A Few Good Articles
Mar. 3rd, 2004 10:42 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
smile_n_cuddleI'm putting these here in case anyone happens to get bored and read my
journal. This writer, Steve Jones, is quite insightful and interesting.
I wonder if he has any devotionals out ;-) (I could tolerate his!)
A Critique of Dogma:
Excerpt: Dogmatism has had its day. Its chronicles reek of shed blood. Broken lives and relationships litter its halls. But a new day is here — theological bigotry must now be relegated to the dead past. Dogmatism needs a stake through its heart.
Rethinking the Absolute Authority of Scripture:
Excerpt: Having accurate opinions on theological matters is not an emphasis in Jesus' teachings. The preoccupation with "orthodoxy" has done little, if any good, throughout religious history. And the fighting, the schisms it produces violate the pure spirit of the gospel. It is time for us to begin majoring in the majors, not in abstractions. If we end up making some doctrinal mistakes along the way, we expect God to graciously pardon us. After all, it is the pure in heart, not the accurate in dogma, who will see God.
When Liberal Christianity becomes too Liberal:
Excerpt: It is human nature for us to gravitate toward extremes. We turn a good thing into excess. This is especially true regarding religion. No tradition within the Christian faith is immune from our tendency to “push the envelope.”
Anyway, he's a great writer and his thoughts are incredibly insightful. I highly recommend him to the religious as well as the non-religious. Personally, I'm on the fence. ;-)
A Critique of Dogma:
Excerpt: Dogmatism has had its day. Its chronicles reek of shed blood. Broken lives and relationships litter its halls. But a new day is here — theological bigotry must now be relegated to the dead past. Dogmatism needs a stake through its heart.
Rethinking the Absolute Authority of Scripture:
Excerpt: Having accurate opinions on theological matters is not an emphasis in Jesus' teachings. The preoccupation with "orthodoxy" has done little, if any good, throughout religious history. And the fighting, the schisms it produces violate the pure spirit of the gospel. It is time for us to begin majoring in the majors, not in abstractions. If we end up making some doctrinal mistakes along the way, we expect God to graciously pardon us. After all, it is the pure in heart, not the accurate in dogma, who will see God.
When Liberal Christianity becomes too Liberal:
Excerpt: It is human nature for us to gravitate toward extremes. We turn a good thing into excess. This is especially true regarding religion. No tradition within the Christian faith is immune from our tendency to “push the envelope.”
Anyway, he's a great writer and his thoughts are incredibly insightful. I highly recommend him to the religious as well as the non-religious. Personally, I'm on the fence. ;-)
