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1-25 of 1053 « ‹ Page 1 of 43 › »
  • Sacred Reborn

    Column by Rev. Deshna Charron Shine on September, 28 2023

    The experience of the sacred is not an easy thing to define. It is outside of human terms and metaphors. It lives beyond the binaries and outside of boxes. There is no scientific definition of the experience of the sacred. 

    Do you foresee someone writing a new Bible that is more relevant to usage in today’s world?  Especially for young children who …

    Answered by Dr. Carl Krieg
  • The “G” word and the “F” Word in High Places: Signs of Our Times

    Column by Rev. Dr. Matthew Fox on September, 21 2023

    Along with climate change and the move from religion to spirituality, another sign of our times is the rise of the G word and the F word alive and well in high places.  I am speaking of course of Greed and Fascism.

    I read with interest your comments about afterworlds and their creation. When I read that you are a Pastor who describes herself …

    Answered by Rev. Gretta Vosper
  • The Middle Ages, the Enlightenment, and Dialectical Mystery

    Column by Dr. Carl Krieg on September, 14 2023

    The transition from a Medieval to an Enlightenment way of thinking does not come easily. When I was a kid in the Norwegian American Lutheran Church, a bigger-than-life portrait of Jesus praying in Gethsemane was stationed over the altar, a Sunday reminder that his all-important death, soon to come, was our salvation. Jesus loved us, this we knew because the Bible told us so. And the Bible did not lie.

    I love my church, but it is very traditional in how it approaches Sunday services.  What are some small ways churches can …

    Answered by Rev. Dr. Matthew Fox
  • Jesus in Eden

    Column by Rev. Jim Burklo on September, 7 2023

    The Bible is a mirror.  In it, we see the structure of our psyches.  We see the scaffolding of our spirituality.  What makes the Bible holy is not that it is the “word of God”, but rather that so many of its passages offer such breathtakingly vivid reflections of the journeys of our souls.

    I have Christian spiritual books from different church denominations, Catholic mystics, protestant progressives, and various New Thought Christian thinkers.  I feel it’s …

    Answered by Rev. Dr. Jeffrey Frantz
  • Liturgy for Life

    Column by Rev. Gretta Vosper on August, 31 2023

    If you’re a mainline Christian, you likely experienced liturgy even if you are of a less liturgical tradition than the Episcopal or Presbyterian churches. And very possibly, even if you don’t know what it is, you’ve been steeped in it.

    How important is it for progressive Christians to be politically involved when we so often are told of the need for separation of church and …

    Answered by Rev. Dr. Mark Sandlin
  • Toward an Ethics of Consequences

    Column by Rev. Dr. Jeffrey Frantz on August, 24 2023

    the term ethical grace emphasizes the importance of the choices we make in our lives every day to support the goodness of life on earth. Every day, we make choices that matter.

    As a Christian, when I read or watch followers of other faiths accusing Christianity and the Bible of being a lie while elevating their …

    Answered by Rev. Lauren Van Ham
  • Three Practices for Staying In Love

    Column by Rev. Lauren Van Ham on August, 17 2023

    When current events and self-perpetuating systems pin me in the extractive, enslaving, short-sighted story, there are 3 practices that help me to listen for divine guidance and to re-engage in the love story’s emerging plot. 

    With so much of the bible being labeled as stories rather than truths, what will be left – doesn't religion need dogma?

    Answered by Rev. Roger Wolsey
  • All Hands on Deck

    Column by Rev. Roger Wolsey on August, 10 2023

    Folks, this is serious stuff. In fact, managing human-aggravated global warming and climate change is the single most important moral matter of our generation.

    Would a broader acceptance of LGBT members in churches help stem the tide of declining church numbers? 

    Answered by Rev. Brandan Robertson
  • Down with Christian Nationalism

    Column by Rev. Dr. Mark Sandlin on August, 3 2023

    I’d even go as far as to say the modern version of Dominionism, that’s now called Christian Nationalism, is nothing like the teachings of the man who said, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 

    Will the polarity of beliefs between religions continue to grow, or will they eventually embrace diversity?

    Answered by Rev. David M. Felten
  • Reclaiming Our Progressive Christian Tradition

    Column by Rev. Brandan Robertson on July, 27 2023

    A majority of those who are now identifying as “Progressive Christians” are converts, so to speak, those fleeing other Christian traditions that had no real knowledge of Progressive Christianity.

    What is the role of religion in the climate crisis?What is the role of religion in the climate crisis?

    Answered by Rev. Michael Dowd
  • Yes, The 10 Commandments ARE Un-American

    Column by Rev. David M. Felten on July, 20 2023

    Hooray! Yet another Christian Nationalist effort to strangle American values has gone out with a whimper. This time, it was a Texas Senate Bill that, if passed, would have required the 10 Commandments to be displayed prominently in every classroom in the state.

    What do Progressive Christians believe about gender roles in the church?

    Answered by Rev. Dr. Caleb J. Lines
  • The Real End Times – From Doom to Faith

    Column by Rev. Michael Dowd on July, 13 2023

    Here we are, immersed in a swirl of biospheric breakdown and societal strife that isn’t going away; in fact, it’s getting worse. The darkness and distress cannot be passed off as the wrath of an angry God. Rather, we ourselves are at cause, and these are the real end times.

    As we learn more and more that the literal bible and the churches that rely on it for belief and faith many not …

    Answered by Rev. Dr. Robin Meyers
  • Why Call Ourselves Progressive?

    Column by Rev. Dr. Caleb J. Lines on July, 6 2023

    There’s been a lot of conversation recently about whether we still need to use the term “progressive” as a qualifier for Christian.  As a movement, we’ve been using the label for about 3 decades, and with so many cultural shifts, it’s only natural to raise the question of whether it still fits.

    How do I get over my need to be perfect?

    Answered by Rev. Deshna Charron Shine
  • The Million Woman Walkout

    Column by Rev. Dr. Robin Meyers on June, 29 2023

    Just when you thought things could not get worse, the Southern Baptists have declared that not only can women not be pastors, or anyone in a “position of authority over men,” but that SBC churches already led by women should be purged from the denomination.

    As we deconstruct the Bible and see that it is not inherent and not to be taken literally, why do we still have saints?

    Answered by Rev. Dr. Matthew Fox
  • You can have PRIDE too!

    Column by Rev. Deshna Charron Shine on June, 22 2023

    Systemic racism and oppression of marginalized folk’s experience is ingrained in all of us and in every system. Even if every person became anti-racist and radically inclusive, our systems would still be a huge barrier to the liberation and equality of all.

    I feel that Bishop John Shelby Spong hollowed out so much of traditional Christianity that nothing much is left except humanism! He was clearly …

    Answered by Rev. Gretta Vosper
  • From Nuns to Nones: The Future of Western Christianity

    Column by Rev. Dr. Matthew Fox on June, 15 2023

    The facts emerging about the future of organized religion and institutional Christianity in North America are quite sobering indeed.

    Have you ever read Moses and Monotheism by Sigmund Freud? What do you think of it?

    Answered by Rev. Jim Burklo
  • East Illuminates West

    Column by Support - Progressing Spirit on June, 8 2023

    The East-West spiritual encounter has been profoundly formative for progressive Christianity.  Experiencing the meditative practices of the East has inspired us to explore the previously neglected contemplative tradition of our faith. 

    I love my church. I feel like they are my community and family of choice. The rituals of church service are important, but they …

    Answered by Rev. Roger Wolsey
  • Beyond Now

    Column by Rev. Gretta Vosper on June, 1 2023

    If you’re on a quest for the afterlife, you’ve plenty of options. Heaven, Nirvana, Paradise; She’ol, Limbo, Purgatory; Jahannam, Hell, the Chinvat Bridge to Darkness.

    At what point in the evolution of human beings did humans start to believe in God?

    Answered by Rev. Dr. Jeffrey Frantz
  • The Lurking Evil of Christian Nationalism

    Column by Rev. Dr. Jeffrey Frantz on May, 25 2023

    Christian nationalists – who are overwhelmingly white – think they are privileged and that their privileged status comes from God.  Historically, they see the United States as the new Israel, a nation designated by God as a shining light on a hill to the rest of the world.  

    How do Jesus-following Christians fight the evil that the White National Christian organizations create? A friend told me to 'pray.' But I'm feeling …

    Answered by Rev. Lauren Van Ham
  • Planting Seeds in the Kin-dom

    Column by Rev. Lauren Van Ham on May, 18 2023

    Ahead of Pentecost, the month of May offers International Labor Day, Beltane, and Mother’s Day (United States).  Each one is ripe with spirituality, and combined, they invite us to choose one another, to look out for one another’s wellbeing, and to move continually toward the kin-dom of God.

    What is your view on the value of the Bible for today?

    Answered by Dr. Carl Krieg
  • Blood and Bananas

    Column by Dr. Carl Krieg on May, 11 2023

    We live in a world defined by the cheapness of human life, indeed, all life. Migrants and refugees are treated no better than the Amazon rainforest. And yet, as entanglement shows us and as the tolling bell reminds us, all is One.

    With the co-opting of the term Christianity by those who act very un-Christian like, is it time to rethink the name Progressive Christianity?

    Answered by Rev. Dr. Mark Sandlin
  • Progressive Christianity & Psychedelics

    Column by Rev. Roger Wolsey on May, 4 2023

    There. I said it. I know I’m not the first, and I surely won’t be the last. It’s time to embrace and promote. My way of proclaiming the good news of psychedelic plant medicines as part of our salvation and healing is writing.

    How do you keep your spirits and attitude positive amidst the political turmoil and social unrest affecting our country today?

    Answered by Rev. Brandan Robertson
  • The Divine Within

    Column by Rev. Dr. Mark Sandlin on April, 27 2023

    Namasté: “The Divine in me honors the Divine in you.” In my way of seeing it, namasté includes the understanding that we all are one.

    [NOTE: To celebrate our 10th anniversary as a welcoming and affirming congregation, The Fountains recently hosted Bishop Karen Oliveto (the first openly LGBTQIA+ Bishop in …

    Answered by Rev. David M. Felten
  • Becoming A Digital Evangelist: An Invitation For Progressive Christians

    Column by Rev. Brandan Robertson on April, 20 2023

    Progressive faith communities are rightfully skeptical of the language of “evangelism.” In modern history, the word has come to mean something like “forceful conversion” rather than a demonstration of and an invitation to the way of Jesus.

    The perfection of nature amazes me, while the imperfection of human beings continues to disappoint me. What will it take for humans to learn …

    Answered by Rev. Matthew Syrdal
  • Retiring Atonement (preferably with extreme prejudice)

    Column by Rev. David M. Felten on April, 13 2023

    Christianity is the only major religion where many followers believe the death of their founder is more important than his life.

     

    Why do some churches have difficulty fully embracing LGBTQ+ people of faith?

    Answered by Rev. Irene Monroe
1-25 of 1053 « ‹ Page 1 of 43 › »

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