Theology On Tap in the 'Burg

"Sunlight looks slightly different on this wall than it does on that wall..."

Our next Theology on Tap gathering is this coming Sunday, May 10th at 7:00 in the upper room at Ceoltas on 2nd Street. 

We'll be discussing this article from the Christian Century. 

I'm also offering a poem by the great Persian poet, Rumi (1207-1273), which I believe to be of the same theme:

Move beyond any attachment to
names.
Every war and every conflict between
human beings
has happened because of some
disagreement about names.

It’s such an unnecessary foolishness,
because just beyond the arguing
there’s a long table of companionship,
set and waiting for us to sit down.

What is praised is one, so the praise is
one too,
many jugs being poured into a huge
basin.

All religions, all this singing, one song.
The differences are just illusion and
vanity.

Sunlight looks slightly different on this
wall than it does on that wall.
and a lot different on this other one,
but it is still one light.
We have borrowed these clothes,
these time-and-space personalities,
from a light,
and when we praise,
we pour them back in.

Here are some questions to ponder:

1. I was recently discussing childhood behavior (esp. on the playground) with my senior high youth.  They were saying that they were even meaner to each other when they were young.  They thought the name calling was really bad in middle school.  Why is that?  How do our children learn to denigrate and belittle others? What purpose does the name calling serve?
2. What were you taught as a child about Christianities role in relation to other religions as a child?
3. What do you believe now?
4. How much interaction do you have with persons of other faiths or traditions? What have you learned from those interactions? 
5. What do you think of the Rumi poem?  What is he trying to say?  Do you agree with him?
6. How have people of faith hurt others outside their community?
7. What are some of the gifts that people of faith have to offer?

Nooma at Chris and Dave's

We are gathering this coming Sunday, March 29th at 7:00 PM at Chris and Dave's house.  I'll send an e-mail with their address and directions. 

Dave is providing spaghetti and meatballs.  We need to provide appetizers, salad, bread, dessert, and of course, its BYOB. 

After dinner, we'll watch another Nooma video by Rob Bell. 

The Ten Commandments

We are meeting this coming Sunday, March 15th at 7:00 PM in the upper room at Ceoltas. 

I have selected an article on the Ten Commandments from the Christian Century by Thomas Long.  You'll find the article here. 

Some questions for you to ponder:

1. What are your thoughts on whether or not the Ten Commandments should be allowed to remain in public spaces?  How about other religious symbols?  How about religious symbols from other faith traditions?
2. How and when did you learn the Ten Commandments? 
3. Can you name all Ten Commandments? 
4. What kind of influence did they have or have they had over your life?  
5. How does Tom Long's understand the Ten Commandments?
6. How does his understanding affect your view of the Ten Commandments?

For a review of the Ten Commandments see:  Exodus 20:1-17

Science and Faith

We are meeting this coming Sunday, March 1st at 7:00 PM in the upper room at Ceoltas. 

We will be discussing an article from the Christian Century entitled "Brother Scientist."  Take a moment to read the article and then ponder these questions:

1. What mysteries did you explore as a child?  Did you ever find the answers? 
2. What do you think is the relationship between science and faith?
3. Does science threaten questions of faith?
4. What questions do each try to answer? 
5. What are some of the great mysteries you'd like to have explained by science, by God or by both? 

Next Three Gathering Dates

Our next three gatherings are:

March 1st
March 15th
March 29th

Our next Theology on Tap gathering will be March 1st at 7:00 PM in the upper room at Ceoltas. 

The locations of the other two dates have not been set.  Check back for information and the March 1st article. 

Nooma at Steven's House

We are meeting this coming Sunday, Feb. 8th at 7:00 PM at Steven Dailey's house.  I'll send directions over e-mail. 

Dinner will consist of chili, corn bread and salad.  Several of you volunteered to bring parts of the meal.  I hope you remember who you are!  This is BYOB so everyone please bring whatever it is you'd like to drink. 

We will watch and discuss Rhythm, one of the Nooma videos so there is no pre-gathering reading. 

Unanswered Prayer

We are meeting this coming Sunday, January 25th at 7:00 PM in the upper room at Ceoltas on 2nd Street. 

Please read the article Ask and Receive from the Christian Century.  

Here are some questions to ponder:
1.  What is prayer?
2.  Why do you think some prayers go unanswered? 
3.  How is your view of God shaped by your understanding of prayer or vise versa? 
4.  How do you normally pray? 
5.  When do you pray? 
6.  What is Carol Zaleski's answer to unanswered prayer?
7.  What is your answer to unanswered prayer?

Cell Phones and Sacraments

Our next gathering is this coming Sunday, December 14th at 7:00 PM in the upper room at Ceoltas on 2nd Street. 

Chad found our article for this week.  It is from the Christian Century.  Please read:  Cell Phone Sacrament by Barbara Brown Taylor. 

Notice her definition of "sacrament."  Here is another one by Migliore in Faith Seeking Understanding:  An Introduction to Christian Theology. 

"While proclamation of the Word of God is an indispensable means of grace, it does not exhaust the many different ways in which the extravagant love of God is communicated. In addition to proclamation there are sacraments.  Sacraments are "visible words," embodiments of grace, enacted testimonies to the love of God in Jesus Christ. 

And often repeated definition of sacraments was formulated by Augustine, who called them "visible signs of an invisible grace."  The definition offered by the Westminster Shorter Catechism is much more specific:  A sacrament is "a holy ordinance instituted by Christ wherein by visible signs Christ and the benefits of the new covenant are represented, sealed and applied to believers."  Sacraments are enactments of the gospel by means of which the Spirit of God communicates to us the forgiving, renewing, and promising love of God in Jesus Christ and enlivens us in faith, hope, and love."

Here are some questions to ponder:

1. When did you get your first cell phone?
2. What is your relationship with your cell phone? 
3. What do you believe are the pros and cons to owning a cell phone?
4. Have you ever taken a "technology fast?"  Have you ever felt the need to?
5. What are the sacraments according to the church?  (this might be a slight trick question)
6. Barbara Brown Taylor calls the cell phone a contemporary sacrament.  Looking at the definition of a sacrament, why do you think she refers to cell phones as contemporary sacraments? 
7. Does or can thinking of cell phones as sacrament change our relationship to them?

Atonement - take 2

We have Theology on Tap this coming Sunday, November 16th at 7:00 PM.  We are going to meet at Ceoltas in their upper room.   Ceoltas is on the 2nd Street, just a block or so before State Street. 

At our last gathering, we discussed Atonement or the work of Christ.  Several of you said you had grown up hearing the "bridge" theory of Atonement.  With a little google research, I found Campus Crusade's understanding of the work of Christ.  Please read this theory of atonement. 

Here are some questions for reflection:

1. How is this theory different than the one we discussed last time (see previous post)? 
2. Does this theory seem familiar?  It is what you were taught?
3. What do you like or dislike about this theory?  How is it helpful?  Unhelpful? 

Then read this except from Faith Seeking Understanding:  An Introduction to Christian Theology by Daniel L. Migliore:

There are three classical interpretations of the work of Christ.

1.  Christ the Victor Theory.  "This theory develops the military metaphor found in some New Testament passages (such as Col. 2:15).  According to this view, the work of atonement is a dramatic struggle between God and the forces of evil in the world......By Christ's cross and resurrection, Christ decisively defeats these powers and thus frees their captives." 

2.  Satisfaction Theory. "It is rooted in the biblical passages that suggest vicarious suffering as the way by which humankind is redeemed (Isaiah 53, Gal. 3:13).....God and humans are related like feudal lords and their serfs.  Any act of disobedience dishonors the lord, and satisfaction must be given....While humanity must provide this satisfaction, only God can provide it.  Therefore God has become human in Christ.  In his perfect obedience unto death, satisfaction is rendered, justice is done, and God's honor is restored.  As a result sins are forgiven." 

3.  Moral Influence Theory.  "In the moral influence theory Christ reconciles humanity not by some cosmic battle nor by some legal transaction - both of which would appear to be complete apart from any participation of those on behalf of whom the action is performed - but by showing God's love to us in such a way that we are constrained to respond in wonder and gratitude."

More questions to ponder:

1. Which of these theories is most like the "bridge" theory above?  why?
2. What are the strengths and weaknesses of each theory?  What do they address?  What do they leave out?
3. What is required of humanity in each theory? 
4. Which theory or theories did you grow up hearing (there are really 4 theories presented - three this week and one last week)?  Which one resonates with you now? 

I'm looking forward to our discussion.  I'll see you all on Sunday!

The Work of Jesus Christ - Atonement

We are meeting this coming Sunday, Nov. 2nd at 7:00 PM at Ceolta's in downtown Harrisburg.  Ashley has reserved a smoke free back/upper room for us. 

I thought we'd bit off another large theological doctrine.  We might even tackle this one for a few weeks because there are several theories of atonement we could discuss 

First, look at the definition of atonement. 

Then read this except from Faith Seeking Understanding: An Introduction to Christian Theology by Daniel L. Migliore:

"The Scriptures and the tradition unanimously affirm that the death of Jesus was "for us," "for our sins," "for many," "for the world."  How can we understand this today?

Perhaps the primary reason we have such difficulty in making sense of the death of Jesus for us is that it is an event of violence, and we are experts in covering up the violence that pervades our lives and the workings of our society.  In failing to acknowledge the violence of the event that stands at the center of the gospel drama, we turn the message of the love of God into sentimentality, or we project the violence onto others (often the Jews) or onto God (as in theories of atonement that say the cross was necessary to appease the wrath of God) or onto ourselves.......

God in Christ enters into a world saturated with violence, a world in which people are victimized again and again...so that the order of society and our world may not be disturbed.  When Jesus disturbs that order - announces God's forgiveness of sinners, promises the future to the poor, welcomes outcast and strangers, calls all to repentance and a new way of life characterized by love of God and others - when Jesus does this in a world built from its very foundation stone upon violence, then it is no arbitrary religious doctrine but profoundest truth that Jesus must suffer, the boundless love of God must clash with a world built on hostility and violence.....It is a divine necessity - the necessity of God's gracious and nonviolent love - that the love of God be fully expressed in all its vulnerability in Jesus Christ.  It was human necessity - the necessity of the world order of our own making - that this one who mediated God's forgiveness and inaugurated the reign of God characterized by justice, freedom, and peace should become the victim of our violence because he threatened the whole world of violence that we inhabit and will to maintain."

Questions to ponder: 

1. What has been your understanding of the atonement?  In other words how would you describe the point or role of Jesus death?
2. What are some problems with with the way you have traditionally understood atonement? 
3. How does Migliore in the except above understand atonement?  What was the point of Jesus' death?  In what way did he die "for us?"
4. What is different or new about the theory of atonement presented above? 
5. How it is helpful or unhelpful?