Everything That Rises

It's a question I've been asking myself a lot lately. I've been teaching our folks on Wednesday nights what it means to be a Baptist, and it's not that I disagree with what it is to be a Baptist--far from it. I suppose what I'm struggling with is what being a Baptist actually looks like. Perhaps it would help to explain how I came to be a Baptist before I dive into my own conflict with the branding placed on my faith in Christ. --- I wasn't raised Baptist; to be fair, I wasn't raised anything. Sure, I grew up in the Bible Belt, and in the earliest years (ages 0-3, 1984-1987) of my life my dad's family all went to church together at a rural, Southern Baptist Church, but there isn't a single, full memory I have of ever going to church with my family. In fact, I didn't really begin regularly attending church until the summer after I graduated high school, a time when I was in desperate need of direction and community. I attended a Baptist church ...

Here's a link to my recent contribution to the "Religion Roundtable" for the Anniston Star : click here . I'm asked to contribute (along with the local Imam) about once every 4-5 weeks.

Doors. Have you ever given any thought to how many doors you walk through in a given day? It’s likely you walked through several doors inside your home this morning, only to walk out the door to get into your car or on the bus (through a door). I counted the other day, and, not including cabinets, we have thirteen doors in our home (and our house isn’t very big): thirteen doors, three of which are exterior doors.             Have you ever given any thought to what a door actually does? I suppose we’re so used to them being there, so used to them opening at the turn of a key and the twist of a knob, but doors are actually quite vital to our current, comfortable way of life. You see, doors keep things out, things we don’t want inside with us. Imagine if your home didn’t have a door—just an opening; you’d likely wake up in the morning with squirrels in the pantry, mosquitoes swarming the bathroom, and neighborhood dogs digging thro...

Recently, I was asked to contribute to a weekly feature in a local newspaper. Below is my response to the question: "What religious figure most inspires you?" Aside from the obvious influence of Jesus Christ and all the well-known heroes and heroines of Christian history, I would say that the religious figure who most inspires me is Clarence Jordan. Jordan held a Ph.D. in biblical languages (which he used in translating The Cotton Patch Version of the New Testament ), yet he spent most of his life on a farm in Americus, Georgia, a community he and his wife started with another couple in 1942. The name of their new community was Koinonia , a Greek word meaning “fellowship” used in the New Testament to describe the gathering of believers. Koinonia was (and still is) a place where people of all races were welcome to live in a community grounded in the love of Christ. It began during a time when racism was considered a virtue by many in the South. Jordan understood the g...

From www.reverendfun.com 

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...