunday night when I called to share the good news that there’s the beautiful experience of “telling your dad you’re having a child,” and just a sliver under that it is“telling your dad you’re going to the Masters.”…………….
Hemmed in By Freedom
True Freedom Feels Like Relief
read the whole article at https://mbird.com/social-science/identity/hemmed-in-by-freedom/
Return to your fortress, you prisoners of hope… (Zech 9:12)
The year I graduated from high school and entered, according to popular theory anyway, adulthood, was about the time I embarked on my own case study of freedom by moving out of my childhood home and into a college dorm, living among peers instead of with my parents. Navigating, for the first time of my life, the exponential growth of options available to me: sleeping when I wanted (not enough), eating what I wanted (too much), drinking what I wanted (way too much), dating whom I wanted (no comment). This was the same year Mel Gibson dressed as William Wallace and bellowed “FREEDOM!” through some blue-and-white face……………..
The Truth and Beauty of Jesus’ Resurrection
It is good to remember that this true story, is also beautiful.
Read the whole article at The Truth and Beauty of Jesus’ Resurrection (1517.org)
Above the altar at St. Peter and Paul Church in Weimar, Germany, stands the famous Weimar Altarpiece. Begun by Lucas Cranach the Elder around 1552, and completed by his son, Lucas Cranach the Younger in 1555, this painting is a visual sermon on the doctrine of justification. It is a work of profound Christian theology, and stunning Christ-centered artistry. It is cruciform creativity. It is didactic and delightful. It is a witness, and a work of art. It portrays the truth of Jesus’ crucifixion and does so beautifully.
The gospel writers are doing something similar in their accounts of Jesus’ resurrection, albeit greater than even the greatest works of art. After all, the gospels are divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit, and at the same time, a delight to hear and read again and again.
Where's The Next Brick?
Finding God Among the Ruins of Christianity
Once there was a great building. Mighty with towers, spiky with spires, a-bubble with domes. Inside it opened into gallery after gallery, vault after echoing vault, so high that human beings who set off across its marble pavements sometimes mistook its roof for the sky and the building for the world itself. And though it showed signs of many styles, and had been built by many different architects over many centuries, it had been………..
Tempted By an Unexpected Evil
The Trials of Job, Jesus, and Us
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Along time ago in a heavenly court far, far away, God made a cosmic wager with the Devil. God was boasting to the Devil of the faithfulness of his servant Job, who was blameless, upright, and turned away from evil. The Devil was unimpressed, believing Job was faithful because God protected him and blessed him with everything he could ever want. The Devil seemed to have found such an arrangement unsatisfactory, believing t…………………….