Leonard Cohen

Ha! I'm going to see Leonard Cohen in Saskatoon. I'm going to see Leonard Cohen in Saskatoon! Floor row 20. Wow.

Frankincense

Came across this short story in the Herald this month, and it really spoke to me. It's called "Frankincense", written by Jack Dueck:

Malls always seem to lower one's IQ: cacophony of warring sounds; flare of garish, eye-piercing lights; crying, stressed babies; epileptic neon promotions. No angels descending under this garish iridescence. Is this how the world ends? Not under a bright Advent sky, but in fluorescent orgy?

Nearby an elderly gentleman in suit, top hat, and cane is confronted by two religious propagandists. For truth, no doubt - but in violation of mall policy. Slipping into a nearby bench, I pretended to read a newspaper as I witnessed the story play out.

But these are things God wants you to know.

Under the cascading mall cacophony, his mild response was barely audible. They insisted.

But do you believe in the Holy Spirit?
Yes, surely.
By what proof?
Schubert, the Psalms, Bach's St. Matthew Passion, Paul's letter to the Ephesians, my rose garden, people who love me and I them...all is ours in Christ. The devil owns nothing' the Spirit pervades everything.

And they left him, thinking, "He's just another unbeliever."
But I was left with the transcending fragrance of another world in the middle of a shopping mall.

Feist on Sesame Street

Feist counts to 4 on Sesame Street...

The Advent Conspiracy

Here's a video from the Advent Conspiracy about the idea of following Jesus' example at his advent and giving the gift of "presence" rather than presents...

Blessed Unrest

I have to give credit to Josh because he sent me this video. As I watched it, encouragement and hope welled up within me. But it also stirred some deep questions in me: How is Jesus' Kingdom part of this "movement"? Can such a "movement" bring true, worldwide change if Jesus is not at the center of it? Obviously, not Jesus or his Kingdom as an ideology, but as The Way of Life.

Watch the video and consider those questions:

The ZENN car

Best Canadian-made car that is illegal to drive in the very country it was made in...

ZENN car

Hell #4

Here is Gordon's fourth and final video on Hell. In this one, he talks about why it is detrimental to focus on hell as Christians, and gives some alternative ways to approach it. My one comment: Right On!

Hell #3

Here is the third installment of Gordon Atkinson's videos on the topic of Hell. In this video he gives his own interpretation and thoughts on the meaning of Hell in the NT witness. I think this is really good stuff - it is very much along the lines of what I have been thinking about and studying in the past 2 years or so. I especially like his thoughts on who is going to hell, and why Jesus used it in the first place. In my own studying and thinking I have come to the same conclusion as Gordon - that Jesus uses hell only to refer to people in the context of the "religious establish". Jesus is taking imagery that the religious leaders of that day were using to refer to outsiders, and turning the interpretation on its head to use it in reference to them! This would have really outraged them. So, what are we doing the same thing today? Why are we using the language of Hell to speak about outsiders, when Jesus used it in the context of insiders? Not only does this at odds with the words of Jesus, we are also ignoring the vary danger that Jesus was trying to make us aware of.

Hell Video #2

Here is Gordon Atkinson's (aka The Real Live Preacher) second video on the topic of hell. In this video he goes through the entire NT witness and talks about every passage relating to hell in the NT (in less than 11 minutes no less!):



Also, here is a very good and very handy pdf reference for each time hell (or its equivalent) is mentioned in the NT:

Hell Reference PDF