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Archive for December, 2008

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Snow in Boerne

Saturday, December 13th, 2008

One night this last week it snowed in Boerne. Now if you’re from places like Minnesota or New England, you’ll probably find it odd that I’m excited about a half-inch of snow. But even a dusting of snow is a big deal in the Texas Hill Country. And it’s even a bigger deal for transplanted […]

Bill Maher, Jay Leno, and the State of Moral Reasoning in America, Part 3

Friday, December 12th, 2008

In my last two posts I’ve been examining some recent statements by Bill Maher on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. His comments about the estate tax, though admittedly laced with humor, reflect a distressing though relatively common shallowness in moral discourse in America. Maher’s best argument for the estate tax is that it doesn’t […]

Bill Maher, Jay Leno, and the State of Moral Reasoning in America, Part 2

Thursday, December 11th, 2008

Yesterday I began examining a statement by comedian and commentator Bill Maher. He made this statement on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, in a context of discussing what the Republicans need to do to become a viable party. According to Maher, they should, among other things, stop their opposition to the estate tax:

“The estate […]

Bill Maher, Jay Leno, and the State of Moral Reasoning in America, Part 1

Wednesday, December 10th, 2008

A couple of weeks ago I tuned in to The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. (One of the happy benefits of living in the Central Time Zone is that most television programs come on an hour earlier than on the east and west coasts. So I can catch a little bit of Leno before bed […]

Advent Conspiracy

Tuesday, December 9th, 2008

Thanks to my sister, I recently learned of a fascinating new approach to Christmas and Advent. Started by five pastors in 2006, Advent Conspiracy encourages us to: Worship Fully, Spend Less, Give More, and Love All. Check out this short (2 minutes, 39 seconds) video introduction to Advent Conspiracy. No matter how you respond, it […]

Zombie Shoppers

Monday, December 8th, 2008

Are shoppers turning into zombies? Yes, they are, ccording to John Morris, a Wachovia retailing analyst. “You walk the mall, and consumers look like zombies. They’re there in person, but not in spirit.” Why zombie shopping? Because of the nation’s rising unemployment rate and the disappointing sales figures reported in October.
I saw this comment by […]

It Isn’t Advent, But It’s a Great Pre-Christmas Tradition

Saturday, December 6th, 2008

For the past few days I’ve been weighing in on Advent, explaining it and recommending it for those who are seeking a closer relationship with God and a deeper experience of Christmas. Today I want to change gears and recommend another pre-Christmas tradition. This one isn’t especially Christian, and it certainly doesn’t have anything to […]

Is Advent Biblical?

Friday, December 5th, 2008

Part 6 of series: Introduction to Advent
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Earlier in this series I mentioned the fact that many Protestant Christians reject Advent because they consider it to be a Roman Catholic practice. For most of these, it isn’t so much the Roman Catholic aspect of Advent that is truly […]

Sharing My Greatest Advent Discovery

Thursday, December 4th, 2008

Part 5 of series: Introduction to Advent
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Earlier in this series I spoke of discovering Advent. Of course I didn’t discover it in the way an explorer discovers a place no one has been before. Millions upon millions of Christians have observed Advent for centuries upon centuries. (Check […]

Growing Closer to God in Advent: Some Practical Suggestions

Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008

Part 4 of series: Introduction to Advent
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So far in this series I’ve explained what Advent is and why I have found it helpful to observe Advent. If you’re at all convinced, you may wonder what to do about it. In this post and the next in this […]

Why Advent?

Tuesday, December 2nd, 2008

Part 3 of series: Introduction to Advent
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In my last post, I told the story of my Advent beginnings. When I started out as pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in 1991, for the first time in my life, I began to see Advent as a distinct season of […]

Advent Beginnings

Monday, December 1st, 2008

Part 2 of series: Introduction to Advent
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In my last post in this series, I explained the timing and purpose of Advent, as well as its unexpected color scheme. I closed by noting that Advent is growing in popularity, especially among Protestant Christians who, in many cases, did […]
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