Preventing Childhood Abduction

The recent rescue of three young girls who were kidnapped, raped and imprisoned for nearly a decade by Ariel Castro has shocked the nation and left parents fearful for their own children’s safety. You, like many other parents who are following this horrific story, may feel helpless, fearing that there is nothing that you can really do to protect your children. But, there are things that you can do! In fact, we can learn a lot from the emerging details of these three abductions. In each case, the kidnap victim was abducted after accepting a ride from Castro. Furthermore, evidence […]

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Gender Roles

While in our modern context, we might not immediately recognize Jesus’ attitude towards women as particularly radical or liberating—that is indeed what it was to women trapped in a highly patriarchal system with few legal rights and subjugated to male authority. By giving women places of honor in his life, ministry and legacy, Jesus began a major historical shift in views on gender. As a result, Christianity through the ages has emphatically affirmed the equal value of both men and women as created in God’s image. Since its inception, however, Christianity has widely interpreted the Bible as delineating gender-based roles […]

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Socially Minded Christianity

For the growing number of evangelical Christians who are disillusioned by the culture-war rhetoric of the Christian Right, the New Evangelical Partnership for the Common Good (NEP) is reframing the evangelical response to social justice issues. A faith-based nonprofit, the NEP serves as a rallying point for what they dub “the New Evangelicals,” Christians who adhere to orthodox theology but identify with a social progressive agenda. The NEP and the Christian Right share the same traditional evangelical beliefs—belief in the authority of scripture as God’s Word, the virgin birth, death and resurrection of Jesus, the call to be born again […]

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Saint Patrick: The slave who set his captors free

This month, we celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day. But do you know who Saint Patrick is and why we devote an entire day to his honor and remembrance? Taken captive Patrick was only 16 years old when he was captured from his family’s estate in Scotland and taken to Ireland. It was the fourth century and Ireland was steeped in paganism, a nature-based cult lead by druids. There Patrick was sold as a slave to Milchu, a cruel druid priest. As a captive he learned Celtic culture, language and religion. However, it was the God of Christianity that Patrick turned to […]

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Say What!? Bloggers that Question the Status Quo

Blogs are a great way to engage in vibrant dialog about hot-button issues with Christians who have different points of view than your own. Below we have highlighted several popular blogs written by evangelically minded Christians who are exploring the intersection of faith and contemporary culture and even questioning some evangelical assumptions. While you probably will not agree with these bloggers about everything, you are sure to find their posts engaging and challenging. So, grab a cup of coffee. Read, comment and join the conversation! The Simple Way Shane Claiborne is a leader in the new monasticism movement, a movement […]

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When Love and Culture Collide

Romantic accents, fanciful customs and exotic trips make cross-cultural relationships particularly exciting, but when novelty fades into reality, ambiguous cultural nuances and unspoken taboos become like relationship landmines. Distinctly different backgrounds and native languages often lead to misunderstandings and misaligned expectations. Despite these very significant challenges, cross-cultural relationships can be uniquely fulfilling and satisfying. When cross-cultural couples embrace their differences as assets, they are able to combine the best parts of their cultures. Leveraging the strengths of their cultural backgrounds they can build strong, healthy, connected family units. Below are the stories of three cross-cultural couples who have successfully navigated […]

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The Zombie Bible

The Zombie Bible is an intriguing fictional series that retells ancient religious stories. Masterful storyteller Stant Litore convincingly weaves together history, culture, religion—and zombies—into mesmerizing horror stories that are nearly impossible to put down. Readers beware! These stories may make you begin to wonder if the undead actually do lurk in the pages of the Bible and annals of history. Based on the clever premise that ancient plagues were actually zombie outbreaks, Litore has plausibly imagined how pre-scientific people might have made sense of decaying, shuffling corpses who feed on the living, who then in turn rise, themselves insatiable. Stories […]

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An Impossible Choice

Only a few years ago, the 50 percent HIV/AIDS infection rate on Mfangano Island, one of Kenya’s poorest communities, was among the highest in the world. A culture of prostitution and sexual promiscuity facilitated the rapid spread of HIV which ultimately decimated an entire generation. Like so many of his generation, a man by the name of Thomas contracted HIV. He died leaving his wife, Benta, and three daughters destitute and alone. Benta was fortunate to have a place to live, though it was little more than a mud hut with no electricity or running water. Working odd jobs she […]

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Old & New: A Project of Biblical Proportions

Contemporary Christian art has a way of “prettying up” disturbing Bible stories so that you can hang them inoffensively, even attractively, above your mantle or in your nursery. Jim LePage and Troy DeShano have quite a different vision for biblical art. They are the co-creators of “Old & New,” a collaborative art project that aims to create more “honest” artistic expressions of biblical stories and passages. “One of the biggest drawbacks of contemporary biblical art is that much of it is very proper, which often comes at the expense of being honest,” says LePage. “The Bible is filled with some […]

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Guide to Imperfect Parenting

Parenting, for me, is complicated by two races, two cultures, one step kid, two adopted foster kids, two birth kids…and a partridge in a pear tree. Modern blended and mixed families like mine know that all too often conventional parenting wisdom just doesn’t apply to our complicated real-world situations. Honestly, I’ve found that that most “Parenting 101” adages fit just about as well as my pre-pregnancy jeans. You see, as a white mom with a black husband, raising four bi-racial children and one black child, I’ve been misunderstood and gotten some downright dirty looks. Adopting foster children has had unexpected challenges […]

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