Reads of the Week
1) The Blue Period: An Origin Story by Ta-Nehisi Coats
"I don't think a human gets to see all of this before dying. But I want to see as much of it as I can. And here is the key thing--it thrills me to see it. I love seeing it. I love knowing. The knowing is its own reward. The ability to frame the question is it's own gift--even if you can't quite name the answer."
2) Where I Stand by Jen Hatmaker
"We don’t get to abandon the theology of love toward people; the end does not justify the means. That is not Christ-like and it is certainly not biblical. As a faith community, it is time we relearn what “speaking the truth in love” means. Something that actually feels like love is a start. If the beginning and end of love is simply pointing out sin, then we are doomed."
3) Humanity - Spirit of the Poor Link Up by Aaron Smith
"I am more than someone with bipolar, more than my stance on gender equality, even more than my faith and devotion to Jesus. I am fully human, and my humanity is complex. I am more than what shows in crisis, in passion, and in devotion. I am all of these things, and more. I am what is revealed in the normal moments, in the moments just before I fall asleep, in the mornings before coffee. This humanity of mine shows it’s self at work, at church, in the kitchen, when I am giving my son a bath, at the doctor’s office, riding public transit. Everywhere I am, there is my humanity."
4) On Broken Pastors and Golden Calves by Seth Haines
"We’re all looking for a lock-tight faith, one that allows escape from the clutches of the strangling sins common to men. We want to believe in the ideal, that we’ve been crucified with Christ, therefore we no longer live, but the sinless, perfect Christ lives in us. But fumble though we may, grope as we must, white-knuckle as we can, we still struggle with living an actualized, in-dwelt life."
5) The Psalms as Liberation Theology by Richard Beck
"The thing that strikes you about the psalms when you read them straight through is how oppressed and beleaguered is the psalmist. Enemies, hecklers, back-stabbers, two-faced friends, violent oppressors and economic exploiters abound. This goes to the source of lament in the psalms. Rarely is the lament about, say, the death of a loved one. The lament is generally about oppression, about the victory of the oppressor."
Honorable Mention
You Are Allowed Your Process by Jamie Wright
Disunity in Reading the Same Bible by Nate Pyle
The Splenda Level of Friendship by Megan Gahan
Tweets of the Week
"Fun first date idea: Force a connection because you're afraid to be alone." - @mdob11
"If I die unexpectedly can everyone just do the right thing and pretend I was a way better person than I am?" - @AnnaKendrick47
"'Religious liberty has never been more under attack,' said Ted Cruz while zero lions ate him." - @indecision
On Pop Theology Week in Review
On Pop Theology Podcast: Episode 55 - Villainous Villainy
"This week on the show Ben, Sebastian and Jesse tackle the topic of villains."
Ten Thoughts About the Noah Movie from Someone Who Has Been Resolutely Not Paying Attention by Lyndsey Graves
"I have not been paying attention to anything about the new Noah movie. Here are my thoughts about it."
A Theology of Filthy Rags by Charity Erickson
"The other day my mother brought a green suitcase to my house, full of random crap from my old bedroom."
Time is a Trap by Ben Howard
"Time is, in a very real sense, a trap."
Song of the Week
"The Book of Live" by Peter Gabriel
Peace,
Ben
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