We're All Adolescents Now

That's the subtitle for a Christianity Today article titled "When Are We Going to Grow Up? The Juvenilization of American Christianity."  

This article has a lot to offer and I suspect it will make some people angry.  I've often thought that our culture is dominated by the uncultured and vulgar.  (Not to take anything away from any generation as it transitions through adolescence--We've all been there).  However, five plus decades later Cher's observation, "Teenybopper is our newborn king, uh huh" still ring true, due to the marketing world and the disposable income that parents give to their teens.

And of course the Church has not been immune.  In Carole King's recent book, "Natural Woman," she observes that the teen rock-n-roll revolution that began in the 50's (and continues to this present day) is based on three things S-E-X.  It sells recordings (Witness Madonna's failed attempt at relevancy with her over exposed body recently). It makes stars.  It makes money for almost every product on the market (and therefore it makes money for executives who control these things.)

So now we've imported this phenomenon into the Church.  Although maybe not said as indelicately as that, this is the premise of the article.  Having had more than one debate on this subject with young and old, I don't think Thomas E. Bergler will change any opinions but he is sure to ruffle some feathers (particularly among those who justify every activity by declaring it "missional.")

If you don't want to exercise those little gray cells, don't click on the link.  It will just make you mad. But if you genuinely want to think some deep thoughts on the subject, the feast awaits.

Here's the beginning of the article to wet your appetite:

The house lights go down. Spinning, multicolored lights sweep the auditorium. A rock band launches into a rousing opening song. "Ignore everyone else, this time is just about you and Jesus," proclaims the lead singer. The music changes to a slow dance tune, and the people sing about falling in love with Jesus. A guitarist sporting skinny jeans and a soul patch closes the worship set with a prayer, beginning, "Hey God …"

Continue reading here.

“Brother of Jesus” Proved Ancient and Authentic

Over the last weeks a number of interesting items have come across my desk.  Hopefully I can catch up on some of them in the next few weeks.

First and foremost is an article in the July/August issue of Biblical Archaeology Review (BAR) titled "Brother of Jesus' Proved Ancient and Authentic"

Whether or not you have been following this, here is a good article to read and ponder the impact of this extra-biblical evidence for the existence of Jesus and an actual artifact from the life of James, the leader of the Jerusalem Church.

The article begins:

A new analysis and new evidence proves that the controversial “Brother of Jesus” inscription on an ancient bone box, or ossuary, is authentic, according to the July/August issue of Biblical Archaeology Review (BAR), the world’s largest circulation magazine devoted to Biblical archaeology.

Read the entire article here.