Everything That Rises

Today I went to a certain Christian bookstore to pick up some communion wafers (yes, wafers. NOT those little chick-let-Jesus-crackers), and they were giving away free samples of "The Celebration Cup." I've heard rumors that these sort of things existed, so I thought I'd take one and check it out. I have to say, it makes me hate those little plastic cups we Baptists use even more! So here's the thing itself, unopened. Note the card listing the ingredients. The body of Christ broken for you...? The bubbles are real--as is the gross, brownish color. And here's the whole thing disassembled (?). Am I wrong for being somewhat grossed out? I realize that I may be a wee bit more sacramentally inclined than many Baptists, but I think this is taking things too far. Should communion be "made easy"? After all, aren't we remembering/reflecting/celebrating/experiencing the crucifixion and death of the Son of God when we gathe

Why the Church needs Women…especially in leadership. (This is in response to Rachel Held Evans’ call to respond to John Piper’s words.) So it’s been popular lately for certain evangelical “celebrities” to go on the offensive with their so-called “masculine” approach to Christianity. They claim that God intended the Church to have a “masculine feel.” They claim that Scripture clearly teaches that men—and only men—should hold positions of leadership within the Church, that wives should submit to their husbands, and those men should submit to the men who lead their congregations (often without question), and then those men are ultimately submissive to God (who is of course the biggest man, who can bench press two city buses while chewing tobacco and kicking someone’s @$$ with his tatted leg). While there are an overwhelming number of people who support this point of view, I have to be honest, I can’t stand it! While those who tout this point of view and spout a handful o