Patrik Olterman Rodhe's Blog, page 18

The things Pope Francis did not say…

The last couple of days there has been a post circulating on the internet with a bunch of statements allegedly made by the current Pope. People are upset that a pope would say such things (although he didn´t) and what it would mean for Christianity at large. Other people are praising the Pope for these statements sharing their relief that, here we have at least one pope that makes sense.

Now let me be clear, the Pope did not say these things, the statements are said to have been made at Vatica...

Jesus was not a Christian!

It may seem an obvious statement for anyone who, like me, have studied the scriptures at any depth. Jesus was a Jew and most Christians would readily admit this fact. But as obvious as it may be we still tend to think of Jesus as a Christian, because, lets face it what else would he be? He founded Christianity, didn’t he?

Etymologically it doesn’t make any sense
Christian means little Christ or Christ-like. Jesus was Christ and cannot be Christ-like or a smaller version of himself. If Jesus lo...

To be embraced …

That you would embrace me

That you would surround me your divine light

That is bliss to me

That you would surrender to my embrace

That you would allow me to lead you in our dance

That is to wondrous for words

That you would look at me and smile

That you would accept me as your equal

That is to me a miracle

Oh beloved how I wait for you to do it again!

Notes from (over) the edge – book review

So this last week I have been reading the long anticipated book: Notes from (over) the edge by Jim Palmer. This is a very different book than Jim’s other work. It feels like Jim lifted the curtain and let us peak behind into his mind and his thinking that has fuelled the rest of his work. Although I suspect that while the notes are indeed the fuel and thought behind the other books, the other books and the walk that has produced them is what has formed the notes.

Jim writes, in notes, not with...

We need to cuddle more!

We all know we need closeness, connection and human touch, here are ten reasons why we should intentionally introduce embracing, hugging and cuddling as a practice in our lives. After you read this post of why, think about how you will implement the art of long embraces and cuddles in your daily life and community.

This post is not written by me but happily pirated from This site

A Happier Life

We’ve all seen the self-help books and heard about the ways to make our lives a little happier, howev...

Looking back before turning the page…

I am guessing that when one is turning forty it is normal to look back and evaluate, how far one has come and what has prompted ones development thus far. In one sense I don’t think that my fortieth is any different from any other birthday, it simply is another step forward.

Still I look back at the spiritual and theological roller coaster I have been on the last couple of years (and I really mean the last couple of years, If I where to reach back further the list of people whom I could not ha...

Falling upwards

I don’t know how it happened, but it did. Suddenly I was forty and the numbers on the cake do not lie. It is strange to wake up and realise that my body is forty even though on the inside I still feel like seventeen.

I have had a great week, last tuesday (my birthday) I was surprised by some of the people that are closest to me that had flown in just to be part of my celebration. I was surrounded by love, gentleness and warm embraces all week. I have spent the time in deep conversation, felt d...

Is god opposed to pleasure?

In recent conversations the topic of pleasure has come up time and time again. It seems that from a Christian point of view we are as a community ambivalent about god’s view on pleasure.

It seems that somewhere deep down we do believe that although god is good and want good things for us, we still have a hard time believing that god would want us to experience pleasure.

As I was thinking about this I ran across this jubilant ending of Psalm 16:

You show me the path of life. In your presence the...

Why authentic Christianity must fail

A depressing title I know, but please bear with me and hear me out. After four years in a church plant where we desperately are trying to model and live out an authentic Christianity at the same time as we are trying to build a church community, I have come to realise that authentic christianity is the worst church growth tool ever.

We live in a materialistic post-secular society and although there is an awakening to spirituality, it is more often than not to a self-help, self realising spirit...