Northwoods Seelsorger

While searching for a review of works by Dr. Bart D. Ehrman , an acknowledged agnostic and seeming enemy of Christian truth, I ran across a comment I simply had to save and share here.  It has to do with the value of atheism.  I'll let the commenter, John Murphy, speak for himself: It is certainly true that Mr. Ehrman is inimical to historical Christianity, and through his books is trying to destroy confidence in the Scriptures (good luck at that Bart). What I find...curious about guys like him and this web page is their eagerness to draw others along with them. To what end, I wonder. Why are you so worked up about what you obviously believe is a myth? Why waste so much energy? Especially when your own alternative is so bleak. We live, we die, we rot. Wow, now there's a worldview that should catch on quickly. It reminds me of the penguins in the movie Madagascar. They spend the whole movie in an intense, excited attempt to stow away on a ship for Antarctic...

After 30 years with the same corporate logo and color 'palate' the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod has decided to completely change its color.  Out with the familiar burgundy and in with royal blue.  Some thought it was an April Fool's Day joke , but it's now beginning to sink in that the change may be for real.  It makes little sense to me, no more than trying to change the name of the denomination itself (See my Feb. 24 post "Re-Branding a Religion - Is It a Good Thing to Do?" ).  But then I wasn't part of the 'focus groups' that designed the change.  Since the cross doesn't decorate anything obvious at my church we have nothing to change.  But for those who designed their church signs and everything else with the logo..... If you want the official explanation for the change, go to the LCMS Brand and Logo Center .

Regardless of prevailing opinions and criticisms, one cannot deny that Rick Warren is a dominant figure on the American religious landscape.  Jeffrey Sheler's book Prophet of Purpose: the Life of Rick Warren effectively chronicles the rise of this ecclesiastical star, tracing his early influences to his current fame (as of 2009) as the Billy Graham successor and church growth wunderkind.  It offers a fascinating read for those interested in learning the background of what leads to the mercurial rise of the famous and successful.  Sheler, however, does not omit the struggles or the missteps along the way, and one is afforded a picture of a man, while confident in his future, nevertheless finds himself almost unprepared for the inevitable fame.  The title seems well chosen, considering that his seminal work, the Purpose Driven Life, is the defining statement of his theology and the direction of his life and ministry.  Warren is undoubtedly a man driven by pragma...