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I didn’t see why my religious concerns should have any bearing on whether my fellow citizens enjoyed the same rights and privileges as I did under the law.
I believe this is the crux of the distinction between religion and being spiritual.
“To refuse this welcome, to exclude rather than include, to see other people and nations and cultures as lesser—Jesus tells us that is the definition of hell.”
― Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love
― Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love
“Loving God also helps me fully embrace myself and all that God has created me to be. Thomas Merton tells us that this is the truth at the heart of spirituality: “If I find God”
― Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love
― Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love
“The point that must be remembered is that most of political and church history has been controlled and written by people on the right because they are normally the people in control. One of the few subversive texts in history, believe it or not, is the Bible. The Bible is a most extraordinary text because, again and again, it legitimates, not the people on the top, but invariably the people on the bottom or those who move toward those on the bottom—from Abraham to Moses to Jeremiah to Job to John the Baptist to Jesus. It has taken an amazing degree of denial and selective attention to miss this quite-obvious alternative pattern.”
― Yes, and...: Daily Meditations
― Yes, and...: Daily Meditations
“Maybe you’ve heard that sin means “missing the mark.” This doesn’t just mean “doing the wrong thing.” It means missing the whole point of life. “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23), because life is about love and connection, and sin is what disconnects us from God, ourselves, and each other. Sin is forgetting that we are all a part of this together. The alienation and estrangement of sin is its own punishment—it always leads to death.”
― Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love
― Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love
“So many Christians, especially evangelicals, tend to make the Bible about the afterlife, which causes them to interpret everything Jesus said to be about heaven or hell. But really, the Bible is about this life. The narrow gate isn’t about going to heaven, and the wide gate isn’t about going to hell. It’s about treating people in this world the way we would want to be treated. We want health care for ourselves and our loved ones, so we should want everyone to have health care. We wouldn’t want bombs dropping on our babies, so we should demand that our country stop dropping bombs on other people’s babies. This difficult practice of solidarity and love—love for oneself, one’s neighbors, and even one’s enemies—leads to life: the wholeness and flourishing of the beloved community.”
― Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love
― Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love
Randy’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Randy’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
14 books
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1,962 friends
361 books
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44 friends
460 books
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64 friends
465 books
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80 friends
2,065 books
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101 friends
724 books
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55 friends
276 books
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79 friends
94 books
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25 friends
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