Shane Claiborne's Blog, page 2

The Christian Industrial Complex

[image error]I went into a Christian bookstore the other day and was surprised to see some of the most prominent display space given over to military flags for the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines. These flags, and a vast…

A Season for Holy Mischief and Divine Conspiracy

photo © 2005 Gillian | more info (via: Wylio)Critiquing the thick irony of the Christmas season is fair. It's ludicrous that we celebrate the birth of the homeless baby Jesus by indulging in the biggest consumer spending of the year, scurrying around…

Buy Nothing Day as Advent Activism Against the Demon Mammon

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[Editors' Note: This blog post originally appeared on the God's Politics blog December 2, 2008.]

As per usual, on Friday, we had all sorts of Buy Nothing Day festivities (check out the video here). But that's not what I want to…

"Oh Say Can You See": Learning to Disagree in Love (Part I)

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The two authors of this blog post have been having a good conversation over the past six months and thought it might interest others as well. First, though, it seems like a good idea to give you a little background…

"Oh Say Can You See": Shane Claiborne and Jim Brenneman's Email Exchange (Part II)

[Editor's Note: Jim Brenneman is the president of Goshen College , a Mennonite school in Indiana. The Mennonite tradition is part of the historic peace churches committed to Christian nonviolence, simplicity, and a healthy suspicion of power and nationalism. Shane Claiborne…

Applauding Humility (and a Good Decision by Terry Jones)

Humility is not easy. After all it shares the same root word as "humiliation." But the humility that allows us to say we are sorry and to change our minds, or our actions, is central to the Christian faith. The…

Confusing our Kids

I catch up on my news in the airport.  Yesterday I watched this obscure story about a second grader in Rhode Island who wore a baseball cap to school with soldiers carrying guns on the front.  The school authorities ruled…

The Emerging Church Brand: The Good, the Bad, and the Messy

[Read more of this blog conversation in response to the Sojourners magazine article "Is the 'Emerging Church' for Whites Only?"]

First, I want to say I do not want to discourage those who have found renewed hope in Jesus and the Church…

War is Ugly, God is Good: What I Learned from the Truth Commission on Conscience in War

I can't imagine a better way to lament the 7th anniversary of the war in Iraq than by spending it with Iraq veterans who are horrified by the war and courageously speaking out against it. Not only did this past week…

Beauty and Ugliness in a Shooting's Aftermath

[image error]Something sort of mystical and magical happened after a 19-year-old kid named Papito was killed on our block a few weeks ago.  As our neighborhood ached and grieved and cried with his family, we began to create a memorial for…