The podcast series started yesterday is concluded with more excerpts from the Watergate Senate hearings, some from the same day and some from the following. Right: Sen Sam. Ervin (D-NC), the Committee's Chairman. His questioning of John Erlichman--which turned into a monologue on rights under the Constitution--dominates most of this excerpt. His solicitousness of these …
Obama Can’t Get Past “Bonjour”
Barack Obama's trip to France evidently means full employment for his interpreter, as this earlier CBS piece informs us: “I don't speak a foreign language. It's embarrassing!” Barack Obama exclaimed today at town hall meeting here. Obama, who often touts his time growing up overseas, made the confession while speaking about the importance of teaching …
Is Turkey the Next Islamic State?
Jesus said that "But, if he does not listen to you, take with you one or two others, so that 'on the evidence of two or three witnesses, every word may be put beyond dispute.'" (Matthew 18:16) So it was with great interest that I saw two very different Asia Times Online writers opine that …
Watergate Hearings, 25 July 1973
Our podcast takes a very different turn this week with an excerpt from the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, the so-called "Watergate Committee." This excerpt is from the hearings on 25 July 1973. Right: On the hot seat: John Erlichman, Richard Nixon's Assistant to the President for Domestic Affairs. The questioning here …
Reply to “Jon” on Brian McLaren and his Bridge to Nowhere
It seems that Jon and Jon want to continue the discussion on my recent post re Brian McLaren. Their comments are here. So here goes: I read McLaren as saying we have to adapt to a changed environment. That doesn't have to mean selling out, but rather that the normative C20th model of doing church …
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Bishop Alan May Be Impressed by Brian McLaren. But Where’s the Firm Foundation?
Church of England Bishop Alan Wilson was impressed by emerging church guru Brian McLaren: I am impressed by the logic of Brian’s argument. It sheds light on why the fastest growing Church of England congregations, by and large, are Cathedrals. Following it up would involve reimaging our context in a more realistic, low-key, creative and …
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The Death of Protestant America: A Political Theory of the Protestant Mainline
From First Things: Among conservative Christians, much attention is devoted to the question of whether the hole in public life can be filled by either Catholicism or the evangelical churches. I have my doubts. The evangelicals may have too little church organization, and the Catholics may have too much. Besides, both are minorities in the …
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They Miss Us When We’re Gone After All. Sort of.
A few years back, I sat at a prayer breakfast next to a "continuing Anglican" bishop who stated that the liberals in TEC were actually glad that so many "reasserters" had left the church during the 1970's and 1980's (TEC had a substantial loss in membership in the wake of the 1960's.) Evidently the sentiment …
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The Saga of the Baby Blue Pinto
A few years back I saw a skit entitled "This is Not Your Life." The skit had one young guy who had just died. An "angel" was showing him the things he did not do in his life. I was taking this in until he showed him one of those undone things: stealing a baby …
Why Don’t Churches Make Disciples?
Robert Easter at Sanctifusion asks this question, and answers as follows: Our world view is all wrong. "Be holy as I am holy" is not a core conviction. We prefer the things that are "more exciting" - like worship, harvesting tithes, building buildings, getting on the latest trendy movement of evangelicalism. Not intentional enough. We …
Positive Infinity 