Category Archives: Theology

Green Chri$tma$, 1958

Posted on December 21, 2014 by hessd

When Green Chri$tma$ came out in 1958, I was about twenty years old.  I thought it was the funniest broadcast parody I ever heard.  I memorized it immediately—not much of a trick at twenty, really—and performed little impromptu snatches of … Continue reading →

Posted in Getting Old, Theology, Words | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Mosquitoes in Heaven

Posted on December 13, 2014 by hessd

Pope Francis is having the same kind of trouble the apostle Paul had.  It’s hard to be a pastor and a theologian at the same time.  And if any remarks you make are going to be seized upon by the … Continue reading →

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Plan B

Posted on September 20, 2014 by hessd

No one knows what God first had in mind for our species. Genesis gives us one picture of it.  One.  This is it. “The man and his wife heard the sound of Yahweh God walking in the garden in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Biblical Studies, Theology, ways of knowing | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Save the Planet! O.K. How Long?

Posted on September 12, 2014 by hessd

I am not the first person to wince at “Save the Planet!” bumper stickers  I know there is a context that needs to be taken into account, but sometimes you can get a fresh look at an issue by refusing to … Continue reading →

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They aren’t Puritans; they are Quakers

Posted on July 27, 2014 by hessd

There are narratives that are so powerful that it might feel, in the middle of one, that you are in the whitewater rapids of a swollen river.  The river (narrative) wants you to go here and you don’t want to … Continue reading →

Posted in Political Psychology, Society, Theology | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Racism and Sin

Posted on March 28, 2014 by hessd

Am I a racist?  No.  I’m not. There.  That takes care of the substance of the matter.  I have blasphemed in public and I will be chastened by a lot of people whose social and political views are very like … Continue reading →

Posted in Living My Life, Political Psychology, Politics, Theology, Uncategorized, Words | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Giving up haggis for Lent

Posted on March 21, 2014 by hessd

I’d like to think about “giving up X for Lent” today.  I am honestly respectful of the notion that additional resources ought to be devoted to experiencing Lent—the dark season of the church—fully.  I am pretty open-minded about just how … Continue reading →

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Orthopathy. Really.

Posted on February 11, 2014 by hessd

On November 16, 2008, Jason Walter, a first year student at the Institute of Reformed Baptist Studies, led a discussion on Louis Berkhof’s Summary of Christian Doctrine.  I had never heard of Jason or of the Institute of Reformed Baptist … Continue reading →

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Where you are going, you will need friends.

Posted on November 10, 2013 by hessd

The title is today’s text.  With no context at all, it seems at least plausible.  When we get down to it, the context I will supply for “where you are going” will be the fact that we are all mortal.  The … Continue reading →

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God Loves the U. S. Senate

Posted on October 8, 2013 by hessd

What if the way out of the political crisis turns out to have nothing at all to do with character?  Would that be embarrassing?  Would God be surprised? Dr. Barry C. Black is the Chaplain of the U. S. Senate … Continue reading →

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