“Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” (1 Cor 13:12)
Being Evangelical, can we doubt? Or to put it in another way: Can we seek truth without certainty?
Not to confuse with that idea that there is no absolute truth out there, I am simply asking if we can admit that we don’t necessary have all the answers all the time, and that our seemingly bullet-proof system of faith, no matter what we call it, can still be wrong.
Not because God is wrong, but because as fallen human, we can be wrong.
In fact, doubt has always been our drive for truth. I believe a person can be evangelical through and through and continues to have intellectual struggles and real doubts in life. For a real Evangelical is committed to truth, as well as the search for it.
On the other hand, I do see a lot more Christians who think they have all the answers, and yet they have no real passion to seek for truth. Not only in matters of faith, but in ordinary life. Truckloads of easy answers readily available to every circumstances. Doubts are suppressed — “Oh don’t you worry! When in doubt, rest assured that someone else must have the answer already, and they are still believing, aren’t they?”
Architects Herzog & de Meuron, the guys who brought you the “bird’s nest” in China, have unveiled their design for a triangular building in the Porte de Versailles area of Paris, France. Completion is planned for 2014.
It seems these days, Christians have been asked to stand behind their political perspectives with unprecedented fervor. Even within the Christian community, there is stark contrast and heated discussion. And whether you find yourself aligning more closely with the views of Senator McCain or Obama, it’s likely that your decision was not made lightly.
So, does this make the Christians appear defensive and too political, in the eyes of the general public?
Gabe Lyons and Dave Kinnaman have re-released their chapter speaking into these compelling discoveries of unChristian. This chapter, called “Too Political,” includes research regarding the perception of Christians and their role in the current political environment. Hear the authors discuss new research on this very timely topic in a Fermi Podcast, here.
The free chapter, called “Too Political,” is available for download as a PDF on www.unchristian.com.
US or Canada, as we are approaching the election, I think it is worthwhile to take a look at the issues and perceptions.
From time to time, I will suggest some events and/or happenings in various places that might be of your interest. I have added a seperate page “Events & Happenings“, so you can view them within the next 13-week period, together with link to the original post.
On behalf of JCCSA (Jubilee Centre for Christian Social Action 銀禧社), greetings in the Lord!
2008 Federal Election is fast approaching. According to Election Canada, young voter turnout is at an unprecedented low, in the federal election in 2000, young voter turnout was approximately 25%. In order to further understand this phenomenon, JCCSA is conducting a survey to ascertain the perspectives of our young voters.
We would like to invite the young adults ranging 18-30 years of age in your community to participate in this survey. A survey has been developed in our website, www.jccsa.org or you can forward this link directly http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=nxO4wE1opcmKZKmzZUgiXQ_3d_3d to the young adults in your community. Please note that the survey end date is October 6, 2008.
On Friday November 14th [New date], we will be screening the Ordinary Radicals film at the Bloor Cinema in downtown Toronto. Director Jamie Moffett will be with us in the audience, and ready to answer your questions after the film.
Jamie compiled much of the footage from this film while touring with Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw on their Jesus for President tour, including their stop in Toronto at the end of June.
The film features interviews with: Becky Garrison, Shane Claiborne, Jim Wallis, Brian McLaren, Tony Campolo, Rob Bell, John Perkins, Brooke Sexton, Michael Heneise, St. Margret Mckenna, Logan Laituri, Zack Exley, Aaron Weiss and our very own Brian Walsh.
In the margins of the United States (and Canada), there lives a revolutionary Christianity. One with a quiet disposition that seeks to do “small things with great love,” and in so doing is breaking 21st Century stereotypes surrounding this 2000 year old faith. “The Ordinary Radicals” is set against the modern American political and social backdrop of the next Great Awakening. Traveling on a tour to promote the book “Jesus for President”, Shane Claiborne and a rag-tag group of “ordinary radicals” interpret Biblical history and its correlation with the current state of American politics. Sharing a relevant outlook for people with all faith perspectives, director Jamie Moffett examines this growing movement.
As Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw write in the book, “This is not a set of political suggestions for the world; this is about invoking and embodying the alternative. All of this is an invitation to join a peculiar people- those with no king but God, who practice jubilee economics and make the world new. This is not the old-time religion of going to heaven; this is about bringing heaven to the world.”
