It was a hot June day in 2011. My wife and I had been parents for just four days.
St. Patrick Was Not A Heretic, But His Analogies Are Another Story
This is a great and cheeky little introduction to the doctrine of the Trinity at the expense of our friend, St. Patrick. (As far as I know, the only of these analogies that St. Patrick ever used was that of the clover…and even that is historically questionable.) The doctrine of the Trinity is difficult. I often tell my students that every attempt to make an analogy to the Trinity will result in heresy. St. Patrick was no better.
The Problem: You Just Aren’t Religious Enough
An increasing number of people, and especially the young adults that I work with each day, have come to identify with the malleable phrase “spiritual, but not religious.” There is good reason to believe that all kinds of people identify with the phrase, including some of the most highly religious people in the country, those conservative Evangelicals that proclaim “it’s not religion, it’s a relationship.” Even setting this ambiguity aside, it’s undeniable that many folks today are pleased to find “god” without the trappings of associating with a traditional religious community.
The Christian Way Of Friendship: Condescension
Some scholars believe that the “Christ Hymn” in Philippians 2 may be the oldest liturgical prayer or hymn of the Christian church. We know that the early church was singing the Psalms together, but likely they were singing short little songs like this one together, too. Unfortunately, we don’t have very much of this liturgical material available to us today. The early church didn’t put a book like the Psalms in the New Testament.
Making Mega-Corporations Ethical: Apple’s Journey To Fewer Slaves
Apple recently released their “Supplier Responsibility Report.” They haven’t always been known for being a transparent or particularly responsible corporation. But this report goes a long way toward establishing their commitment toward an ethical supply chain. It’s all complex and for every practice that they are correcting, I’m sure that they still have another exploitive or unethical practice.
Why Protestants Cannot Be Catholic Today: Why Are We Still Protesting?
![chapel_communion[1]](https://jeremiahgibbs.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/chapel_communion1.jpg)
I spend a significant amount of time explaining Roman Catholic beliefs to my evangelical and Protestant friends. As a theologian it is part of my calling to illuminate and clarify. So much of what non-Catholics say about Catholicism is intended to obscure.
Evidence Of The Changing Evangelical Tide
For an update on how this church is handling women’s leadership today, see: 6,000 Person Megachurch Now Includes Women Elders/Pastors
Grace Community Church, an evangelical church of 6,000 worshipers just north of Indianapolis, reversed their position and came out in favor of women’s leadership at all levels this weekend in their public worship services.
Dr. Jeremiah Gibbs 