“A Migrant Syrian was my Father” (Deut 26:5)
Broadly speaking, advocates engaged in the contemporary debate surrounding US immigration and border control issues represent two camps divided over whether the determinative factors shaping policy involve protecting the interests of US citizens or meeting the needs of refugees fleeing poverty and violence. Proponents of the former Continue reading Immigration Policy: Legality and Morality
I, Too, Don’t Trust “Organized Religion”
By all accounts, we are well into a cultural period defined in part by the decreasing importance of religion in peoples’ lives. We hear and read almost daily about the millennial generation’s a-religiosity, the so-called “nones,” and those who profess spirituality without religion. People discount and decry “organized religion” with a tone of contempt. After all, Continue reading The “Nones” and I Have Something in Common
“Obedience … in the Lord”
The current public debate concerning events at the nation’s southern border, especially the separation of families and the detainment of small children, exposes the profound degree of Christian disunity regarding issues of church-state relations, ethics, and biblical interpretation. Unfortunately, Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ citation of Romans 13 seems Continue reading Romans 13 – Obedience to the Government
“I will curse those who curse you…” (Gen 12:3)
I anticipated some negative reactions to the most recent blog entry and have gotten them. In it, I argued that the United States, driven largely by evangelical Christian misunderstandings of the Bible, effectively taking sides, treats Israel as though it were untouchable. Generally, objections center around Israel’s status as God’s chosen people and seem to reflect the idea derived from God’s promise of protection to Abraham that Israel enjoys almost untouchable status in God’s eyes. To be “on Israel’s side” is to be on God’s side; to Continue reading Is Election the Same as License?
“Seek the welfare of the city” (Jer 29:7)
Christian proponents of a variety of doctrinal statements, ethical stances, and public policy positions often proclaim their viewpoints “biblical” either because they assume that the status quo ante must represent the divine will or because their position seems best to reflect a single biblical passage or a small grouping of passages. One could argue that, Continue reading A Series of Biblical Vignettes A Propos Pledging Allegiance
“Do not trust deceptive words, saying ‘The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord are these [stones]’.” Jer 7:4, my translation
Sometime in the outgoing seventh century BCE, God sent Jeremiah to the temple in Jerusalem to warn the Judeans that, unless they changed their behavior, God would unleash the Babylonians to conquer. The venue for Jeremiah’s message proved to be as significant as the words themselves. Early in the sermon Jeremiah apparently quoted a Continue reading Go to Shiloh (Jer 7:12)