casual theology

  “As Jesus turned water into wine, we have turned wine back into water, turned the intoxicating wine of the Gospel into a mushy grape jelly. He came to light a fire, and we have found a way to water it down… He came to spread his good infection, and we have found antidotes. The antidote for potent religion is pallid religion. The antidote for Christ is “Christian stuff.” The antidote for his noun is our adjective.” (Peter Kreeft, Jesus Shock ) “Why do people in churches seem like cheerless, brainless tourists on a packaged tour of the Absolute? ...Does anyone have the foggiest idea what sort of Power we so blandly invoke? … It is madness to wear ladies’ straw hats and velvet hemlines to church; we should be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares; they should lash us to the pews. For the sleeping god may wake someday and draw us out to where we cannot return.” (Annie Dillard, An Expedition to the Pole) “But you shall receive power when...

Porn kills. I’m not talking about the many individuals within the porn industry who commit suicide, are murdered, or who die of AIDS, drug overdoses, or chronic alcohol abuse. Porn kills those who watch it. It snuffs out the ability to love, turning men & women inward on themselves. It compromises their ability to deal with real life by offering the lie of fantasy instead. It destroys empathy and normalizes the objectification of others. It becomes a hindrance to relationship with others and with God. I know because I’ve struggled with porn. I was spending an anniversary weekend with my wife. She always talks about memories she has of spending time with her grandparents when she was young. We were at dinner and I thought I’d try to come up with some of my own childhood memories to share. I had loving grandparents on both sides of the family. My paternal grandparents would take me on summer vacations with them and I often slept over at their house on the wee...