Progressive Christianity Tag
11 May Common Sense Christianity & Spirituality
The old saying "there is nothing common about common sense" has never rung so true as it does today. We live in a course and relativist age where the noble drive for fairness and balance has been misdirected toward conflating opinions with facts, and where common sense lies buried beneath a rubble of "truthiness". That being the case, it might be a good...
29 Apr Jesus, Dostoevsky & The Grand Inquisitor
In Fyodor Dostoevsky's parable of The Grand Inquisitor, Jesus reappears on Earth during the time of the Spanish Inquisition. Although the crowds adore him, he is promptly thrown in prison and sentenced to death. While in his cell, Jesus is visited by the Grand Inquisitor who says that he must kill him, even though he knows that he is truly Jesus Christ. The...
25 Apr Progressive Christian New Year’s Resolutions
When Progressive Christians look toward their lineage, few find sympathy with the old Calvinists of 18th century New England. Jonathan Edwards' sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" is one of the last things we equate with the tenants of Progressive Christianity. And yet Jonathan Edwards, like all of us, is a complicated individual. While going off the rails at times...
24 Apr Jesus & Miguel de Unamuno – Solitude & Society
Jesus tells us we cannot enter the kingdom of God unless we are born of both water and spirit (("In truth I tell you," exclaimed Jesus, "unless you are reborn, you cannot see the kingdom of God." "How can someone," asked Nicodemus, "be born when they are old? Can we be born a second time?" "In truth I tell you," answered Jesus, "unless...
22 Apr Teilhard de Chardin & Having Faith in the World
The 20th century Jesuit priest Pierre Teilhard de Chardin was a remarkable figure in that he was both a highly trained scientist and defender of the Christian faith---someone who realized that the entire structure of Christ's mythology had to be reworked to fit new scientific discoveries. Having forged that new structure through the crucible of his own experiences and knowledge, he not only...
09 Mar When Will Christ Come? The Second Coming Is Now
When will the Second Coming occur? This seems to be a question of utmost importance to many Christians today, as we struggle through seemingly endless economic and environmental crises. The question of the Second Coming though has been front and center in the minds of Christians ever since Jesus shuffled off his mortal coil. John didn't help matters much in penning Revelations,...
04 Mar Progressive Christians & The New Reverend’s Role
Having answered the question "What is Christian Ministry?" by putting forward the idea that as Progressive Christians we are all ministers, albeit in various forms, the question now follows, just what is the role of the Reverend, the Minister of the bricks and mortar church? Like other Pastors, Progressive Reverends guide religious ceremonies (such as weddings and funerals), as well as serve as...
28 Feb John 2 – Jesus Turns Water into Wine – The Gospels
Two days after this there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and Jesus' mother was there. 2 Jesus himself, too, with his disciples, was invited to the wedding. 3 And, when the wine ran short, his mother said to him: "They have no wine left." 4 "What do you want with me?" answered Jesus. "My time has not come yet." 5 His...
28 Feb John 4 – Christ Is The Living Water – The Gospels
 Now, when the Master heard that the Pharisees had been told that he was making and baptizing more disciples than John 2 (Though it was not Jesus himself, but his disciples, who baptized), 3 He left Judea, and set out again for Galilee. 4 He had to pass through Samaria, 5 And, on his way, he came to a Samaritan town called Shechem,...
28 Feb John 9 – I am the Light of the World – The Gospels
 As Jesus passed by, he saw a man who had been blind from his birth. 2 "Rabbi," asked his disciples, "who was it that sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" 3 "Neither the man nor the parents," replied Jesus; "but he was born blind that the work of God should be made plain in him. 4 We must...
22 Feb Top Progressive-Liberal Christian Websites
The Progressive Christian Alliance: The PCA hopes to provide a venue for those individuals who feel somewhat out-of-step with their home congregations to raise their own voices in a more progressive message; for progressive congregations to join their voices with other progressives across denominational lines without sacrificing their own denominational identity; and for independent churches to form a stronger denominational bond with other...
23 Dec John 14 – Christ Is The Way – The Gospels
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 In my Father's home there are many dwellings. If it had not been so, I should have told you, for I am going to prepare a place for you. 3 And, since I go and prepare a place for you, I shall return and take you to be...
23 Dec John 16 – The Spirit of Truth – The Gospels
 "I have spoken to you in this way so that you may not falter. 2 They will expel you from their synagogues; indeed the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think that they are making an offering to God. 3 They will do this, because they have not learned to know the Father, or even me. 4 But I have...
14 Nov John 20 – Doubting Thomas – The Gospels
On the first day of the week, early in the morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb, and saw that the stone had been removed. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter, and to that other disciple who was Jesus' friend, and said to them: "They have taken away the Master out of the tomb, and we...
03 May The Lord’s Prayer Explained by Helmut Thielicke
Some of the most eloquent Lord's Prayer commentary delivered by a 20th century minister was that of German Protestant theologian and lecturer Helmut Thielicke, who also was the rector of the University of Hamburg from 1960-1978. His sermons on the Lord's Prayer were delivered to congregations in Stuttgart during the punishing WW II air raids that the allies inflicted on Nazi Germany. They...
02 May The Lord’s Prayer Explained By Andrew Murray
Throughout Christian history, there have been various pastors and writers who have attempted to explain the meaning of The Lord's Prayer, as seen through the lens of their personal belief system and interpretation of the Gospels. Below you will find a short analysis written by the Reverend Andrew Murray in 1896. For a longer and more contemporary analysis, please read The Living Hour's Progressive...
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