Right belief (orthodoxy) is to heresy as right conduct (orthopraxy) is to... what? The very fact that Christianity doesn't have an obvious correlative term tells you all you need to know. Instead of coining a new term, however, a more subversive path forward may be to sync belief and conduct by broadening out heretic to include any professing Jesus follower who severely … [Read more...] about Beatnik Christianity Reimagines and Recycles the Word Heretic
civility
Beatnik Christianity Invokes Pro-Jesus, Un-American Kingdom Values
The problem with most counterculturally-inclined Jesus followers isn't that they're too out of sync with the social norms of the dominant culture. The problem is that they usually don't go far enough in identifying the insidious ways they've been unknowingly enculturated by Christian culture and secular culture alike. Two such presuppositions among American Christians are … [Read more...] about Beatnik Christianity Invokes Pro-Jesus, Un-American Kingdom Values
Beatnik Christianity Contends That the Greatest Heresy Is the Failure to Love
Down through the centuries has come a Latin phrase that's full of wisdom: In necessariis unitas, in dubiis libertas, in omnibus caritas. Translated into English it reads, "In necessary things, unity; in doubtful things, liberty; and all things, charity." I first came across this in an intro. course to historical theology. It immediately became a central plank of my ecumenical … [Read more...] about Beatnik Christianity Contends That the Greatest Heresy Is the Failure to Love
Beatnik Christianity Minimizes Polite Gentility And Maximizes Robust Civility
In an interview with On Being's Krista Tippett, Richard Mouw suggested, "A lot of people today who have strong convictions are not very civil and a lot of people who are civil don't have very strong convictions. What we really need is convicted civility." In that same interview, the former president of Fuller Seminary also observed, "Too often in life we proceed with a … [Read more...] about Beatnik Christianity Minimizes Polite Gentility And Maximizes Robust Civility
Wrong from the Start: How Christian Culture Keeps Pulling Us Away from Jesus
I love Jesus but loathe most elements of Christian culture. The reason is that Christian culture usually has little to do with following Jesus and when there is a direct connection it is often in direct conflict with The Way of Jesus. The more I study it the more I become convinced it's more influenced by Screwtape than the Holy Spirit. Let's be clear. This isn't about … [Read more...] about Wrong from the Start: How Christian Culture Keeps Pulling Us Away from Jesus
