Sign in with Facebook
The book of Acts speaks of revolution. We must never forget this. It depicts life in the disrupting presence of the Spirit of God.
“Taylor is not only interested in understanding how “the secular” emerged; he is also an acute observer of how we’re all secular now. The secular touches everything. It not only makes unbelief possible; it also changes belief—it impinges upon Christianity (and all religious communities). So Taylor’s account also diagnoses the roots and extent of Christianity’s assimilation—and hints at how we might cultivate resistance.”
― How (Not) to Be Secular: Reading Charles Taylor
― How (Not) to Be Secular: Reading Charles Taylor
“First, there are a lot of those children. The Millennial generation, those Americans born between 1980 and 2000, is the largest generation in America’s history. They are seventy-eight million strong. And though only about one out of four attend church with any degree of consistency, there are still almost twenty million or more who will show up at a church. And guess who is coming to church with the Millennials? Their kids. Some call them Gen Z, and others call them iGen. In Jean Twenge’s book, iGen, she describes this generation in this subtitle: “Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy—and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood.” Whew. While the author offers some fascinating insights to the kids of this generation, one thing about them is totally clear: Their parents want them safe and protected wherever they are, including church.”
― Becoming a Welcoming Church
― Becoming a Welcoming Church
“Peter Brown concludes: Constantine’s “conversion” was a very “Roman” conversion . . . Worship of the Christian God had brought prosperity upon himself and would bring prosperity upon the empire . . . He was over 40 and an experienced politician when he finally declared himself a Christian. He had had time to take the measure of the new religion and the difficulties which emperors had experienced in suppressing it. He decided that Christianity was a religion fit for a new empire. 66”
― Post-Christendom: Church and Mission in a Strange New World
― Post-Christendom: Church and Mission in a Strange New World
“So if you really expect to see younger families visit your church, you absolutely must demonstrate that your church is safe, secure, and sanitary. In fact, I just spoke with a Millennial who told me she was not taking her kids back to a particular church because the toys were so unsanitary. “It was a literal breeding ground for germs and diseases,” she told me. “I will never return there.”
― Becoming a Welcoming Church
― Becoming a Welcoming Church
“Over time, however, the Christendom shift involved150: • The adoption of Christianity as the official religion of city, state, or empire. • Movement of the church from the margins to the center of society. • The creation and progressive development of a Christian culture or civilization. • The assumption that all citizens (except Jews) were Christian by birth. • The development of a “sacral society,” corpus Christianum, where there was no freedom of religion and political power was divinely authenticated. • The definition of “orthodoxy” as the belief all shared, determined by powerful church leaders with state support. • Imposition, by legislation and custom, of a supposedly Christian morality on the entire society (though normally Old Testament morality was applied). • Infant baptism as the symbol of obligatory incorporation into Christian society. • The defense of Christianity by legal sanctions to restrain heresy, immorality, and schism. • A hierarchical ecclesiastical system, based on a diocesan and parish arrangement, analogous to the state hierarchy and buttressed by state support. • A generic distinction between clergy and laity, and relegation of laity to a largely passive role. • Two-tier ethics, with higher standards of discipleship (“ evangelical counsels”) expected of clergy and those in religious orders. • Sunday as an official holiday and obligatory church attendance, with penalties for noncompliance. • The requirement of oaths of allegiance and oaths in law courts to encourage truth-telling. • The construction of massive and ornate church buildings and the formation of huge congregations. • Increased wealth for the church and obligatory tithes to fund the system. • Division of the globe into “Christendom” and “heathendom” and wars waged in the name of Christ and the church. • Use of political and military force to impose Christianity, regardless of personal conviction. • Reliance on the Old Testament, rather than the New, to justify these changes.”
― Post-Christendom: Church and Mission in a Strange New World
― Post-Christendom: Church and Mission in a Strange New World
Clint’s 2024 Year in Books
Take a look at Clint’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
201 books
|
80 friends
566 books
|
120 friends
9,003 books
|
101 friends
1,671 books
|
1,607 friends
1,148 books
|
151 friends
3,597 books
|
61 friends
183 books
|
149 friends
196 books
|
66 friends
More friends…
Polls voted on by Clint
Lists liked by Clint
