I just had yet another interaction with an angry, bitter ex-evangelical. In this case, telling those of us who endeavor to remain followers of Christ we are stupid and wrong. And, look, I get it. You know I’ve written extensively about my doubts about this entire faith thing, my lack of faith, my annoyance atContinue reading “Yes, And”
Tag Archives: evangelicalism
What Makes the Church Uniquely Corruptible
I’ve known one (almost certain) murderer in my life, and he was a missionary. I won’t go into the details here–the case was never subject to any legal system, and therefore there is no way to prove it–but it was widely assumed in my circles that he was indeed guilty of that crime. It’s notContinue reading “What Makes the Church Uniquely Corruptible”
Collaborators, Resisters, and Everyone in Between
My husband and I have gone deep, deep into a marginally unhealthy, time-consuming, and rather obsessive relationship with a French show called Un Village Francais (A French Village) on Amazon Prime. It’s about, well, a French village during and immediately after World War II. And, OMG, it’s so good. It has me rethinking my generalContinue reading “Collaborators, Resisters, and Everyone in Between”
Stuck in a Moment
One of the things about the faith of my upbringing I most resent is the obsession with a moment of conversion. A specific time of decision, the beginning of faith, when you say the Sinner’s Prayer, and magically, you are saved. Your life turns around, and you are forever changed. This view of thingsContinue reading “Stuck in a Moment”
In which I try to listen to praise music
This week, I thought I might have entered a new stage of my faith journey that might be looping me back to evangelicalism. I was driving in my car, scanning through radio station, and I happened upon a Christian station playing a praise song that I like, as much as I like praise music. IContinue reading “In which I try to listen to praise music”
The (missionary) kids are alright
All parents are flawed. All parents are sinners. All parents make mistakes. All children experience pain. All childhoods are a mixed bag at best. No childhood is magical and perfect. As a parent, you can’t protect your child from all suffering and hardship. Nor should you, as that is how children learn resilience andContinue reading “The (missionary) kids are alright”
Now What?
Things are afoot in Christian America, by the numbers, but also anecdotally. I have increasing numbers of friends who were raised evangelical but are now disillusioned with that culture. They are asking a lot of questions, reconsidering their beliefs, reexamining things. This is a cultural phenomenon big enough to have a name–“deconstruction.” It has acceleratedContinue reading “Now What?”
The Prayer
In evangelical Christianity, it all comes down to THE PRAYER. Not just any prayer, either. The Sinner’s Prayer. This is the prayer that determines your eternal destination. If you sincerely pray this prayer, you go to heaven. If you don’t, you go to hell. The sinner’s prayer is pretty strictly defined, and goes something likeContinue reading “The Prayer”
Why am I doing this?
I came across a Twitter thread the other day by Beth Moore. For those who don’t know of her, Beth is a Southern Baptist Bible teacher of some renown, who has published dozens of books and Bible studies, several of which I did/read in my evangelical days. Her work is geared toward women, because in theContinue reading “Why am I doing this?”
I don’t know who needs to hear this, but EVERYONE interprets the Bible
One of my least favorite evangelical sayings has got to be: “God said it, I believe it, and that settles it!” As in, everything you could ever need to know about life and any decision or issue you could ever face is written in black and white, in very simple terms, right there in theContinue reading “I don’t know who needs to hear this, but EVERYONE interprets the Bible”
A Zebra Without Stripes 