Just a moment...
I once saw God’s mercy as patient, benevolent tolerance, a kind of grudging forgiveness, but now mercy has become for me God’s very self-understanding , a loving allowing, a willing breaking of the rules by the One who made the rules—a wink and a smile, a firm and joyful taking of our hand while we clutch at our sins and gaze at God in desire and d... See more
Richard Rohr • Receiving God’s Mercy
It is passages like this one from the prophet Micah that reveal how much Jesus was a Jew, knew the Hebrew Scriptures, and was deeply formed by them. If we do not fully appreciate this fact, then we try to know the human text (Jesus) outside of the clear and total context (post-exilic Judaism). Then the message is neither clear nor compelling. How d
... See moreRichard Rohr • Wondrous Encounters : Scripture for Lent
What’s “believable” has changed, and what we have always believed has been challenged. In response to this, some are eager to offer “updated” versions of Christian faith, revisionist versions of the gospel that are more acceptable, less scandalous—more relevant and less offensive.
James K. A. Smith • Discipleship in the Present Tense: Reflections on Faith and Culture
If even the most authoritative teaching, the most sacred text, leads to dehumanization, to humiliation, to harm, then we must reject it. The Bible itself shows us how to do this. . . . [The rabbis] worked to align the text with their moral understanding. And in doing so, they gave us permission—no, an obligation, to do the same. . . . Our role in r
... See moreDavid P. Gushee • After Evangelicalism: The Path to a New Christianity
I even worked on shaking up my religion a bit, making an effort to talk to God without using Christian buzzwords and listening for his voice in everyday conversations, including conversations with people whose religious credentials were questionable. I also picked up a copy of The Message (NavPress 1995), the popular paraphrase of the Bible written
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