I just don't have the time to formulate an entire blog post on each of these great articles, so I'll simply point you in the direction of the originals:
A great article by Tim Challies over on the Ligonier blog:
Escaping Anonymity. Challies comments on our unparalleled level of anonymity and, as a result, lack of accountability in today's generation. As he points out, anonymity might be comfortable but it is far from what God intends for His children.
Two related posts at Pyromaniacs concerning church attendance:
Why You Need to Be In a Church This Sunday - slightly abrasive, this article packs a punch but lays out a crucial Biblical theology of church attendance. "Is Jesus your Lord in reality, or in theory alone?"
Thinking Like a Slave - I found this one to be a less frictional read, but nonetheless points out the overarching fallacy in all our "God commands me to go to church, but...." arguments: "Every one of them views the Christian life as a process of negotiation." Read the entire article!
On the gendered attributes of God:
Our Father, Who Art in Heaven, a post by Aron on his blog, Some Posts, gives a lengthy excerpt from C.S. Lewis's essay notes concerning the masculinity of God. Especially pertinent, as Aron notes, in light of recent controversy (i.e. female depiction of God in The Shack?). God is neither male nor female, but reveals himself consistently as having masculine names and attributes. A tasty morsel to whet your appetite:
"…The male you could have escaped, for it exists only on the biological level. But the masculine none of us can escape. What is above and beyond all things is so masculine that we are all feminine in relation to it. "
Re-imagining God in the Shack - critique by Mary Kassian of the church's tendency to reinvent God in feminine ways. Particularly provocative: her mention of the Christa, a female image of Jesus complete with "undraped breasts and rounded hips." One such statue was unveiled in 1984 at the Episcopal Cathedral of St. John the Divine in Manhattan. What?!
Enjoy and, as always, please leave a comment if you found any of these particularly helpful, provocative, or just plain irritating. I like to know that somebody is out there reading these things :-).
A La Carte (April 25)
1 day ago
3 comments:
I read it, friend, and I'll return the favor! :)
My two cents: I think our society would be alot better off if we did not feminize God, thereby making Christianity effeminate, and all men who adhere to it somehow weaker. Make that, I know our society would be better off.
So that you know there is someone out there reading your stuff...
speaking of the need for men in Christianity, here's a decent follow-up post...
http://teampyro.blogspot.com/2009/04/manly-men.html
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