And when all the crowds who had gathered there for this spectacle saw what had taken place, they returned home, beating their breasts. Luke, on the whole, takes a more generous view of the witnesses of the Passion than the other Evangelists. There is little indication in the other gospels, for...
Luke 23:44-45
posted by DJL
It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, while the sun’s light failed; and the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Heaven and earth itself give witness to the turn of the ages and climax of history that takes place at our Lord’s death....
Free e-Book on the C...
posted by DJL
My friend and fellow Twin Citian theologian Tony Jones wrote a short ebook on the cross last year. Called A Better Atonement, it’s a relatively quick read – as far as theology books go! – and gets at the question of the meaning and significance of the cross in relation to...
Theology as Conversation
posted by DJL
“I’ve got a problem with orthodoxy!” So began a recent and really enjoyable conversation with some of the congregational leaders in the Northeastern Pennsylvania Synod (ELCA). The pastor who made this declaration went on to explain that he finds theological doctrines regularly stifling to the kind of vibrant questions and conversations about the life of faith he encourages his congregation to have. Which led to an extended discussion about the possibly of thinking about the history of theology itself actually as an extended conversation, a conversation that began long before we arrived on the scene and that will continue...
Good Friday – What Does it Mean?
posted by DJL
When you think about it, it’s an incredibly odd name: Good Friday. This is, after all, the day on which Jesus was crucified, nailed to a wooden cross until he died. It is the day nearly two thousand years later on which we remember his suffering. It is the day we read the story of his trial, sentencing, crucifixion, and death. It is the day we hear of how all of his companions and friends either betrayed, denied, or abandoned him. How can this day be good? Because, we confess, that in and through Jesus’ life and death God acted in a unique way to save the world. For this reason, and for this reason only, do we make bold to call this...