parables of a prodigal world

A wonderful International Women's Day event... Here's the full movie trailer... Grace and Peace, Raffi

The human brain is a gift from God. Failure to use it, therefore, is a sin. Here are this week's two most egregious sinners...in one clip. The Daily Show With Jon Stewart M - Th 11p / 10c Unusual Suspect Daily Show Full Episodes Important Things With Demetri Martin Political Humor Joke of the Day

I couldn't resist. That whole "25 Things" meme was just too cool. So I revealed My own list of "25 Things About Me" to one of My favorite disciples, Raffi Shahinian, and asked him to post it on his blog. As he always does, Raffi heard My Words and obeyed faithfully. So, in no particular order... 1. I love karaoke. 2. No, My parables were not meant to be reduced to propositional statements. If I wanted to express Myself in propositional statements, I think I could have done that. 3. Yes, I fully realize that the guests at the wedding at Cana were already drunk. That's not the point. 4. Favorite condiment: Mustard. 5. Those things I said about money and carrying crosses, those weren't metaphors. 6. Favorite food: figs. You don't wanna see me around a barren fig tree. It's not pretty. 7. What in My Father's name did I ever do or say that led you to believe I wanted you to gather in a building one day a week for a few hours and conduct rituals in...

Let's face it. It's the economy, stupid. That's what everyone's talking about. And not just all those filthy pagans, either. Even those of us whose citizinship is not of this world are mired in the discussion. "Yeah, those evil banks." "If I could just get my hands on those greedy hedge fund managers." OK. Be honest. How many of us know what a hedge fund actually is? So, you wanna get in on the conversation, eh? Wanna talk high finance and actually know what you're talking about ? Then this is the video for you. The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Credit Crisis... Grace and Peace, Raffi

The winner of the Alternative Atheist Bus Slogan Contest is... Well done, Mofast . Send me your info, and the name of the book, to claim your prize. Grace and Peace, Raffi

If pressed, most Christians in my sphere of contact, both here at Parables and in my brick-and-mortar life, would tend to say they believe in some variation of a " Theistic Evolution " framework, that is, in the God who created a billions-year-old universe from which humans evolved. Me too. But do we REALLY believe that? Do we FAITHFULLY believe that? I don't think so, because we don't tend to speak, think and act on the assumption that its true. That's not necessarily our fault, however. The scientific data that supports Theistic Evolution, though massive, is relatively new (evolutionarily speaking). It really hasn't had enough time to penetrate deeply the language, the thought processes, the "heart-and-soul" of those of us who would cognitively assent to it. What would be the implications if we REALLY believed in Theistic Evolution, that is, if we had FAITH in it. 10 things, at least... 1. We MUST conclude that the Bible is not "our final aut...