Doctor Strange
Doctor Strange (2016; Directed by Scott Derrickson), has just become available on Netflix. I decided I would watch it and went in without high expectations. I expected too many fight scenes and not enough metaphor. Perhaps the former was true, but I also found sufficient metaphor and story to keep my interest. I did not…
Continue readingAm I Being Offensive?
I have been thinking a lot about how Christians can speak of their faith in a pluralistic culture that views truth-claims as suspect. Some Christians would say that if we are not offending anyone we are merely being “nice Canadians” who want to stay on good terms with everyone. These Christians believe that we are…
Continue readingFollow-up to Gifts For A King
I have shared these lyrics on this site before. They are still a suitable follow-up to yesterday’s topic. How Many Kings (Written by Marc Martel and Jason Germain; 2006 Centricity Music Publishing/Germain and Martel Music Publishing/ASCAP) (Listen here while reading the lyrics.) Follow the star to a place unexpected Would you believe after all we’ve…
Continue readingGifts to a King
When you are king of Israel you dare not make casual comments or hint that you would like something. King David learned this and we can read about it in Second Samuel.1 It was a warm fall day and David said something like, “You know what would taste good right now? Some water from the…
Continue readingMan of Steel
I went to see Man of Steel yesterday and I found myself comparing it to The Dark Knight Rises. Both Superman and Batman are characters that originated in comic books so one would expect the stories to be equally over the top with comic book violence and destruction. Yet, somehow, The Dark Knight Rises comes…
Continue readingAJ or JC?
A man in a rural region near Kingaroy, Queensland, Australia has made an extreme claim. He says he is Jesus, yes, the Christ, and that his partner is Mary Magdalene. He claims to remember the crucifixion and the emotions of Mary as she watched. He remembers resurrecting several people including Lazarus. AJ Miller now runs…
Continue readingNouwen on Forgiving the Church
In a time when many would say they are Christians without attending any expression of the Body of Christ, these words of Henri Nouwen are very appropriate. When we have been wounded by the Church, our temptation is to reject it. But when we reject the Church it becomes very hard for us to keep…
Continue readingLost Community
We have lost a good deal of our sense of community. If we think of changing the world at all, we think of doing it by ourselves and for ourselves. How much of our sense of “injustice in the world” is directly or indirectly related to the limitations this injustice places upon our own lives?…
Continue readingDark Knight
I went to see The Dark Knight Rises1 a few nights ago. This, of course, is the most recent film adaptation of the Batman legend and although the movie has been in theatres for a while this was my first opportunity to see the picture. This blog will contain spoilers so if you have not…
Continue readingJesus On the Train
Music and Lyrics by Mike Charko and Keith Shields (SOCAN 2012) (Click here to listen to this song) (or here) I saw Jesus on the train today. He looked right through me with a piercing stare. I didn’t expect him to look that way. He asked me to love the people on the train. I saw…
Continue reading