Prayer; by Billy Crain (RUF campus minister at Rice)
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. I Peter 5:7 I am thirty-three years old and have been a Christian all of my life, and yet I do not think it was until this year that…
Book Review: Who’s Afraid of Postmodernism? Taking Derrida, Lyotard, and Foucault to Church – James K.A. Smith
In one of the only legitimate Christian treatments of postmodernism that I’ve come across, James K. A. Smith argues that postmodernism presents a window for Christians eager to preach a communal and redemptive gospel into a society atomized by consumerism,…
Soggy Bottom Leftovers
“Why do we always invite the soggy bottom leftovers?” moaned our daughter one Sunday afternoon after our guests had left. You see, each Sunday morning I would fix a big salad, a dessert and a casserole and put it in…
2008 backyard concert & picnic; by Raine Pipkin
As believers, we often talk about the “already/not yet” of the Kingdom of God; that we are already saved and that the Kingdom is advancing, but that things are not yet restored to the fullness and glory that God intends…
Slipping out (and in) the back door
“We like to think of our beliefs, and disbeliefs, as founded on reason and close, thoughtful observation. Only in theory do we begin to suspect the power of aesthetics to shape our lives.” Tobias Wolff A church movie night, during…
Summer Reading: Ron Hansen’s Exiles
Ron Hansen writes about exiles – people who find themselves on the outskirts of society for various reasons. Hansen’s first two novels, Desperadoes and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (now a movie) recount the stories…
Christianity, the Advertising Ban
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil with well over ten million inhabitants. In early 2007, the municipal government decided to ban all forms of public advertising under what is called the “Clean City” law. This ban included all…