Reading Time: 15 minutes We haven’t waltzed together into the Unequally Yoked Club for a while, have we? Strike up the music: today I want to talk about something sparked in me by a comment on a progressive Christian blog. My thoughts aren’t particularly aimed at the person who made the comment; she seems pretty sweet, actually. I don’t […]
prayer
Posted inReligion
The Unequally Yoked Club: Praying for Reconversion
Reading Time: 15 minutes We haven’t waltzed together into the Unequally Yoked Club for a while, have we? Strike up the music: today I want to talk about something sparked in me by a comment on a progressive Christian blog. My thoughts aren’t particularly aimed at the person who made the comment; she seems pretty sweet, actually. I don’t […]
Posted inReligion
Differing Conversations. (We Can’t Both Be Right, Part II)
Reading Time: 14 minutes Have you ever talked to somebody who tells you one thing but tells someone else something entirely different? We call such a person two-faced and we don’t generally like or trust somebody like that. Mitt Romney very famously “flip-flopped” his way right out of the running for the White House, sometimes reversing a position during […]
Posted inReligion
Magical Thinking and Prayer
Reading Time: 13 minutes It’s funny to me that Christianity tends to jump with both feet on magic in general, considering how much magical thinking there is in the religion. Contrary to what they think, they are all for magic–they just want it to be Christian magic. Christian magic is A-OK.
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Rebecca Ferguson, intercessory prayer, and 240,000 tsunami deaths…
Reading Time: 2 minutes I bought a CD for my partner the other day. it was by an X-Factor third place finisher from a few years ago, Rebecca Ferguson. Not something I’d usually buy myself, of course, but she’s got a rich and textured voice which sounds lovely.
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Oh, my! Randal Rauser on prayer (God or Godless)
Reading Time: 11 minutes I recently reviewed Randal Rauser and John Loftus’ debate book entitled God or Godless. I have also responded to Randal’s post on why I am an atheist as well as posting an article critiquing Randal on why he is a Christian. During my review, I noted that I was particularly frustrated at Randal’s prayer chapter.
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Godly Messages: You’ve Got Mail!
Reading Time: 10 minutes Christians like to think their god talks to them. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. Because they lack real communication, they must rely on signs and portents. Today, I’ll show you why that notion backfires so hard.
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Superhero Jesus.
Reading Time: 9 minutes During a very painful and lonely stretch of my childhood, I did exactly what fundagelicals say everyone ought to do: I turned to Jesus. Today I’ll show you how well that worked out for me.
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The Power of Prayer, Part Two.
Reading Time: 12 minutes I needed answers, and I needed them quickly.
Posted inReligion
The Power of Prayer, Part One.
Reading Time: 8 minutes It’s not an exaggeration to say that tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people were praying for Daniel’s recovery from brain cancer. He was one of the Big Name Fans in our denomination; we had ties to mission churches all over the world as well. I was one of the people who spent quite some time on her knees praying for Daniel’s recovery. Even Biff, who very rarely prayed anywhere but in church, prayed for him. We were absolutely convinced that God would heal him. Why wouldn’t he?