P - PEOPLE FILES
- John Painter - Andrew Palau - Tom Parker - Samuel G Parkison - Robin A Parry - Ashton Parsley - Martin Parsons - Christina Patterson - John Pavlovitz - Jordan Peterson - Paige Patterson - Alyssa Paulson - John Pavolvitz - JD Peabody - Zachary K Pearce -
==john painter======
John Painter (born 22 September 1935 in Bellingen, New South Wales) is an Australian academic, New Testament scholar, and Christian theologian specializing in Johannine literature. He is currently Professor of Theology at Charles Sturt University in Canberra.
It is well for us to be clear that the writer is concerned simply to state his views on John’s theology, else we may find cause for complaint. For example, the opening discussion on authorship is very short (less than two pages) and does not come to grips with the problem. Dr Painter very quickly accepts the view that John did not write the Gospel but originated the tradition which found its expression in that document as the result of the work of ‘a school of disciples’. There is, of course, nothing revolutionary about this, but anyone interested in the problem of authorship will feel that there is no real discussion of the problem. We should be clear that Dr Painter is not giving us a scholarly treatment of Johannine problems but stating in summary form his understanding of the theology of the Fourth Evangelist.vIn setting forth this understanding Dr Painter usually does not give his reasons nor does he discuss alternative views. He has clearly read widely but he does not bring the wealth of his reading into his writing. He refers often to Bultmann but only occasionally to anyone else. This is disconcerting for, while no-one familiar with the Johannine scene would want to belittle the great German, it is also the case that Bultmann is not the only one to have asked significant questions. It is clear that limitations of space weighed heavily on the author and that he has had to omit much. As an example, he accepts the translation of John 1:1, ‘The Word was divine’, but supports this only by pointing to the absence of the definite article (p. 57). This is an exceedingly cursory treatment of a complex problem (I have just been reading another treatment of the same words which carefully gives reasons for and against six different ways of taking the Greek). Similarly there is a dogmatic rejection of the interpretation of John 7:37 which the author opposes and an acceptance of his own view with no examination of the evidence and only a parenthetical ‘so Bultmann’ in support (p. 65). The condensed style does not make for easy reading and now and then makes the argument difficult to follow. I doubt whether anyone unfamiliar with Westcott, for example, could follow the brief discussion of that scholar’s view on p. 108. --Leon Morris excerpt of a review of John: witness and theologian written by John Painter
==andrew palau======
For more than 25 years Andrew Palau has played a key role in the ministry of the Luis Palau Association. He has been instrumental in building the LPA model for citywide outreach as an evangelist, director, and key team leader. He has guided campaigns, led church relations efforts, trained thousands of believers in friendship evangelism, and proclaimed the Good News of Jesus Christ in person to millions of individuals around the world through evangelistic festivals. Andrew’s festivals have brought him and the Palau Association in partnership with thousands of churches in cities throughout Latin America, Africa, Asia, Europe, Australia, the Caribbean, and the United States. His weekly radio broadcasts are heard by millions of people on thousands of radio outlets in dozens of countries. He is also the author of multiple books, including Secret Life of a Fool, a retelling of his personal journey to faith in Christ, and What is Christmas?, a groundbreaking evangelistic book published in China in 2012.
Over 2,000 Albanian evangelicals gathered to pray ahead of united outreach
The Albanian Evangelical Alliance (VUSH), along with the Europe/UK Palau Association, recently gathered over 2,000 Christians from across the country and Kosovo, at Re:new, a prayer and worship event in the capital city of Tirana, “to ignite and mobilise Albanian Christians ahead of TiranaFest this coming June”. The large events, which will take place on 27-28 June, aim to be a “free family festival featuring extreme sports, live music, and a message from Andrew Palau, to bring the love of Jesus to Tirana”. (Missions Box 10/19/23) READ MORE>>>>>
The Albanian Evangelical Alliance (VUSH), along with the Europe/UK Palau Association, recently gathered over 2,000 Christians from across the country and Kosovo, at Re:new, a prayer and worship event in the capital city of Tirana, “to ignite and mobilise Albanian Christians ahead of TiranaFest this coming June”. The large events, which will take place on 27-28 June, aim to be a “free family festival featuring extreme sports, live music, and a message from Andrew Palau, to bring the love of Jesus to Tirana”. (Missions Box 10/19/23) READ MORE>>>>>
The Luis Palau Association and Gloo Launch a Free, First-of-its-Kind Evangelism Master Class to Christ Followers Across the U.S.
These key leaders include Christine Caine, Mark Mittelberg, Lisa Fields, Tyler Staton, Andrew and Wendy Palau, Rebecca McLaughlin, and many more. Within each episode, a keynote speaker leads the way in addressing common cultural barriers to evangelism and reveals the opportunities God has given us within those same challenges. Then, Ed and Kevin host rubber-meets-the-road conversations with vocational ministry leaders to better understand how Gospel sharing plays out in everyday life. As each episode draws to a close, viewers receive a practical challenge to engage culture in their own lives.
(Missions Box 10/19/23) READ MORE>>>>>
These key leaders include Christine Caine, Mark Mittelberg, Lisa Fields, Tyler Staton, Andrew and Wendy Palau, Rebecca McLaughlin, and many more. Within each episode, a keynote speaker leads the way in addressing common cultural barriers to evangelism and reveals the opportunities God has given us within those same challenges. Then, Ed and Kevin host rubber-meets-the-road conversations with vocational ministry leaders to better understand how Gospel sharing plays out in everyday life. As each episode draws to a close, viewers receive a practical challenge to engage culture in their own lives.
(Missions Box 10/19/23) READ MORE>>>>>
June 19, 2023: GodTV: OVER 13,000 PEOPLE HEARD THE GOSPEL DURING WEEK-LONG EVANGELISTIC FESTIVAL
Andrew and Wendy Palau led a week-long evangelistic festival at Klamath County in Oregon. They hosted outreaches and gatherings for the locals in the area including local schools and prisons. It was then concluded with a massive gathering at the Klamath County Fair Grounds on May 27 where over 9,000 came to hear the Gospel.
Andrew and Wendy Palau led a week-long evangelistic festival at Klamath County in Oregon. They hosted outreaches and gatherings for the locals in the area including local schools and prisons. It was then concluded with a massive gathering at the Klamath County Fair Grounds on May 27 where over 9,000 came to hear the Gospel.
Andrew Palau Files
From Press Release:
Buenos Aires Outreach Sees 20,000 Gospel Responses
JANUARY 19, 2023 - BUENOS AIRES — It had been 14 years since the Luis Palau Association held their last citywide campaign in Buenos Aires. The main avenue was shut down through town. All 16 lanes. And the crowd stretched out for 7 full blocks.
It proved to be the largest festival in the history of their team. It was also one of the largest gatherings in the history of Argentina.
Last November they returned to Argentina’s capital city for a festival that saw at least 20,000 Gospel responses. GNA spoke to evangelist Andrew Palau about what it was like to continue this legacy in his father’s home country.
The Luis Palau association saw at least 20,000 people respond to the Gospel during their recent outreach campaign in Buenos Aires in Argentina.
Tens of thousands of people flocked to Palermo Park in the capital city for a two day festival November 18-19, which followed several other outreach events leading up to that weekend.
It had been originally scheduled for 2019 with Luis Palau who has since passed away. Andrew gave an emotional response when asked how his father would’ve felt about the remarkable response they saw.
Andrew Palau – Evangelist LPEA:
Pure joy to think that everything he dreamed of, that the church would love each other and the leaders would stay together and it would truly be something that is all about Jesus Christ, it’s awesome to see it. And you know it’s humbling when you look at those that went before you, the generation before us we’re in awe of them.
Palau went on to highlight how special it was to join their follow up teams as people responded to accept Christ into their lives:
Andrew Palau:
The Friends of the Festival, we call them, will go into the crowd, so to see that sea of hands raised. It’s awesome. And often I’ll have my friends and we’ve been working hard over the years in preparation. They’re often in the front counselling and going one on one. And when I can, I like to jump down and counsel myself because that’s when you see the work of the Lord in an individual.
And preparations are now well underway for the ministry’s next festival which will take place in San Jose in Costa Rica in March.
CONTACT: Jay Fordice, [email protected]
Buenos Aires Outreach Sees 20,000 Gospel Responses
JANUARY 19, 2023 - BUENOS AIRES — It had been 14 years since the Luis Palau Association held their last citywide campaign in Buenos Aires. The main avenue was shut down through town. All 16 lanes. And the crowd stretched out for 7 full blocks.
It proved to be the largest festival in the history of their team. It was also one of the largest gatherings in the history of Argentina.
Last November they returned to Argentina’s capital city for a festival that saw at least 20,000 Gospel responses. GNA spoke to evangelist Andrew Palau about what it was like to continue this legacy in his father’s home country.
The Luis Palau association saw at least 20,000 people respond to the Gospel during their recent outreach campaign in Buenos Aires in Argentina.
Tens of thousands of people flocked to Palermo Park in the capital city for a two day festival November 18-19, which followed several other outreach events leading up to that weekend.
It had been originally scheduled for 2019 with Luis Palau who has since passed away. Andrew gave an emotional response when asked how his father would’ve felt about the remarkable response they saw.
Andrew Palau – Evangelist LPEA:
Pure joy to think that everything he dreamed of, that the church would love each other and the leaders would stay together and it would truly be something that is all about Jesus Christ, it’s awesome to see it. And you know it’s humbling when you look at those that went before you, the generation before us we’re in awe of them.
Palau went on to highlight how special it was to join their follow up teams as people responded to accept Christ into their lives:
Andrew Palau:
The Friends of the Festival, we call them, will go into the crowd, so to see that sea of hands raised. It’s awesome. And often I’ll have my friends and we’ve been working hard over the years in preparation. They’re often in the front counselling and going one on one. And when I can, I like to jump down and counsel myself because that’s when you see the work of the Lord in an individual.
And preparations are now well underway for the ministry’s next festival which will take place in San Jose in Costa Rica in March.
CONTACT: Jay Fordice, [email protected]
==tom parker======
Alabama’s Confederate God Marches On
Recently, the Alabama Supreme Court escalated the white Christian nationalist war on our constitutionally secular United States. They did so in a peculiar way, falsely arguing—in the decision LePage v. The Center for Reproductive Medicine—that a fertilized egg is a human being.Really? Baby showers and college savings accounts for fertilized eggs? Baby shops and financial institutions would be ecstatic, since more than 60% of embryos never become humans! In reality, fertilized eggs are no more human than architectural plans are houses. Alabama Chief Justice and Christian nationalist Tom Parker, though, is working from a blueprint for theocracy. He knows his embryonic blueprint is false, but that is beside the point. He is determined to transform his far-right extremist ideas into law. (Good Faith Media 3/27/24) READ MORE>>>>>
Recently, the Alabama Supreme Court escalated the white Christian nationalist war on our constitutionally secular United States. They did so in a peculiar way, falsely arguing—in the decision LePage v. The Center for Reproductive Medicine—that a fertilized egg is a human being.Really? Baby showers and college savings accounts for fertilized eggs? Baby shops and financial institutions would be ecstatic, since more than 60% of embryos never become humans! In reality, fertilized eggs are no more human than architectural plans are houses. Alabama Chief Justice and Christian nationalist Tom Parker, though, is working from a blueprint for theocracy. He knows his embryonic blueprint is false, but that is beside the point. He is determined to transform his far-right extremist ideas into law. (Good Faith Media 3/27/24) READ MORE>>>>>
==samuel g parkinson======
Samuel G. Parkison
Though we dare not require perfection from our theologians, we must insist upon ever-increasing purity of heart. Settling for anything less should be unthinkable. If theologians are teachers whom Christ has given to the church, we should expect more from them than a “Dr.” title and a sharp mind.
We need theologians who are strengthening the church from the inside, attending to their own lives with godly earnestness and a willingness to “one another” fellow church members. Purity of heart doesn’t come apart from a clear concern for personal and communal holiness. If purity of heart is a prerequisite for seeing God (Matt. 5:8), the church simply doesn’t need the theologian who won’t pursue holiness in the context of local church membership. He can’t help the church see God because he’s unable himself to see God.
--Samuel G. Parkison; Gospel Coalition -2.2.23
We need theologians who are strengthening the church from the inside, attending to their own lives with godly earnestness and a willingness to “one another” fellow church members. Purity of heart doesn’t come apart from a clear concern for personal and communal holiness. If purity of heart is a prerequisite for seeing God (Matt. 5:8), the church simply doesn’t need the theologian who won’t pursue holiness in the context of local church membership. He can’t help the church see God because he’s unable himself to see God.
--Samuel G. Parkison; Gospel Coalition -2.2.23
==robin a parry======
Robin A Parry
"Lamentations never asks, 'Why has this happened to us?' This is because the 'why' is already known—Israel has broken the covenant law. Rather, the anguished questions behind Lamentations are, 'Why punish so severely?' and 'How long until you save?'" -Robin A Parry; Lamentations. The Two Horizons Old Testament Commentary series. Grand Rapids and Cambridge, U.K.: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2010.
Robin A Parry
"The change in the man's attitude found in 3:19-24 has affected the way in which he perceived his situation. It is interesting that now, in this final section, he no longer speaks of YHWH as his enemy but rather as the one who can deliver him from his human enemies. The recovery of hope has not led him to deny that YHWH is the ultimate cause of his distress, but it has led to a shift in emphasis. The focus now is on the immediate cause of his sorrow (his human enemies) and on God as his savior." -Robin A Parry; Lamentations. The Two Horizons Old Testament Commentary series. Grand Rapids and Cambridge, U.K.: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2010.
Robin A Parry
"(Lam) 4:21-22 comes right out of the blue! The tone of chapter 4 has been to focus on the absolutely dire situation in Jerusalem, and by 4:20 the audience is left with the distinct feeling that the end has come. Suddenly, from left field, comes what has the feel of a prophetic oracle proclaiming divine judgment on Edom for its treatment of Judah and an end to Judah's exile."-Robin A Parry; Lamentations. The Two Horizons Old Testament Commentary series. Grand Rapids and Cambridge, U.K.: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2010.
==ashton parsley======
'A broken nation': Columbus church leaders call for unity after Trump rally Shooting
At World Harvest Church in Columbus, Ashton Parsley, the daughter of pastor Rod Parsley, filled in for her father while he rested his voice. She said the church condemns "any and all acts of violence, period, but political violence in particular." She then asked the congregation to create a "prayer covering" for the U.S. and those affected by the assassination attempt. "As intercessors and believers as the body of Christ, we are called to pray," she said in the sermon, which The Dispatch watched via livestream.
(Columbus Dispatch 7/14/24) READMORE>>>>>
At World Harvest Church in Columbus, Ashton Parsley, the daughter of pastor Rod Parsley, filled in for her father while he rested his voice. She said the church condemns "any and all acts of violence, period, but political violence in particular." She then asked the congregation to create a "prayer covering" for the U.S. and those affected by the assassination attempt. "As intercessors and believers as the body of Christ, we are called to pray," she said in the sermon, which The Dispatch watched via livestream.
(Columbus Dispatch 7/14/24) READMORE>>>>>
==martin parsons======
Dr Martin Parsons is CEO of the Lindisfarne Centre for the Study of Christian Persecution. He is an expert witness on the global persecution of Christians and was previously an aid worker during the time of Taliban rule in Afghanistan
What the Iran-Israel conflict means for Christians
It was 1991, early in the first Gulf War and I and colleagues in Pakistan huddled round the kitchen table listening to the BBC World Service every hour. Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, having months earlier invaded Kuwait, had now begun firing scud missiles at Israeli cities in an attempt to drag Israel into the war. We all understood that if Israel retaliated, it would ignite a wider war in the Middle East that would potentially drag in other Islamic countries such as Pakistan. The Pakistani government had originally condemned Saddam’s invasion of Kuwait. But as soon as Western bombing of Iraq started the whole situation reversed. It seemed every rickshaw in town carried a picture of Saddam and we could hear riots on the nearby Grand Trunk Road, with protesters burning effigies of US President George Bush and shouting “death to America”. It’s a picture of what happens when there is an attack on an Islamic country by a non-Islamic one. The whole ummah – the Muslim community – feels a deep emotional urge to come together to defend its own. Unfortunately, what that means is that Christian minorities in the Islamic world immediately become seen as suspect - and even the target of mob violence.
(Premier Christianity; Martin Parson 4/19/24) READ MORE>>>>>
It was 1991, early in the first Gulf War and I and colleagues in Pakistan huddled round the kitchen table listening to the BBC World Service every hour. Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, having months earlier invaded Kuwait, had now begun firing scud missiles at Israeli cities in an attempt to drag Israel into the war. We all understood that if Israel retaliated, it would ignite a wider war in the Middle East that would potentially drag in other Islamic countries such as Pakistan. The Pakistani government had originally condemned Saddam’s invasion of Kuwait. But as soon as Western bombing of Iraq started the whole situation reversed. It seemed every rickshaw in town carried a picture of Saddam and we could hear riots on the nearby Grand Trunk Road, with protesters burning effigies of US President George Bush and shouting “death to America”. It’s a picture of what happens when there is an attack on an Islamic country by a non-Islamic one. The whole ummah – the Muslim community – feels a deep emotional urge to come together to defend its own. Unfortunately, what that means is that Christian minorities in the Islamic world immediately become seen as suspect - and even the target of mob violence.
(Premier Christianity; Martin Parson 4/19/24) READ MORE>>>>>
==christina patterson======
==paige patterson======
Leighton Paige Patterson (born October 19, 1942) is a Baptist former administrator from the United States. He served as president of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina, from 1992 to 2003, as president of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) from 1998 to 2000, and as the eighth president of the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, from 2003 until his firing in 2018 over mishandling of a rape allegation. He played a major role in the Southern Baptist "conservative resurgence". He has been alternately described as a fundamentalist and a conservative evangelical. He would later be implicated for reportedly covering up sex abuse committed by his prominent career colleague Paul Pressler.
Jane Roe case against Patterson and Southwestern will go to trial now
One key portion of Jane Roe’s defamation case against Paige Patterson and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary will go to trial, according to the latest filings in the federal case. In February, the Texas Supreme Court ruled on two questions of clarification asked by the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. Having clarified those points, the Fifth Circuit vacated an earlier ruling and sent what remains of the case back to U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. (Baptist News Global 4/25/25) READMORE>>>>
One key portion of Jane Roe’s defamation case against Paige Patterson and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary will go to trial, according to the latest filings in the federal case. In February, the Texas Supreme Court ruled on two questions of clarification asked by the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. Having clarified those points, the Fifth Circuit vacated an earlier ruling and sent what remains of the case back to U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. (Baptist News Global 4/25/25) READMORE>>>>
May 5, 2023: Baptist News Global: Paige Patterson praises independent Baptists for focus on evangelism
Paige Patterson has written an online post extolling the virtues of independent Baptists and praising them for “keeping the main thing the main thing.”
That “main thing,” the former Southern Baptist Convention seminary president said, is evangelism.
Paige Patterson has written an online post extolling the virtues of independent Baptists and praising them for “keeping the main thing the main thing.”
That “main thing,” the former Southern Baptist Convention seminary president said, is evangelism.
==alyssa Paulson======
July 7, 2023: Christian Post: Evangelical Covenant Church drops congregation over LGBT 'policies and practices'
Alyssa Paulson, an elder at Awaken who helped write the congregation policy, responded to the vote in a Facebook reel, saying she was “not here to change anyone’s mind on how they view marriage.”
“I am here to tell you that I believe we are better together. That our differences make us stronger, that we can live without fences and instead center ourselves around the wells of unconditional love in Jesus,” Paulson continued.
Alyssa Paulson, an elder at Awaken who helped write the congregation policy, responded to the vote in a Facebook reel, saying she was “not here to change anyone’s mind on how they view marriage.”
“I am here to tell you that I believe we are better together. That our differences make us stronger, that we can live without fences and instead center ourselves around the wells of unconditional love in Jesus,” Paulson continued.
==John Pavlovitz======
John Pavlovitz (born June 1, 1969) is an American former youth pastor and author, known for his social and political writings from a liberal Christian perspective. After college, Pavlovitz joined a Methodist church, where he married his wife Jennifer. He attended Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary and became a youth minister at the church. Pavlovitz later worked for nearly a decade as youth pastor, in a program serving several hundred students at the Good Shepherd United Methodist Church, a "megachurch"in Charlotte, North Carolina, before being fired. In 2022, he launched Empathetic People Network, a private paid social media network for "kind humans"
Things MAGA Christians Can Pray About In Church This Sunday
If you’re a professed Christian currently still supporting this President and this Administration, and you’re on your way to church on Sunday, here are a few things you might talk with God about in between the songs and sermons: Pray about the tens of millions of sick, elderly, and poor who are slowly being suffocated, driven to poverty and illness and starvation, as your President sabotages the Affordable Care Act and SNAP programs; literally taking life-giving, life-saving care from those least able to procure it. Pray about Latino human beings who are being violently and indiscriminately persecuted by this President for no other reason than their appearance or their nation of origin or their language; mothers ripped from their children, fathers disappeared from their workplaces, college students abducted from their campuses. (The Beautiful Mess 11/15/25) READMORE>>>>
If you’re a professed Christian currently still supporting this President and this Administration, and you’re on your way to church on Sunday, here are a few things you might talk with God about in between the songs and sermons: Pray about the tens of millions of sick, elderly, and poor who are slowly being suffocated, driven to poverty and illness and starvation, as your President sabotages the Affordable Care Act and SNAP programs; literally taking life-giving, life-saving care from those least able to procure it. Pray about Latino human beings who are being violently and indiscriminately persecuted by this President for no other reason than their appearance or their nation of origin or their language; mothers ripped from their children, fathers disappeared from their workplaces, college students abducted from their campuses. (The Beautiful Mess 11/15/25) READMORE>>>>
Christians Who Don't Want to Feed People—Aren't Jesus Christians
Well, we’re in the “Jesus didn’t say we should feed people” portion of the fall of American Evangelicalism.
I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised, as the Conservative Church has had one foot in Hell and one on a banana peel since it rubber-stamped a sexual predator to our highest office a decade ago. Still, it’s heartbreaking watching millions of supposed Christians reach a new collective moral bottom and freshly grieving the collateral damage to humanity it is causing. In the face of 41 million people already living with food scarcity being pushed further toward the precipice edge by the loss of SNAP, my social media feed and inbox are both crammed with an unsettling jumble of performative sermonizing, snarling outrage, and insult-to-injury mockery from people who want to declare themselves Jesus followers, while fiercely, unrelentingly opposing the entirety of his life and work. (The Beautiful Mess 11/1/25) READMORE>>>>
Well, we’re in the “Jesus didn’t say we should feed people” portion of the fall of American Evangelicalism.
I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised, as the Conservative Church has had one foot in Hell and one on a banana peel since it rubber-stamped a sexual predator to our highest office a decade ago. Still, it’s heartbreaking watching millions of supposed Christians reach a new collective moral bottom and freshly grieving the collateral damage to humanity it is causing. In the face of 41 million people already living with food scarcity being pushed further toward the precipice edge by the loss of SNAP, my social media feed and inbox are both crammed with an unsettling jumble of performative sermonizing, snarling outrage, and insult-to-injury mockery from people who want to declare themselves Jesus followers, while fiercely, unrelentingly opposing the entirety of his life and work. (The Beautiful Mess 11/1/25) READMORE>>>>
The Christians Who Hate Jesus
I never once see a Jesus brandishing a "Don't Tread On Me" bravado in the face of dire need. I don't see him lecturing the poor and the afflicted to "pull themselves up by their bootstraps." I can't find him inviting war or celebrating bloodshed or reveling in loss of life for any reason. I don't encounter him trolling those who express sadness or worry or struggle. I don't see Jesus tossing off a defiant middle-finger contempt for those who came seeking refuge in him. I see no arrogance that inflates his worth at the expense of someone else's. Which is why I simply can't fathom Christians who are cruel and yet I see so many of them right now.
(The Beautiful Mess; John Pavlovitz 7/18/24) READ MORE>>>>>
I never once see a Jesus brandishing a "Don't Tread On Me" bravado in the face of dire need. I don't see him lecturing the poor and the afflicted to "pull themselves up by their bootstraps." I can't find him inviting war or celebrating bloodshed or reveling in loss of life for any reason. I don't encounter him trolling those who express sadness or worry or struggle. I don't see Jesus tossing off a defiant middle-finger contempt for those who came seeking refuge in him. I see no arrogance that inflates his worth at the expense of someone else's. Which is why I simply can't fathom Christians who are cruel and yet I see so many of them right now.
(The Beautiful Mess; John Pavlovitz 7/18/24) READ MORE>>>>>
Destroying The Golden Idol of Christian Nationalism
Watching the collective soul-selling of my fellow Christians here in America over the past eight years has been something that has grieved me more than I can measure or accurately describe. Particularly disheartening has been watching ancient religious history repeating, and worse: to realize that nearly every national sickness here in America, from the violent parade of white nationalism to the defiant anti-mask pandemic-deniers to the propagators of an abject election fraud lie to the suppressors of the voices and votes of people of color—is coming from professed Christians. As someone still aspiring to a life of faith and still trying to speak into my religious tradition, it’s sobering to admit that we’re not here as a nation in this brutal battle for disparate humanity and we’re not steeped in this unapologetic supremacy, if not for people claiming to be devoted to the same Jesus I’ve grown up trying to emulate. (John Pavlovitz 1/19/24) READ MORE>>>>>
Watching the collective soul-selling of my fellow Christians here in America over the past eight years has been something that has grieved me more than I can measure or accurately describe. Particularly disheartening has been watching ancient religious history repeating, and worse: to realize that nearly every national sickness here in America, from the violent parade of white nationalism to the defiant anti-mask pandemic-deniers to the propagators of an abject election fraud lie to the suppressors of the voices and votes of people of color—is coming from professed Christians. As someone still aspiring to a life of faith and still trying to speak into my religious tradition, it’s sobering to admit that we’re not here as a nation in this brutal battle for disparate humanity and we’re not steeped in this unapologetic supremacy, if not for people claiming to be devoted to the same Jesus I’ve grown up trying to emulate. (John Pavlovitz 1/19/24) READ MORE>>>>>
==jd peabody======
JD Peabody
"Creation means life, movement, evolution. What is the goal and where? We cannot see it simply by looking out. The future is a book shut and sealed. The great end does not gleam, a City of God with shining towers, on the horizon that closes our gaze. Can we, then, presume it from a survey of history as far as it has gone? Can we calculate the final trend, if we do not see the point of convergence? How can we? How do we know how much of history is yet to run? Is the decisive part, the fifth act, yet to come? Have we any idea in which act we entered the house? We see but a small area of all time as yet. And the lines are not straight, nor on any calculable curve. They are labyrinthine.................We possess, in a living and present Christ, God's goal and the destiny of the soul and of the world. We are put (miraculously it is true, by the Spirit) in possession of a God whose holy self-sufficiency secures the certainty of his purpose, and whose purpose is the world's salvation to Himself in a kingdom. it is not a salvation to prosperity, nor to civilization, nor to idealism, but to Himself, to His obedience, His communion, His realm. In this revelation, the economy of salvation becomes the principle of the movement of the universe. Nature is but a draught scheme of salvation with the key on another sheet where the eternal act of redemption is found to carry and crown the long process of creation. It is God's salvation of the world that dominates the long history of the world infallibly, if not at every point palpably. Such is the position of Christian faith, and it is the ground of all our good hope and sure outlook for the future. Such is the nature of Christian teleology. It rises from our experience of the Christian revelation."
--JD Peabody; Christianity Today; The Cross in an Age of ‘Spiritual Derangement’ 9/25/24
--JD Peabody; Christianity Today; The Cross in an Age of ‘Spiritual Derangement’ 9/25/24
==zachary k pearce======
Zachary K Pearce
A lot has been written about the state of the Christian faith today in North America. The obsession in our society over the idols of wealth, power, being “right,” ideology, success (whatever that is), is everywhere. Material wealth is the ideal, power is sought in various arenas including the church, and political ideology is frequently enmeshed with how Christian faith is understood and practiced. The emphasis on teaching the next generation to be “successful”— instead of teaching them to rest in their truest identity as beloved children of God—is an all too common reality. Idols come with noisy voices that compete for our attention. God still summons us. God is summoning us. I hope we all will stop and listen to the sheer silence. It’s beautiful. It beckons. Regardless of the various idols scattered throughout contemporary society, God keeps offering us the amazing gift of prayer, the assurance that God is still listening and still speaking, especially in the beauty and holiness of the sheer silence of the still small voice that is beckoning to us. The Apostle Paul writes “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17). That’s it. The whole verse is three words. The preceding verse is two words, “rejoice always (1 Thess. 5:16). It’s a beautiful mash-up the Apostle Paul offers us, “rejoice always, pray without ceasing.” Even, maybe even especially when, we want to flee from something in life, we ought to flee to the silence like Elijah did. Might we experience silence and open space for God to speak. Don’t stop listening for the still, small voice, of God. Rejoice, beloved children of God, for the gift of prayer, and keep praying, especially in silence.
--Zachary K Pearce 5/27/24; Prayer in the Desert Times
--Zachary K Pearce 5/27/24; Prayer in the Desert Times
