Commons Church Podcast

We believe we need a recovery of sorts. Contemporary culture has pushed us to think that public life is mostly structured (show up on time, fill your obligations, do your job), but private life is mostly unstructured (free time to use as you see it). What happens then when spiritual life is relegated to the unstructured part of life, to our private “off work” world where there are few obligations? Well, it tends to exist in emotional spurts, through momentary impulses. It tends to lose focus. You know what I am talking about. And so the recovery we need is the wisdom of basic spiritual ritual. Grace is not only a gift; grace is also a way of being. Grace is the life we are called to enter, the life of form and formation. We have talked about spiritual formation, how our spiritual identities are shaped through sustained commitments to gracious practices: practices of time like honoring sabbath, practices of stewardship like generous giving, practices of self-forgetfulness like service. In this series we intend to focus on four specific areas of faith practice: singing, confession, prayer, and use of spiritual gifts.

We believe we need a recovery of sorts. Contemporary culture has pushed us to think that public life is mostly structured (show up on time, fill your obligations, do your job), but private life is mostly unstructured (free time to use as you see it). What happens then when spiritual life is relegated to the unstructured part of life, to our private “off work” world where there are few obligations? Well, it tends to exist in emotional spurts, through momentary impulses. It tends to lose focus. You know what I am talking about. And so the recovery we need is the wisdom of basic spiritual ritual. Grace is not only a gift; grace is also a way of being. Grace is the life we are called to enter, the life of form and formation. We have talked about spiritual formation, how our spiritual identities are shaped through sustained commitments to gracious practices: practices of time like honoring sabbath, practices of stewardship like generous giving, practices of self-forgetfulness like service. In this series we intend to focus on four specific areas of faith practice: singing, confession, prayer, and use of spiritual gifts.

What is the “good news” of Jesus Christ? Why do people need to hear it? How can they experience it? What will it mean for their future? And what does the good news have to do with everyday life? These large and basic questions form Paul’s agenda in Romans—an agenda dictated by a combination of audiences, circumstances and purposes. The salvation issue, with all its various facets, was at the center of the early Christian movement as it sought to defend itself over against both Judaism and paganism. Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians in Rome had very different opinions on these matters. So Paul uses his rhetorical skill to tackle such fundamental theological issues with such a deft touch that it the letter to the Romans it has left an enduring and vital contribution to Christians’ understanding of who they are and what they believe. As Luther therefore said: [Romans] is worthy not only that every Christian should know it word for word, by heart, but occupy himself with it every day, as the daily bread of the soul. It can never be read or pondered too much, and the more it is dealt with the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes.

What is the “good news” of Jesus Christ? Why do people need to hear it? How can they experience it? What will it mean for their future? And what does the good news have to do with everyday life? These large and basic questions form Paul’s agenda in Romans—an agenda dictated by a combination of audiences, circumstances and purposes. The salvation issue, with all its various facets, was at the center of the early Christian movement as it sought to defend itself over against both Judaism and paganism. Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians in Rome had very different opinions on these matters. So Paul uses his rhetorical skill to tackle such fundamental theological issues with such a deft touch that it the letter to the Romans it has left an enduring and vital contribution to Christians’ understanding of who they are and what they believe. As Luther therefore said: [Romans] is worthy not only that every Christian should know it word for word, by heart, but occupy himself with it every day, as the daily bread of the soul. It can never be read or pondered too much, and the more it is dealt with the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes.

What is the “good news” of Jesus Christ? Why do people need to hear it? How can they experience it? What will it mean for their future? And what does the good news have to do with everyday life? These large and basic questions form Paul’s agenda in Romans—an agenda dictated by a combination of audiences, circumstances and purposes. The salvation issue, with all its various facets, was at the center of the early Christian movement as it sought to defend itself over against both Judaism and paganism. Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians in Rome had very different opinions on these matters. So Paul uses his rhetorical skill to tackle such fundamental theological issues with such a deft touch that it the letter to the Romans it has left an enduring and vital contribution to Christians’ understanding of who they are and what they believe. As Luther therefore said: [Romans] is worthy not only that every Christian should know it word for word, by heart, but occupy himself with it every day, as the daily bread of the soul. It can never be read or pondered too much, and the more it is dealt with the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes.

What is the “good news” of Jesus Christ? Why do people need to hear it? How can they experience it? What will it mean for their future? And what does the good news have to do with everyday life? These large and basic questions form Paul’s agenda in Romans—an agenda dictated by a combination of audiences, circumstances and purposes. The salvation issue, with all its various facets, was at the center of the early Christian movement as it sought to defend itself over against both Judaism and paganism. Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians in Rome had very different opinions on these matters. So Paul uses his rhetorical skill to tackle such fundamental theological issues with such a deft touch that it the letter to the Romans it has left an enduring and vital contribution to Christians’ understanding of who they are and what they believe. As Luther therefore said: [Romans] is worthy not only that every Christian should know it word for word, by heart, but occupy himself with it every day, as the daily bread of the soul. It can never be read or pondered too much, and the more it is dealt with the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes.

What is the “good news” of Jesus Christ? Why do people need to hear it? How can they experience it? What will it mean for their future? And what does the good news have to do with everyday life? These large and basic questions form Paul’s agenda in Romans—an agenda dictated by a combination of audiences, circumstances and purposes. The salvation issue, with all its various facets, was at the center of the early Christian movement as it sought to defend itself over against both Judaism and paganism. Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians in Rome had very different opinions on these matters. So Paul uses his rhetorical skill to tackle such fundamental theological issues with such a deft touch that it the letter to the Romans it has left an enduring and vital contribution to Christians’ understanding of who they are and what they believe. As Luther therefore said: [Romans] is worthy not only that every Christian should know it word for word, by heart, but occupy himself with it every day, as the daily bread of the soul. It can never be read or pondered too much, and the more it is dealt with the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes.

What is the “good news” of Jesus Christ? Why do people need to hear it? How can they experience it? What will it mean for their future? And what does the good news have to do with everyday life? These large and basic questions form Paul’s agenda in Romans—an agenda dictated by a combination of audiences, circumstances and purposes. The salvation issue, with all its various facets, was at the center of the early Christian movement as it sought to de ne itself over against both Judaism and paganism. Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians in Rome had very di erent opinions on these matters. So Paul uses his rhetorical skill to tackle such fundamental theological issues with such a deft touch that it the letter to the Romans it has left an enduring and vital contribution to Christians’ understanding of who they are and what they believe. As Luther therefore said: [Romans] is worthy not only that every Christian should know it word for word, by heart, but occupy himself with it every day, as the daily bread of the soul. It can never be read or pondered too much, and the more it is dealt with the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes.

Life is good… for the most part that is. Until some intruder, some interloper, called confusion or despair, lament or grief, loss or (gulp) death comes crashing in. And then there is no telling where the mind and heart can travel. Like the proverbial y in the ointment, life’s apparent setbacks can threaten the whole. Has everything come undone? How can I know the meaning of such things? Does life even have a meaning? The ancient book of Lamentations wrestled with just such questions. In daring fashion, it pulls no punches, considers no realm of human questioning out of bounds. Some people are surprised by this. Some assume that faith is thinking happy thoughts, adopting a positive attitude, having con dence that things will turn out well. How could this book of poems be included in our Scriptures? Why is it there? Faith, to be sure, is con dence, but not a false or untested con dence. Faith is willing to expose itself to the full gamut of questions. And that is why we need Lament. In this series we would like to take the wrapper o our cultural tendency to avoid. We want to be more honest about the tougher parts of life, and actually, the Bible tends to rub our noses in the harder parts, because the Bible is a whole lot more honest about life than we tend to be. Lamentations may not provide the complete answer we need, but it does ask a lot of the right questions. In this series we are going to look at some of those questions, knowing with con dence that our faith is better for it.

Life is good… for the most part that is. Until some intruder, some interloper, called confusion or despair, lament or grief, loss or (gulp) death comes crashing in. And then there is no telling where the mind and heart can travel. Like the proverbial y in the ointment, life’s apparent setbacks can threaten the whole. Has everything come undone? How can I know the meaning of such things? Does life even have a meaning? The ancient book of Lamentations wrestled with just such questions. In daring fashion, it pulls no punches, considers no realm of human questioning out of bounds. Some people are surprised by this. Some assume that faith is thinking happy thoughts, adopting a positive attitude, having con dence that things will turn out well. How could this book of poems be included in our Scriptures? Why is it there? Faith, to be sure, is con dence, but not a false or untested con dence. Faith is willing to expose itself to the full gamut of questions. And that is why we need Lament. In this series we would like to take the wrapper o our cultural tendency to avoid. We want to be more honest about the tougher parts of life, and actually, the Bible tends to rub our noses in the harder parts, because the Bible is a whole lot more honest about life than we tend to be. Lamentations may not provide the complete answer we need, but it does ask a lot of the right questions. In this series we are going to look at some of those questions, knowing with con dence that our faith is better for it.