Categories
Faith

The Gospel of Pastor Mark Driscoll

So Mark Driscoll, right? Eh. I’ve never been the blogger who jumps on every controversy du jour with a quick take that will get easy traffic. After watching the Driscollversies roll like choking waves week after week lately I might as well offer my take. Driscoll is a controversial preacher from Mars Hill which is […]

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Faith

Doomsday Christians

I was a young high school student in November of 1992 when Bill Clinton won the presidency. I remember being terrified that night because I went to a conservative Christian school and had listened to some authority figures warning about the destruction of America if Clinton were to win the election. The next day one […]

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Movies Pop Culture

Mama vs. The Ring (or How to Pay a Story Off)

Mama, the new horror film from producer Guillermo del Toro opened this weekend. Overall, it’s a great horror film that will definitely creep you out. The film has a lot going for it – the effects are great, plenty of smart, atmospheric tension and scares, and a message about the dangers of helicopter parenting aimed […]

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Faith Pop Culture

Brian “Head” Welch of Love and Death

Of all the artists I interviewed last year, Brian Welch of Love and Death (formerly of Korn) was one of my favorites. I wanted to run this interview a while ago after launching the new site but once I found out about the band signing with a new label (Tooth & Nail) I decided to […]

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American History Faith

Life Lessons from Martin Luther King Jr.

“I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be, and you can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be.” ~ Martin Luther King, Jr. We so often think of Martin Luther King Jr. as a leader and speaker that we […]

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StoryMen

Episode 5 – What Wouldn’t Jesus Watch?

In This Episode: 00:00 – Legalized Marijuana and the Death Star 4:00 – What we’ve been reading (spoiler: Stephen King) 8:00 – Back to school with the StoryMen 14:15 – What 2012 film would you use to start a spiritual conversation? (plus the Golden Globes, how The Grey scares us, and why we hated Brave) […]

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Faith

The Arrogant Jesus I Follow

One of my students I’ve known better than most attended four classes of mine at two different colleges on the way to his degree. He’s crazy smart and always challenges me to think. As we became friends in recent years our conversations often turned to philosophy and spiritual matters. He considers himself agnostic but only […]

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Movies Pop Culture

Zero Dark Thirty vs. Gangster Squad: Does Right Make Might?

The end of a story is always a huge clue to how we should interpret that story. Comparing the endings of two films that released (to wider audiences, anyway) against each other this weekend makes for a fascinating comparison, especially since both films are asking the same question. Zero Dark Thirty is the Oscar-nominated story […]

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Books Faith Pop Culture

Top 10 Books of 2012

Here are my picks for the best books of 2012, in no particular order. The titles link to my reviews (if available) or to Amazon : Selling Water by the River by Shane Hipps I haven’t gotten to post my review of this book yet, but it was one of the best surprises of 2012. […]

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Movies Pop Culture

Top 10 Films of 2012

The Dark Knight Rises It’s no surprise, so I’ll list it first. I wrote eight separate pieces discussing themes in The Dark Knight Rises, and for good reason. This film is in my top 10 not just because I’m obsessed with Batman, but because it’s easily the most ambitious film of the year. It’s a […]