God is not fair. He gleefully flaunts it too. He shoves it in our faces. Jesus’ version of reality is devoid of common sense. The Kingdom of God might as well be called, “Crazy Upside-down Jesus World.” Here’s an example: Say I need some landscaping done at my house. So I go to the...

(Editor’s Note: Becky Garrison is awesome.  Sometimes, she sends us stuff to publish, and we feel awesome, too.  This previously appeared at Killing the Buddha, which is also awesome.) God may not have appeared to Mother Theresa, but He needs to promote His book. For the uninitiated, Book Expo...

“Allah is not God.” I’m sure you’ve heard this term. You may have even used it a few times.  But what does it mean? What do we really mean when such a catchy slogan jumps out? In any grown-up conversation we should start with the basics; what is the literal agreed upon, dictionary...

(Editor’s note: Earlier this week, long-time Burnside contributor Rachel Pater wrote an excellent, thought-provoking piece on the often problematic depiction of God as male and father.  Months ago, we scheduled this article, by the Merry Monk, to run on Father’s Day.  While Burnside strives...

This is a guest post from my dear friend Dr. Richard Beck. Dr. Beck is the Department Chair of Psychology at Abilene Christian University. His daily musings can be read at Experimental Theology. To start, a story. A few years ago a female student wanted to visit with me about some difficulties she was...

There are times that I read to engage. I will read a theology or praxis book to keep me sharp as a pastor. But there are also times that I read to escape. I’ll grab a novel, a memoir or history book so I can get my imagination as far away from the office as I can. This week I needed to disengage,...

A few months ago I posted about my training in mixed martial arts and how I reconciled it with my faith. I still don’t have a rationale worked out. But the NYT ran an article about mixed martial arts “ministries” and offered what I thought was a fair critique. The training we offer...

Rescue crews hadn’t even begun to unload supplies before Pat Robertson began to upbraid Haitians for their “pact with the devil.” Robertson said Haitians joined forces with Satan’s Army:  “They said, ‘We will serve you if you’ll get us free from the French.’ True story. And so the...

On Christmas Eve of 2006, I boarded a plane in Connecticut and flew home to Chicago.  My parents and siblings picked me up from the airport, and we drove to church for the Christmas Eve service. I had always hoped I’d be like Mary – a young woman who loved God, whose life took an extraordinary turn. ...

I’m working on a book about Christmas and I’ve been wrestling with the ugliness of what Biblical scholars call the Slaughter of the Innocents. I hate that Jesus came to Earth in a way that caused countless infants and children to be murdered by King Herod. In fact, I struggle with the Bible...