New “Bach at the Sem” season opens this Sunday, Oct 10
The first Bach at the Sem concert of the season will take place this Sunday, October 10, at 3:00 p.m. in the Chapel of St. Timothy and St. Titus on the Concordia Seminary campus
On churches, ladders, and living in community
I drive passed it every morning and evening to and from work. First Presbyterian Church in University City currently displays a massive sculpture of ladders in its front lawn at Delmar Blvd and Midland Blvd. Assembled by sculptor Charlie Brouwer , they’re calling it Transcend2010 . I finally got a chance to walk through it this past weekend
Christwire: “The Onion” for Christians?
Christwire.org has become a popular Web site for news and reporting with an ultraconservative Christian slant. And it’s all one big joke. I have to confess I was completely unaware of Christwire until I ran across the New York Times article that outed the identities of Christwire’s founders, Bryan Butvidas and Kirwin Watson
Concordia Journal Currents – August 2010
An interview with Robert Fryling, author of “The Leadership Ellipse”
“Ragman” now available on DVD
A little over a year ago, I wrote here about the premiere of the short film “Ragman.” Now, with over 25 international film festivals on its cart, two awards and a finalist for a third, “Ragman” is finally available on DVD . The film, directed by local artist Dale Ward (I was the production designer), is a direct adaptation of the well-known parable by renowned writer Walter Wangerin . Simply, it is a subtle story of grace and transformation
No more Protestants? Elena Kagan and faith on the Supreme Court
So the story has been kind of buried with all the other news making the headlines, but it’s still worth talking about. With the retirement of John Paul Stevens and the impending confirmation of Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court, the Court faces the prospect of not having a Protestant justice for the first time in its history
The Bible as literature: Bob Dylan and the near-sacrifice of Isaac
Oh God said to Abraham, “Kill me a son” Abe says, “Man, you must be puttin’ me on” God say, “No.” Abe say, “What?” God say, “You can do what you want Abe, but The next time you see me comin’ you better run” Well Abe says, “Where do you want this killin’ done?” God says, “Out on Highway 61” The word of the Lord according to Bob Dylan, in the opening lines from the title track of his landmark album Highway 61 Revisited . It is a sly and menacing retelling of the famous episode of Abraham’s near-sacrifice of his son Isaac from Genesis 22 . And Dylan sets it along the famous highway of the blues that stretches along the Mississippi River from New Orleans up almost to Canada. It is the highway where legend has it Robert Johnson sold his soul to the devil to play the…
Looking for a summer read? The American Mind Meets the Mind of Christ
…is the title of the newest book from the Concordia Seminary Press. The American Mind Meets the Mind of Christ is a collection of essays edited by renowned scholar Robert Kolb . Here’s the synopsis from the back cover: Whether it is an altar to an unknown god or the New Atheists, Christians have always faced the challenge of translating the Gospel message within the surrounding culture. This is no less true for the tangled web that is 21st century America
The Bible as literature: the King James, Psalm 46, and Shakespeare
The “Chandos portrait” of Shakespeare Last night I taught our first class in a course entitled “The Bible as Literature” in Wash U’s University College . So don’t be surprised if there’s a few posts here over the next weeks with that title before the colon. One of my basic theses for the course is that perhaps the most foundational event in the history of English-speaking literature was the translation of the Bible into the Authorized Version, otherwise known as the “King James.” Shakespeare is a very close second. To illustrate my point, we played a famous little game with the King James version of Psalm 46
Thank you, BP, for deconstructing my faith in technology
Technology trying to save technology. (Photo credit: Reuters) The recent capping of the oil well in the Gulf of Mexico aside, now the Coast Guard says the clean up will take years . And even with the cap, oil is still spilling into the Gulf
World War I, the Supreme Court, and a cross in the Mojave desert: what does this mean?
So, I’ll pick up a hot potato: In what seems like it is becoming a typical 5-to-4 decision last week , the Supreme Court decided in Salazar v. Buono that the World War I memorial—or more precisely, the cross that is part of the memorial—that stands in the Mojave National Preserve is not unconstitutional and does not advance a particular religion…
How one seminary celebrated Earth Day
Getting ready to plant 75 trees at Concordia Seminary. Credit: Diane Meyer/Respublica “Christ is risen! Christ will come again! Let’s go plant some trees!” Which is exactly what we did at Concordia Seminary today. 75 of them. Our chapel preacher, Chuck Arand , summoned us to the stewardship of creation with the words above
The Medart is dead
John's Town Hall, RIP My good friend and colleague Chris Born and I walked a few blocks from Concordia Seminary today to have lunch at one of our regular haunts, John’s Town Hall , on Skinker in the Dorchester. The place was empty. Closed
Seeing God in the movies
“The Dude abides.” It’s a topic that, in one way or another, we’ve talked about numerous times in this blog, like here , here , here , or here . Or you could just see them all in the movies category. It’s also the name of a seminar I will be team-teaching on the four Tuesday nights of April. The course carries this premise: “Even if God isn’t mentioned, nearly every film contains an implied theology.” And we’ll look at plenty of examples to prove that thesis: “Citizen Kane,” Ingmar Bergman, “Star Wars,” Woody Allen, Spike Lee, “Toy Story,” the Coen brothers…you name it
Dante’s Inferno and the simulacrum of hell
I haven’t owned a video gaming system since my parents got my brother and me the original Nintendo. But I’ve seen the commercials for “Dante’s Inferno” a number of times now, and I confess I’m captivated. Not that I intend to buy it. The real Dante’s Inferno is one of the great works of world literature, and still defines much of our visual mythology of hell. (This despite the fact that, for Dante, hell was freezing cold rather than burning hot.)..
Latina ethics scholar to speak at Concordia Seminary
María Teresa Dávila Noted ethics scholar Dr. María Teresa Dávila will speak at Concordia Seminary tomorrow night, Thursday, March 18, at 7:00PM. A professor at Andover Newton Theological School, she will be giving the fifth Annual Lecture in Hispanic/Latino Theology and Missions of Concordia’s Center for Hispanic Studies (CHS). The theme for Dr. Dávila’s lecture is “ Unión, Reunión y Comunión : Latino/a Religious Diversity and the Wager of Ecumenical Communion.”..