I recently read a very interesting book, Society Without God by Phil Zuckerman. Zuckerman is an American sociologist whose book studies the spiritual (or aspiritual) outlook of Nordic Europeans—specifically Danes and Swedes—and how the decline in their religious concerns is reflected in the state of their society. Zuckerman conducted his research mostly in Denmark primarily [...]

The shock of my pastor leaving has given me a new insight into the importance church has in my life.  I claim a lot of doubt, but the idea of someone new shaking things up has proven to me how much I truly care. I have more core beliefs than I have imagined recently.  Sometimes [...]

I read this article today questioning the effectiveness and importance of organized religion.  It’s a perennial question, but I see it being asked more and more (like in Anne’s post about Anne Rice).  One of my favorite authors, Diana Butler Bass, is working on a new book about people who say they are “spiritual, but [...]

I realize I’ve been sharing other people’s thoughts more than my own lately, but that’s the beauty of the internets, eh?  Anyway, I liked McLaren’s response to this question on his blog. http://brianmclaren.net/archives/blog/q-r-evangelism-and-evangelists.html#more Social Bookmarking

Anne Rice’s Facebook: My faith in Christ is central to my life. My conversion from a pessimistic atheist lost in a world I didn’t understand, to an optimistic believer in a universe created and sustained by a loving God is crucial to me. But following Christ does not mean following His followers. Christ is infinitely [...]

A few weeks ago, I wrote a somewhat emotionally reactive post about (hyper-) Calvinism and the seeming militant commitment to it by its adherents.  I didn’t mention it then, but the words were in response to a book I had just read, Young, Restless, Reformed: A Journalist’s Journey with the New Calvinists.  Though I finished [...]

A while back I asked my husband if he thought the American way of family life–a single nuclear family living in a private home–is the best model available.  He was either being wise or rude; I can’t remember that he engaged the debate.  The question lingered and resurfaced while reading an excellent book, Honeymoon in [...]