In a recent Q & A for his upcoming film, The Tree of Life, Brad Pitt said:
“I grew up with Christianity, and I remember questioning greatly some things that didn’t work for me, [and] some things did…I grew up being told that God’s gonna take care of everything and it doesn’t always work out that way, and when it doesn’t work out that way, then it’s God’s will. I got my issues man, don’t even get me started…I got my issues… Many people find religion to be something inspiring. . . . I myself find it very stifling as an individual.”
Clearly, this preaching/teaching that Brad Pitt received was way off base. If his perception of Christianity is about “God’s gonna take care of everything” then his church, parents, and pastor failed him. Has anyone listened to his issues? Or, have people just preach “at” him?
Is this why Christianity is failing people? Is the wrong message being communicated? Does no one want to listen? No one wants to listen to other people’s struggles?
If Brad Pitt has issues with this type of Christianity, then I do too.
As the 2012 presidential race heats up, many would-be candidates are launching and engaging in some serious presidential talk. Mitt Romney just announced that he formed an exploratory committee. Fox News contributor, Mike Huckabee is making the rounds and giving his thoughts on traditional presidential debate topics. Now, millionaire and reality TV show host, Donald Trump is testing the presidential waters.
Recently, Donald Trump sat down with Christian Broadcasting Network’s (CBN) David Brody and brought up something that he rarely talks about: his religion.
In this exclusive interview, Trump talks about his relationship with God, the church, the bible, being a Presbyterian, and his commitment to attending church.
Trump said: Continue Reading…
Wow, this is the way for people to remember your sermon. This guy puts it all out there.
A recent Pew Poll and study among 18-25 year-old adults found that parenting is more important than marriage. The majority of Millennials, (generally those born between 1982 and 1995) about 52%, said being a good parent is “one of the most important things” in life. About 30% said the same about having a successful marriage. This Pew Poll points out that there is a 22 percentage point gap in the way Millennials value parenthood over marriage.
Sometimes called “Generation Y”, Millennials differed from their Generation X counterparts:
When this same question was posed to 18- to 29-year-olds in 1997, the gap was just 7 percentage points. Back then, 42% of the members of what is known as Generation X said being a good parent was one of the most important things in life, while 35% said the same about having a successful marriage.
What does this mean?
Feeling stressed out? Burned out? Or just down? Your iPhone can help you with that because… there’s an app for that. You can now download the “Holy Roller” app that finds encouraging scripture. The app profile says, “The Holy Roller is the best way to find the Biblical guidance to your everyday ups and downs. Simply scroll the Holy Roller to find what you are feeling, hit next or shake your iPhone, and your scripture will appear.”
The United Methodist Report describes the app:
Users start by accessing one of two lists: “Burdens” such as frustration, worry or doubt, or “Blessings,” such as friendship, family or health.
By tapping on the topic, the user receives one or more relevant Bible verses. For example, if the burden is “Frustration,” Hebrews 10:36 pops up on the screen: “For you need endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.” Or, if you’re looking for the blessing of “Inner Peace,” a few taps on the screen will take the user to Psalm 23: “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”
Apparently, this $2 app is popular. Over 1,000 downloads already at the iTunes store.
REMEMBER: All this week you can enter to win two free books.
If someone sends you a link to a video of a girl talking to the camera about how happy she is about the Japanese earthquake don’t worry… it’s fake. A young women named “tamtampamela” has been trolling the internet with fake personal testimonies about her crazy religious views on parody websites. “It’s so amazing to see how God can answer prayers like this,” she said. “I’m so overjoyed.” Somehow, people thought it was real.
If you are easily offended, don’t watch.
Here, she “explains” her fake videos:
Several years ago, I read a dramatic billboard sign that compelled the reader to think about Satan. The billboard read:
Do you believe in Satan? He believes in you.
A striking message, isn’t it? Many of us choose not to think too much about the forces of evil or how Satan plays a part in the Christian story. However, Satan is very much a part of the Christian story, but he is not an inspiring character. Since the beginning of the biblical record, Satan (in Hebrew hasatan means “accuser”) existed in various forms. The presence or mention of the demonic is documented in Genesis, Job, Psalms, Zechariah, the Gospels, and Revelation.
As a way to prepare for the celebration of Easter, Christians all around the world will prepare through the season of Lent. For 40 days (not including Sundays) Christians mark this time through study, prayer, fasting, reflection, worship, service, and meditation on God’s word. Lent provides a way for Christians to change the rhythm of their life by contemplating the less glamorous Christian imperatives such as forgiveness, morality, repentance, suffering, and penitence.
Believe it or not, Satan can teach us about Lent in the Christian life. How? Beginning in the book of Luke, Jesus departs for the wilderness in chapter 4 and confronts Satan, the Accuser: Continue Reading…
For years we have heard reports and studies tracking how churches are dying and God is slowly “disappearing” from Europe. Personal stories persist too. Despite what Fox News and other news outlets like to spin, there are counter reports that suggest otherwise. In 2007, the Wall Street Journal reported that churches are growing in the face of modernization:
Most scholars used to believe that modernization would extinguish religion in the long run. But that view always had trouble explaining why America, a nation in the vanguard of modernity, is so religious.
One study, by Christian Research, who published a widely-respected Religious Trends survey discovered:
…that Church of England attendance has held steady for the past decade (not including Fresh Expressions), the Catholic Church has held steady for the past five years, and Baptist Union attendance has actually been growing.
Secularism is often also thought to contribute to empty churches and forgotten stories of God’s people. However, it is not an issue concerning if people in the United Kingdom believe in God, it is their participation. The following graph shows some surprising facts about Christian belief in the UK:
Can there be a Christian Halloween? Can a Christian celebrate Halloween, which honors ghouls, demons, ghosts, and everything that goes bump in the night dangerous or even evil?
Somewhere, in the halls of history, Halloween or All Hallows Eve, got hijacked. What started as a day to prepare for All Saints’ Day (November 1st), Halloween became a spooky, evil, and candy filled observance. The term “Halloween” from its beginnings, had nothing to do with any pagan or evil beliefs. The Christian festival All Hallows Eve morphed into our current term Hallowe’en.
The key in understanding of the origins of the term Halloween comes from the sense of what is “hallowed” or “holy”. In the Lord’s Prayer, Christians pray, “Our Father, in heaven, hallowed be your name…” In the fourth century, John Chrysostom tells us that the Eastern church celebrated a festival in honor of all saints who died. In the seventh and eighth centuries, Christians celebrated “All Saints’ Day” formally.
How did Halloween become associated with evil spirits? When we look at history we discover:
More than a thousand years ago Christians confronted pagan rites appeasing the lord of death and evil spirits… the druids, in what is now Britain and France, observed the end of summer with sacrifices to the gods. It was the beginning of the Celtic year, and they believed Samhain, the lord of death, sent evil spirits abroad to attack humans, who could escape only by assuming disguises and looking like evil spirits themselves. The waning of the sun and the approach of dark winter made the evil spirits rejoice and play nasty tricks.
If the Christian observance of Halloween began with a religious focus, how can we reclaim and celebrate Halloween from its current feared status? Here are 7 ways Christians can take back Halloween:
In a recent Pew Religious study, atheists scored highest on a survey asking basic questions regarding religion. Even more surprising is the fact that some answered questions incorrectly when it came to facts about their own faith. The New York Times reports that on average respondents answered half of the questions incorrectly.
Atheists and agnostics scored the highest out of all respondents. Jews and Mormons scored the highest out of all religious groups. White Protestant Christians scored in the middle range.
How could Atheists out score all other religious groups in this simple religious test? It had to be the questions. The questions were too hard, right? Well, there were some basic questions like, “Where was Jesus born?” “Whose writings inspired the Protestant Reformation?” “Which Biblical figure led the exodus from Egypt?” The respondents answered in multiple choice form.
What conclusion can we reach about this study? Atheists know more about religion?
No, it is not the start to a lame joke, but I served as a panelist at smAlbany. smAlbany is a yearly small business gathering put on by Liberteks.com. This year was the 5th Annual smAlbany Small Business Expo. smAlbany focuses on the technology aspect of networking, business, and career development. I quickly discovered that smAlbany is a pejorative term for Albany, NY – “small-bany” The urban dictionary even has an entry for it.
So how did a pastor end up on a panel for a business expo? Good question. In addition to my blog here, I also blog for the Times Union Newspaper as their protestant religion blogger. Michael Huber, the online content manger, thought it would be a great idea to have me as a panelist on the subject of, “Local Social Media and Your Customers.” In addition to myself, the panel consisted of
- Vic Christopher, Assistant General Manager, Tri-City ValleyCats
- Merci Miglino, Speaker, trainer, and author
- Sonja Stark, Videographer and owner of PilotGirl Productions
- Lissa DAquanni, Adjunct Professor and small business owner
As you can see, it is a very eclectic mix of people and professions. I would say the seminar was well attended and provided people loads of information on social media. Alright, enough with the background. You are probably thinking, “What did they talk about?”
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