Theological Reflection

Searching for a Proper Relationship between Church and Culture

1 Comment / Essential Tenets of the Reformed Faith, Fellowship of Presbyterians, PCUSA, Theological Reflection / By /

All this week I have been attending the annual gathering of my “national covenant group” of Presbyterian pastors. Traveling from the four corners of the U.S.A., we come together to log in, share what is going on in our lives, enjoy recreative afternoons, and huddle in small groups. This year, the east coast contingent presented reviews of several excellent books on the subject of the relationship between church and culture. One particular book sparked some thoughts in relationship to the predicament faced by the PCUSA these days. Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling, by Andy Crouch, challenges the church to […]

Searching for a Proper Relationship between Church and Culture Read More »

Sometimes All You Can Be Is a Glow-worm

2 Comments / New Zealand, PCUSA, Theological Reflection / By /

For we do not proclaim ourselves; we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus’ sake. For it is the God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us.  We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair;

Sometimes All You Can Be Is a Glow-worm Read More »

The Right Kind of Diversity

6 Comments / Fellowship of Presbyterians, PCUSA, Theological Reflection / By /

Last October, I reflected on the question “How Much Diversity Can a Church Handle?” I return to the topic, in response to a comment made in a Fellowship of Presbyterians document released last week. In the Evangelical Covenant Order (ECO) communiqué dated January 19 (during the Orlando conference), the value of life-giving diversity was lifted up: “Just as earthly ecosystems draw richness from the right kind of diversity, ECO is committed to unleashing the ministry gifts of women, men, young leaders, and every ethnicity. ECO’s name also draws from the Greek term oikos, meaning ‘household,’ used in the Bible to

The Right Kind of Diversity Read More »

Is There Any Hope for the PCUSA?

9 Comments / PCUSA, Theological Reflection / By /

“The whole creation has been groaning as we wait eagerly for our adoption and the redemption of our bodies”  (Romans 8:22). Lew Smedes, in My God and I (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003): “…As I have grown old, my feelings about God have tapered down to gratitude and hope. Gratitude is the pleasure of hope come true. Hope is the pain of gratitude postponed. . . .. Hope comes harder, sometimes with our backs against the wall, laden with doubts that what we hope for will ever come. . . . Hope can feel unbearable; when we passionately long for what

Is There Any Hope for the PCUSA? Read More »

A Name-Changer

1 Comment / PCUSA, Theological Reflection / By /

Yesterday, on New Year’s Day, I preached on Isaiah 61:11–62:3, “That Is a Name-Changer!” After a brief “State of the World” message—to demonstrate some parallels between beat-up Israel in Isaiah’s time and the current day—I reflected on the role Christians have to play both waiting for and anticipating the Second Coming of Christ. [You can find the audio of this sermon at Saint Matthew Lutheran Church’s website.] In this passage, the idea of being given a new name is beautifully introduced: Is. 62:1 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until

A Name-Changer Read More »

Responding to Joe Small—2: Essential Tenets

6 Comments / Essential Tenets of the Reformed Faith, PCUSA, Teaching, Theological Reflection / By /

Continuing in respectful dialogue with friend and colleague Joe Small, in response to his “Open Letter,” the second topic of note is essential tenets of Reformed faith. The Fellowship of Presbyterians has decided to embrace the current Book of Confessions as its theological basis. When asked my opinion, before the document was released, I signed off on this approach as the best way to keep continuity, since all of us elders had already agreed to hold these confessions and catechisms as instructive and guiding to our life together. It is, frankly, an easy way to make the transition, though I

Responding to Joe Small—2: Essential Tenets Read More »

Spiritual Growth Through Tribulation

Leave a Comment / PCUSA, Spiritual Disciplines, Theological Reflection / By /

The fifth reason why individual Presbyterians must be equipped for stand-alone discipleship is to capitalize on the opportunity to grow spiritually through times of trial. Spiritual progress can certainly be made when things are going well, but the testimony of saints through the ages is that growth is accelerated when things are going badly, if one is open to it. Another observation must be made sadly. If one is not open to the work of God through suffering, suffering can become an obstacle to growing faith. The novel The Shack exposes this reality vividly, but any pastor will tell you

Spiritual Growth Through Tribulation Read More »

Another Model of Theological Reflection

Leave a Comment / PCUSA, Teaching, Theological Reflection / By /

Ministry in general is fraught with interesting situations that beg for theological reflection. Add to that the intricacies and confusions accompanying Presbyterian ministry these days, and an elder must give priority to thoughtful engagement with the issues in order to decide what to do. Yesterday I shared an educational tool for interpreting and applying content one has come across. Today I share a model specifically for theological reflection on case studies (or events as they unfold). The hope is that with these tools, presbyters can define the issues, categorize them, expand their awareness of options, and then narrow the choices

Another Model of Theological Reflection Read More »

One Method of Theological Reflection

Leave a Comment / PCUSA, Teaching, Theological Reflection / By /

This post is my 100th for “Bringing the Word to Life.” I was not sure when I started this project in late July that it would be a discipline I could sustain. It has turned out to be a discipline that has sustained me, and I am grateful to have had the time and venue for writing. Today I would like to reflect on how such a discipline can make a person a better Presbyterian and more thoughtful Christian. Whether the mode is blogging or journaling or jotting notes in one’s calendar, the act of reflecting on a daily basis

One Method of Theological Reflection Read More »

When Not to Listen

4 Comments / PCUSA, The Missional Church, Theological Reflection / By /

For the first time in decades, my husband and I are singing in the same choir, he in the bass section, me with the sopranos. It’s a small group, twenty in number, comprising staff and volunteers of the local hospital. This week we begin a series of thirty-minute concerts for the hospital’s seasonal events, corporate dinners, and convalescent facilities. Our director is getting very picky now, which is to be expected, demanding blend. The challenge is particularly acute for the sopranos, who make up almost half of the whole chorus. The exhortation is to “listen to one another and stay

When Not to Listen Read More »

Scroll to Top