Yesterday we celebrated a ridiculous claim: that a dead man came back to life. Not that he was resuscitated. But that he was made alive again, eternally. That he, Jesus, is still alive. The truth of Christianity hinges upon the reality of the resurrection. There are Christians who think that the resurrection ...

Fifty years ago, a TIME cover article asked the question, "Is God Dead?" This week, a cover article of the same magazine asks, "Is Hell Dead?" This recent article comes in response to Rob Bell's book, Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived. It makes me wonder ...

Again,

It's a symbol of love, of forgiveness, of salvation.

It's a vision of violence, of blood, of death.

It's a trinket dangling from a rear-view mirror, an ornament to dress up an outfit.

It's a centerpiece in a house of worship.

It's a gift. It's an offense.

It's a reminder, in the words of Tim Keller, ...

Along with other bloggers, I was recently asked to respond to this question in 100 words or less. Here's what I wrote:

My husband threw a handful of crackers across the room. He was angry.

My daughter threw her arms out wide and said, "Tada!" She was proud.

My son's tears rolled down his cheeks. He was ...

The cover article of Christianity Today's current issue, "Proselytizing in a Multi-Faith World" offers a helpful portrait of what it means to respect people who don't see the world and religious issues in the same way without avoiding the topic altogether. He offers four points to consider:

Let each ...

It's a symbol of love, of forgiveness, of salvation.

It's a reminder of violence, of blood, of death.

It's a trinket dangling from a rear-view mirror, an ornament to dress up an outfit.

It's a centerpiece in a house of worship.

It's a gift. It's an offense.

It's a reminder, in the words of Tim Keller, that ...

In The Fortunate Ones (the Atlantic), Graeme Wood reports on a recent study that demonstrates how excessive amounts of wealth can't buy happiness. They can't even buy a sense of security. It's hard to believe that the super-rich feel insecure in life and about money in general, but the comment that ...

I was asked to participate in the current Patheos Book Club discussion about The Language of Science and Faith. In addition to my own reflection, posted below, I invite you to read an excerpt, read an interview with Karl Giberson, and look at other reviews of the book itself. Here's my take:

Sometimes ...

At just about the time I was moving my blog to beliefnet, I received an email from Deborah Arca, editor of the mainline Christian portal at patheos. She invited me to participate in a "theoblogger challenge" by writing an answer to the question "Who Is God?, in 100 words or less. I enjoyed the challenge, ...

For most of my adult Christian life, I've been trying to understand what happened on the cross. I used to give the stock Christian answer: "Jesus died on the cross for my sins." I still think that statement is true, but I've become less and less clear on exactly what it means.

First there's the problem ...

I have a new post on her.meneutics, "Should Christians Use Self-Help Programs?" It begins:

We were staying with friends, and I was getting ready for the day in their daughter's bathroom. It was a typical tween-age space: cute stickers and sayings posted to the mirror, hair products and cotton balls and ...

"Everyone should try to spend intentional time with God every day. Except women with small children."

I was in college, listening to a sermon about friendship. But when the pastor gave women with small children an exception from "quiet times," I noticed. And I remembered.I'm not sure he was serious, ...

We've entered a new phase in our family life. Penny has started to ask questions. When we pick Peter up from the train, she'll say, "How was your day, Dad?" Or when she meets someone new she'll say, "Hi. What's your name?" And of course there is the ever-present childhood question, "Why?" I hear that ...

I graduated from Seminary on Saturday. It was seven years in the making, to finish the three year degree (at least seven is a Biblical number). I now have what is called a "Masters of Divinity," a rather unfortunate title. By my reckoning, one of the goals of a Seminary education is to teach us ...

I was recently asked to write, in 100 words or less, an answer to the question: "How is the Holy Spirit at work in the world today?" Tough assignment, but here's what I came up with:

In nudges and whispers.

Like a seed growing, imperceptible at first. Like wind, invisible, refreshing, transformative. ...

"We live in a culture that has replaced soul with self. This reduction turns people into either problems or consumers. Insofar as we acquiesce in that replacement, we gradually but surely regress in our identity, for we end up thinking of ourselves and dealing with others in marketplace terms: everyone ...

"Don't grab!"

We hear those words a lot. It might be Peter or me admonishing one of our children. Or, just as likely, Penny reprimanding her brother. Despite the frequency of the command, grabbing is a part of the daily routine. Penny grabs a toy from William. William grabs my phone. Penny grabs the ...

I have a new post at her.meneutics called, "Yoga, an Exercise in Discernment." It begins:About 16 million adults in the United States practice yoga — an increase of 85 percent from 2004 to 2008 — and the Los Angeles Times reports that both Christian and Jewish groups are incorporating the Eastern meditation ...

On Good Friday, Peter and I went to our church to participate in a 24-hour prayer vigil. We've never done something like that before, hired a babysitter on a Friday night so we could go pray with some other people we don't know. It was after that experience that I realized, prayer is stupid. Well, really ...