Complex problems require critical thinking and in-depth analysis, not simplistic solutions based in binary thinking. This proved to be a great stumbling block, on both sides, to the disagreements rampant in The United Methodist Church, especially surrounding issues of human sexuality and identity. Our greatest fallacy was that we could […]
Today’s Peace Full Thoughts explores the familiar and comforting John 14:27, and examines the difference between God’s peace and the peace that human beings seem so incapable of achieving here on earth. We cannot give what we do not have or experience, so learning to live in peace is the […]
One subtle and little discussed difference that fueled the split within United Methodism was the definition of good old-fashioned sin. More importantly, the theological distinction between sin and sins defined the debate. On the progressive side, sin is a condition of estrangement from God (turning focus away from God’s will), […]
Discussing The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, 7:00 a.m., Thursday, March 7 On Zoom: Banned Book Club We continue to explore and understand the rising tide of calls to ban books in school and public libraries, even to burn books in some parts of our country. We’ve read […]
Today’s Peace Talks episode is a conversation with People’s UMC’s own Liina Ly Roos, professor of Nordic and Baltic Cultural Studies at University of Wisconsin, Madison. Dr. Roos comes from Estonia and offers some keen insights on the situation in Ukraine and the potential for peace in the region. She […]
Not long ago I heard one of my licensed local colleagues deliver a sermon on the difference between “free grace,” and “cheap grace,” an exhausted old trope of conservative Christianity. It is a sad, though well-intentioned misreading of scripture, and a desperate cry to keep the wrong people out of the […]
This week on People’s Peace Talks, Dan and Barbara review The Peaceable Kingdom, Stanley Hauerwas’s classic work on Christian ethics grounded in nonviolence. Hauerwas eloquently describes the theological and biblical vision for peace in our world. Though written over forty years ago, this book is as timely, prophetic, and important as when […]
One of the hallmark qualities of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was a strong and powerful humility. No one can fault the sacrifice of one giving his life for all humankind, to renew and reaffirm God’s covenant with God’s children. Punitive and arbitrary Law was replaced by a divine and universal […]
I continue my current analysis (rant) about the split of The United Methodist Church by looking at the basic regard for Hebrew and Christian scripture by those leaving the denomination compared with those remaining United Methodist. Note that I do not use the terms biblical interpretation or the authority of scripture. Both […]
Once each month, People’s Peace Talks will offer a scriptural reflection on peace making. This month, Dan talks about Matthew 5:9, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.” Part devotional, part exegesis, Peace Full Thoughts are intended for personal reflection and for preaching and teaching. Click on People’s […]
United Methodeviations 