The Message, Bible Translations

It is my understanding that there are many people who have issues with “The Message” translation of the bible. On one end, some people feel a need to always preface it by explaining “it’s a paraphrase” (in other words, not a “real” translation). On the other end of the spectrum, people feel it is a dangerous misrepresentation, leading people astray because of its perceived lack of accuracy. The Message does have its quirks, however I don’t have a problem calling a translation for several reasons.

First of all, in discussing translations, it is imperative to understand that there is no such thing as an exact word-for-word translation. Studying at least one language beyond one’s own primary language is beneficial for learning much Continue reading →

“My Precious”: Entitlement

Recently there were a couple of stories in which people disappointed me. The first happened during a Colts home game. A player on the opposing team attempted to throw his helmet against the wall out of frustration. However his helmet stuck a bit to his glove, and ended up flying into the stands instead. Obviously this wasn’t good, though the fan in its path saw it and caught it without injury. Now if I had been in that situation, I don’t think it would have occurred to me to do anything but give the guy his helmet back. I have no use for it, and he needs it for the game. Sure, it wasn’t good for him to have thrown his helmet at all, but it going into the stands was an honest mistake, and “no harm, no foul”.

However apparently the Continue reading →

Judgmental God?

The other day I was thinking (as I often do): one of the most common views of God is that he is looking over our shoulders, just watching for us to do something he doesn’t like, and when we do, he gets all mad and upset at us. I wondered why it is that this view is so common, and then I realized: maybe it’s because so many Christians are this way—or at least the most outspoken ones. Maybe God is seen as unloving, unaccepting, unforgiving, and judgmental because many Christians are seen as unloving, unaccepting, unforgiving, and judgmental.

“If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God’s love? It disappears. And you made it Continue reading →

Spiritual Conduits

There are different ways we connect with God. Different people connect with God better through some means than others. Below are listed nine spiritual “conduits”, which is adapted from “Spiritual Pathways”1:

  • Study (Intellectual): connecting with God through study, ideas and theological concepts.
  • Exhortation (Activist): connecting with God through actively challenging people in the areas of social justice, evangelism and/or morality.
  • Service (Caregiver): connecting with God through serving others and helping to provide for their needs.
  • Enthusiasm: connecting with God through joyful emotional expression and enthusiastic worship.
  • Nature: connecting with God through immersion in nature.
  • Sensation: connecting with God through artistic Continue reading →

Differing Attitudes Toward Friendships With the Opposite Sex

I recently read a blog post by Dan Brennan which I thought was very good. (Unfortunately, at the time of this writing I have not yet had a chance to read his book, “Sacred Unions, Sacred Passions” though it is high on my list.) I wanted to take the time to unpack my explanation of the subject, because, while the article is good, I think it could be hard for people to understand due to being unfamiliar with the debate and due to certain words commonly being misused.

The topic at hand is intimacy between people of the opposite sex. First of all, intimacy has often been used to refer to only physical intimacy, or sexual intercourse (though these aren’t even the same). However intimacy is much more than that, and doesn’t even Continue reading →