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The following 63 entries are posted in the "Culture and the World" category.
May 12, 2010 14:08
This week my wife and I saw a performance of J. B. Priestley’s Dangerous Corner at the Vancouver Playhouse. A “modern classic” written in 1932, the play intends to question the viability of truth. Robert Caplan, the character at the centre of the...
February 25, 2010 15:13
I really enjoyed Rob Bell’s recent comments on preaching in Leadership, Tying the Clouds Together.
Bell has a compelling way of looking at the world. I’ve appreciated that in his willingness to engage truth as it is found in the world, he is car...
October 27, 2009 08:58
The theme of last weekend’s Evangelical Homiletics Society meetings was “preaching and community.” In a keynote EHS presentation, Leith Anderson offered the following relevant assumptions (among others)…
*Pr...
May 19, 2009 13:55
This past Sunday I had to preach about some controversial themes. I was working from Philippians 3:20, comparing our “citizenship in heaven” with my own identity as a citizen of Canada.
I enjoyed working on this sermon. The citizenship imagery o...
March 11, 2009 11:09
An article in The Christian Science Monitor is predicting a collapse of evangelicalism. Michael Spencer, a self-described “post-evangelical reformation Christian” predicts that, “We are on the verge – within 10 years – of a major collaps...
January 12, 2009 12:15
I’ve been getting a little more serious about facebook recently. On one hand, I’m delighted to be able to reconnect with so many old friends from different periods of my life. At the same time, I’m wondering if I haven’t fed a time-eating m...
January 09, 2009 15:03
Those interested in the application of postmodern critical theory and its application to preaching will want to consult Robert Kysar and Joe Webb’s Preaching to Postmoderns: New Perspectives for Proclaiming the Message. While the title might suggest...
December 01, 2008 18:22
I usually reserve my comments for issues related to preaching, so you will have to forgive me for taking a moment to vent my concern about the current crisis in the Canadian government. It is as embarrassing as it is worrying to contemplate the prospect of the two...
November 28, 2008 13:22
I read a fascinating column by Steve Maich in Macleans magazine this morning: Is this the future? Don’t bet on it. Maich picks up on some recent studies on the so-called “net generation” (born between 1980 and 2001) and this demographic’s s...
November 20, 2008 15:43
Whether or not you supported Barack Obama in the recent election, you have to appreciate him for his oratorical skill. Nurtured in the African-American preaching tradition, Obama inspires with his sweeping rhetoric. The man is a truly effective public speaker. Som...
November 17, 2008 19:38
My wife and I went to see Quantum of Solace last night, the new James Bond movie. Apparently we weren’t the only ones. Quantum has broken Bond box office records for a weekend opening, despite lukewarm reviews by much of the press.
T...
October 06, 2008 12:51
The first words I heard this morning were unpleasant. My clock is set to wake me with the radio each morning. The words I heard this morning were indeed, alarming. For several weeks now we have heard about foreclosures, bailouts, and the Dow(n)-Jones aver...
October 02, 2008 13:33
Here is an update on the campaign to overcome the tax prohibition against endorsing candidates from the pulpit.
As I said in a previous post, I support the traditional view, that preachers should be careful about naming names and picking parties from the p...
September 18, 2008 17:15
Last night I met with the board of WINGS Fellowship Ministries, a group that operates transition housing for woman suffering from abuse. I have been a part of the board since its inception – ten years now. In that time I have learne...
September 10, 2008 11:39
With election fever across North America, it might be helpful for us to consider how we guide our listeners from the pulpit. Traditionally, preachers have understood that while we should feel free to speak broadly about issues that are relevant from the perspectiv...
September 02, 2008 18:41
These are interesting times for people who like to follow politics. Here in Canada, we are anticipating a federal election in October, followed shortly thereafter by the Presidential election in the US this November. I have been following developments closely on b...
August 18, 2008 13:20
Maclean’s magazine, Canada’s national newsmagazine has recently published articles championing the value of marriage, suggesting the ‘surprising’ news that marriage is actually good for people and for society. In this week’s ...
August 08, 2008 12:59
Zach Eswine’s Preaching to a Post-Everything World is a worthy homage to his mentor Bryan Chapell and his seminal Christ-Centered Preaching. Eswine, who has taught for a number of years at Covenant Seminary in St. Louis, picks up the redemp...
July 24, 2008 12:58
I recently read a copy of The Word in this World: Two Sermons by Karl Barth, a new publication edited by Kurt Johanson. This slim volume reprints two of Barth’s seminal sermons, “On the Sinking of the Titanic (Psalm 103:15-17)” preached ...
April 03, 2008 11:40
From Glenn Watson’s preaching.org feature article
for April…
Sitting in a conference room in 2004 with three hundred aspiring European movie screenwriters, producers, directors and actors, I experienced, vividly...
February 13, 2008 15:26
I caught some of the congessional hearings on steriods in baseball this morning. It is a classic case of “he said” … “he said”, pitting ace Yankee pitcher Roger Clemens against his former trainer Brian McNamee. McNamee claims that he ...
February 12, 2008 13:48
It struck me the other night, while watching American Idol that we have created a culture of criticism. I was contentedly critiquing the performances of the various Idol-ites oblivious to the fact that I might have been even less qualified to comment on t...
November 11, 2007 07:45
November 11 is Remembrance Day in Canada, the day we set aside to remember the contribution made by those who have died in battle to preserve our way of life at home and abroad. This year, as the death toll in Afghanistan grows, Canadians are particularly aware of...
October 05, 2007 07:49
I recently received a copy of demographic information based on the 2006 Canadian Census. The results are no less interesting for the fact that they are predictable. Some key areas of interest…
-over 5.8 million Canadian taxfilers donated a record $7.9...
August 24, 2007 10:25
Mark Galli at Christianity Today is suggesting that we have better things to do than “transform the world.” There are a lot of people calling on the church to work to change the world, Galli says, which is going to lead to a very big disappoin...
August 14, 2007 11:16
Further to my thoughts posted yesterday, my problem is not so much with the idea that man-made greenhouse gas emissions are harming the environment. I’ve little question that it is true to some extent. My concern is with the difficulty we have in knowing. I&...
August 13, 2007 12:20
I’m a global warming skeptic. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not that I don’t care about the environment. As a child of God I understand my responsibility as a steward of creation and I take it seriously. It’s just that I’m not sure I...
August 09, 2007 11:05
Understanding the Bible requires a nuanced appreciation of the original cultures to which the text was given. I don’t like to overplay the distance between text and today. We are all, then and now, humans after all. Still, just like we moderate our communica...
July 26, 2007 11:10
I don’t know about things where you live, but it seems that most younger people around here spent the weekend reading the latest and final installment of the Harry Potter series. Christianity Today suggests that while the books offer far less than a gospel r...
June 14, 2007 11:52
There’s a lot of talk out there about some high profile “emerging” churches. We’re hearing about “progressional dialogue” preaching, worship stations, and other innovations. The implication seems to be that these things will cha...
May 14, 2007 12:35
Last week I attended a play that was written and performed by renowned Canadian artist, Robert Lepage. Lepage is the quintessential postmodern theatrical artist. For example, he and his company, Ex Machina, are working on a production called Lipsync, which eventua...
May 11, 2007 11:17
Here’s a fascinating video describing the way that language has changed in this digital age. As those who make their living wielding words, preachers ought to think about the way that language mediates meaning.
The Machine is Us/ing Us
February 28, 2007 11:22
Here we go again. It turns out that the newest archeological discovery to discredit the resurrection of Jesus is not so new. Serious archeologists, both secular and Christian, have known about the tomb for years and have discounted its relevance. That isn’t ...
February 27, 2007 11:32
I’ll admit it. I watched the Oscars Sunday night. I’m not into the cult of celebrity or anything like that, but as a preacher I am an observer of culture, and nothing displays the obsessions of our culture(s) like Oscar night. If it is true that more t...
February 14, 2007 12:16
This being Valentine’s Day, I thought I would share the results of a nationwide “love poll” published in this week’s issue of Macleans magazine. The poll addresses questions on love and relationships among Canadians. Some of the highlights ...
February 12, 2007 12:14
It’s Monday, so here’s a sampling of some of my thoughts emerging from the weekend.
-Last year the New York Times reported that for the first time in American history, there are more women living alone than with a spouse. There are any ...
February 09, 2007 14:46
Christianity Today gathered a group of prominent pastors together at this past summer’s National Pastor’s Conference to talk about preaching and consumerism. The panel included John Ortberg, Doug Pagitt, Will Willimon and Efrem Smith. To read the a...
January 31, 2007 11:26
Over the years I’ve learned to be a little suspicious of statistics – or at least the way that numbers can be manipulated. I don’t imagine many preachers would deliberately misrepresent their case by manipulating statistics. Nonetheless, it happe...
January 25, 2007 10:21
I received a call from a Macleans’ magazine reporter yesterday regarding my blog last week about “sermo-mercials.” I’ll be interviewed later today on the subject. I was thinking that in some ways, this is a compliment. It is a good thing th...
January 22, 2007 12:45
An item from the Baptist Press suggests that pastors may be out of touch with their world. While this might not strike us as news, it might be of some concern if pastors are less tuned in to the surrounding culture than their people are.
“Research rel...
January 17, 2007 11:50
Yesterday’s ‘Preaching Now’ email from Preaching magazine mentioned a new trend toward advertising from the pulpit:
“The newest advertising trend is aimed at your church. As a recent article in the Knowledge@Wharton (from the Wharton...
January 16, 2007 11:36
A church from my denomination has come under fire for hosting a professed former Islamic terrorist. Zachariah Anani gave a lecture at Campbell Baptist Church in Windsor, Ontario, titled “The Deadly Threat of Islam.” The speech created a firestorm resul...
January 04, 2007 14:13
The September 2006 issues of the Journal of the Evangelical Homiletics Society offers an interesting article by Nicholas Gatzke on the practice of preaching within the Emerging church. As with everything else in the Emerging movement, there is a variety of opinion...
December 14, 2006 11:49
Yesterday I spent some time working on a project to help people think about how to communicate more effectively in the postmodern context. The following items are some of my random thoughts regarding attitudes we ought to adopt if we want to be more effective in t...
November 10, 2006 09:47
In these days of muddled wars in Iraq and such places, most of us feel deeply conflicted about the justice of war and the place of combat for those who have been saved by the Prince of Peace. Suffice it to say that I am convinced that no human conflict, no matter ...
October 30, 2006 12:53
Last week’s issue of Macleans’ magazine carried an ominous headline on its cover: “Why the Future Belongs to Islam.” The article, an extended excerpt from Mark Steyn’s new book, America Alone, makes its case largely on demogr...
October 10, 2006 14:15
This morning, greeted by headlines about nuclear detonations in North Korea, I am reminded of our need to pray for peace. I will never forget visiting the DMZ separating North and South Korea a few years ago. It was heart-rending to watch...
October 03, 2006 12:42
Have you seen those creepy trailers for the award-winning new movie Jesus Camp? The movie follows three pre-teens to a Pentecostal Bible Camp in North Dakota. The portrayal is not flattering Jesus Camp.
I support Bible camps for children. I’v...
September 28, 2006 18:22
Local sports talk radio hosts were talking about Shawn Alexander’s injured foot today. Alexander, Seattle Seahawks MVP running back, is scheduled to miss at least two weeks action with a broken foot. According to the radio report, A...
September 26, 2006 12:25
A cheeky group of Christian advertisers from the UK have set up a myspace account for Jesus. Jesus is described as a 33 year old from the Middle East who lists his hobbies as beard care and extreme waterskiing. His favorite movie is Life of Brian and he i...
September 26, 2006 12:24
I’ll admit, I was one of the 19 million people who watched the first episode of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip on NBC. I even caught the second episode last night on Canadian television. I enjoyed the thoughtful political banter of The Wes...
September 21, 2006 13:09
Mid-term elections are coming up in the United States. Here in Canada we are expecting a federal election in the spring. I love elections. I’m always interested in learning how people use the opportunity to try and persuade others to their point of view and ...
September 14, 2006 11:51
The fifth anniversary of the 9/11 tragedy has shone a light on the dark underside of western civilizationi’s fascination with conspiracy. In the name of truth, large numbers of seekers pursue the most ridiculous lunacies so as to support their own cherished ...
August 26, 2006 12:40
Is the age of the blockbuster over? Not quite, according to Chris Anderson, author of The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More (www.amazon.com). In the age of Amazon and iTunes we can offer everything even if sales are not strong....
August 19, 2006 14:55
Here in Canada, most of the recent news has focused on the International AIDS Conference held this week in Toronto featuring high profile appearances by people like Bill Gates and Bill Clinton. Not surprisingly, however, faith-based group...
August 11, 2006 15:45
Minutes ago I heard Bill Hybels interview Bono at the Willow Creek Leadership Summit, currently being simulcast to almost 80,000 leaders worldwide. Something has happened to the church at large if all of its leaders are now into U2. I’ve got all those sermon...
August 10, 2006 15:22
Personally, I’m inclined to be generous. It’s not always a good thing in a professor – depending on your perspective. Come grading time, I tend to give the student the benefit of the doubt which tends to make them happy and happy students tend to...
August 10, 2006 15:20
Preaching is undervalued. If “Homiletics” was a stock on the Nasdaq it would carry a strong “sell” recommendation from most pundits. Many just aren’t sure that the sermon can carry the freight. As preachers we are trying to build beli...
August 10, 2006 15:20
Recently I picked up my copy of John S. McLure’s Other-Wise Preaching (Chalice 2001), a book that had attracted me a couple of years ago because of its creative title. McLure’s goal had been to describe a “postmodern ethic of preaching.&...
August 10, 2006 15:13
If you are struggling to understand the “emergent church” and its attempt to meet the challenge of postmodern culture, try the following resources.
Burke, Spencer and Colleen Pepper, Making Sense of Church: Eavesdropping on Emerging Conversations about ...
August 10, 2006 15:00
Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. As men moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there. They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and ta...
August 10, 2006 14:55
“Have you heard about the Royal Rumble?”
“What’s the Royal Rumble?”
“You haven’t heard about the Royal Rumble???”
I was listening to my son respond to his eight year old friend in the back seat.<...
August 10, 2006 14:52
“In 1993 the United States’ National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) released the results of the National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS). The survey tested participants in their ability with prose (edi...