Theology
Theology is one of those scary words that either intimidates people or rallies them for a fight. It shouldn't be that way.
Theology is just the process of talking (or doodling) about God.
A Friendly Introduction to Theology
This playlist of videos comes from a course I taught at Grace Lutheran Church in 2016. It builds off of the book Making Sense out of the Christian Faith by David Lose and combines it with my cartooning style and theological perspective. Watch. Share. Enjoy.
Browse My Theological Library
Deep in the Burbs is my PhD Dissertation, Luther Seminary, 2015
View my articles and papers on academia.edu
Theology Posts
Does Theology Intimidate You?
Be honest. What is the first thought or feeling that comes to you when you hear the word theology? Does it conjure up images of crusty old German men using big words? Does it evoke fear of condemnation from holier-than-thou Bible thumpers? If so, that is unfortunate....
Terence Fretheim on God, Evil, and Suffering
The new sermon series on Tough Questions begins this weekend. The congregation took the month of June to turn in questions that they would like to have addressed in a sermon. We compiled them and came up with four biggies. This weekend I will be wrestling with one of...
On Being a Post-Evangelical, Missional, Neo-Lutheran Pastor and Theologian
Labels are a necessary evil. On the one hand, we need them. I am very thankful when a bottle is labeled "poison" for example. That label can save lives. Yet, labels are more often harmful when applied to people. Labels reduce people to abstract ideas and make it...
I Believe in the Trinity | A Sermon on the Apostles’ Creed
This is the final sermon in a series on the Apostles' Creed. It pulls it all together and asks if the Trinity really makes any difference in our everyday lives. Narrative Lectionary texts: Deuteronomy 6:1-9; Matthew 28:16-20 listen to the sermon audio CLICK HERE....
A Resource Page for the Sermon Series on the Apostles’ Creed from the Narrative Lectionary
The Narrative Lectionary is committed to helping congregations work through the grand story of the Bible in chronological order during the months of September - May. Then, in the summer, it takes a break and looks at the non-narrative pieces of the Bible. In addition,...
Living with Disagreement | Mapping Out the Conversation
A Preface to the Mapping Our first post in this conversation generated quite a bit of discussion. I opened the topic by sharing my own story of disagreement within my own household over the topic of same-sex marriage. That was a risky move, but I did it to demonstrate...
Brian McLaren at MAS Assembly part 2
Brian McLaren gave the second part of his presentation on Saturday at the Minneapolis Area Synod Assembly. The title of part 1 was "And the Word became flesh..." The second half was, "...and moved into the neighborhood." This was, of course, the theme of our assembly,...
Brian McLaren at the Minneapolis Area Synod Assembly
Brian McLaren gave the plenary presentation last night at the Minneapolis Area Synod Assembly. Our theme this year is from The Message version of John 1, "and God became flesh...and moved into the neighborhood." McLaren did a nice theological reflection on the Logos....
Does This Analogy Work? James Cameron’s The Abyss and Baptism
I love James Cameron's 1989 Adventure-SciFi-Drama The Abyss. The scene when Ed Harris is willing to breath in the liquid oxygen has always served as an analogy of baptism for me. He was willing to "die" in order to go deeper. I created this video to show to our...