Church

sexuality & the church’s obsessions (a quote)

/ Paul Burkhart / 2 Comments

Another sobering finding is that while high-octane rhetoric has been devoted to the issue of same-sex marriage, an issue relevant to only a small faction of the U.S. population (the CDC reports about 2-3%, some figures are as low as 1.7%), huge shifts have taken place on attitudes toward sex before marriage—what the Bible calls fornication: “The best evidence is that the fraction of all Americans believing that premarital sex was ‘not wrong’ doubled from 24% to 47% in the four years between 1969 and 1973 and then drifted upward through the 1970s to 62% in 1982.” Today attitudes toward sexuality are the best indicator of church attendance. It appears that many in the church have taken their eye off a far more pervasive problem among a far larger number of Americans.

from this Cardus book review on Robert Putnan and David Campbell’s book American Grace: How Religion Dvides and Unites Us

Yeah, Church Community Sucks.

/ Paul Burkhart / 6 Comments

Church plants are weird creatures. In the beginning, most everyone is new and has to do the awkward dance of forming relationships while at the same time trying to see a fledgling church survive. It takes a unique person to really be a part of a church plant, that’s for sure. You mostly have to be self-motivated and spiritually self-sustaining, because the usual church structures that motivate, support and counsel just aren’t there in the early days of a church.

Over time, during these early days, your relationships slowly develop. They are usually borne out from the fiery flames of awkwardness and uncertainty, and having to force yourself into social situations you would not normally put on yourself, but this difficulty forges these relationships deeply. You get to know one another very deeply very quickly and love each other through it. This creates a very deep bond, however unspoken it may be.
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Why do we hate our bodies so much?

/ Paul Burkhart / 4 Comments

Originally, I was going to entitle this post, Worship, Bodies, and the Economics of Self-Loathing. But, in the interest of readability and trying to seem less intense (and douche-baggy), I’ve changed this to the above title. But still, as that original title implies, there’s a lot here on this topic that I have to say–and may, at some point. But for now, I just wanted to give some musings and thoughts I’ve been having.

I went to a conference a couple of weeks ago put on by a group of artists called Bifrost Arts, and it was on “Liturgy, Music, and Space”. While there, I attended a workshop on the use of our bodies in worship. I was struck at the immense beauty that the Bible offers as it pertains to our embodiment. Our bodies are essential instruments in the worship and life of God. Heck, it’s essential to our very redemption as God Himself took on a body to save us.

And yet, very few of us engage our bodies in those most meaningful of spheres of life, especially when it comes to our spiritual existence. That blasted dualism of our world that elevates the “spiritual” above the “physical” pervades even those most passionate and dedicated of believers in Jesus. We often see our worship merely as a process of dropping immaterial ideas into our immaterial selves to help stir up immaterial emotional responses. And then we wonder why our embodied actions and obedience don’t follow. Could it be that we need to preach the Gospel to our bodies as well?

As I was thinking about this, I was forced to ask: Why do we hate our bodies so much?
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Weekly Must-Reads {03.21.11}

/ Paul Burkhart / Leave a comment

I will be spending most of this week at a conference in St. Louis (see below). Blogging might be a little light. I may try and sneak away at some point, but I can’t make any promises. For that reason, this week’s Weekly Must-Reads list is a little longer than usual. In it, we have articles about fat Christians, single Christians, disagreeing “liberal” Christians, and other writings about business and the media. People really seemed to enjoy the last list I posted. I hope this one also serves you all well. And remember: comment, comment, comment!

Liturgy, Music, & Space | Bifrost Arts

This is the conference that I will be attending this week (Facebook page). It’s being put on by an artist’s collective known as Bifrost Arts. They have some amazing music that you should all check out, including one of the most beautiful Christmas album I’ve ever heard. Also check out this video of some of the things they are doing.

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Weekly Must-Reads {01.02.11}

/ Paul Burkhart / 1 Comment

  • Human evolution: The old man of the mountain returns | The Economist

    This is so cool. The findings in this field evoke so much wonder, awe, and worship within me. So much joy in Christ comes from these studies by these scientists. Thank you, Christ, for your book of revelation known as Nature!

    tags: share evolution science

    MONEY QUOTE: For the necessary interbreeding to have happened, Dr Paabo’s new species would thus have to have been spread over a vast area of Asia. Yet it has left no previously identified traces.

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Unceasing Worship (a liturgy)

/ Paul Burkhart / 2 Comments

[photo by p*p on flickr]

[This was a liturgy I delivered at my church this past Sunday as we continued our series from Luke called “conversations with jesus”.  Here is the audio from the message that followed this opening liturgy.  Much of this opening material I stole from the incredible book Unceasing Worship by Harold Best]

Greeting and Preparation

Leader: The Lord be with you.
People: And also with you.

Hello, my name is Paul, and I want to welcome you Liberti Church. Liberti is a community of individuals still trying to figure out this Christian faith we’ve found ourselves in. And if you’re around here long enough you’ll see that we all do this to varying degrees of imperfection, more often than not. So, whether this is your first time here, or you are firmly rooted in this community, I hope that your time here today is meaningful; that you feel warmly welcomed and that you are able to experience the God we love in a tangible, real way.

In a few moments we’re going to stand and do the whole traditional, super structured, church thing. We’re going to read things back and forth, say them together, sing some songs, stand up, sit down, stand up again, say hello to one another and listen to a sermon. It’s easy to look at all this and begin to think that all these trappings and movements are what it means to be a Christian; that this is the substance of our faith. It’s easy; after all, we can see, observe, and measure our participation of these things.  But that’s not why we do this.

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I Am A Fearful Man (and i need to get over it) {pt1}

/ Paul Burkhart / 11 Comments

[Read Part 2 and Part 3 of this series]

Oh the perils of post-modernity.

There once was a time where I was arrogant in what I thought I knew. I know, I know, many of you are thinking “once”? Let me explain.

I grew up in the South; or at least (if you don’t believe Dallas is in the True South) the Bible Belt. I was raised in an atmosphere that choked with fundamentalism. What’s more, I was fully enveloped in this culture as a Southern Baptist, and all of the cultural retardation that accompanied it. Most everyone in my world was “religious”. Actors and “liberals” were the only ones that were “atheists”, and they were all in Hollywood, D.C., or Berekeley–far, far away. I lived my younger years not knowing even of the existence of other “denominations”. Everyone in Texas was either Catholic or Southern Baptist, and in Sunday School they taught me that Catholics believed in salvation by works and were therefore not going to heaven anyway. Only we Baptists were right. In short, I grew up with a sense that I was part of the cosmic “in” crowd: God’s One and Only Faithful.

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And Thus It Begins: liberti home meetings & my heart

/ Paul Burkhart / 2 Comments

For all those in Philly that either do attend liberti: center city, have attended, or are interested in getting involved: this week marks the beginning of our new season of home meetings. I don’t know why, but I am so excited about this particular round of meetings. Yes, I lead one, but more than that, I feel that the season in which the church currently finds itself is one where a lot of growth (both painful and joyful) is imminent; and I think that these Liberti Home Meetings will be a primary catalyst for this growth.  [Click here for a complete list and map of our groups if you are interested in checking any of them out.]

In the past year and some change, throughout my involvement at Liberti, home meetings have been a constant source of amazing discussion, deep personal analysis, and action mobilization. I really can’t commend these things enough. My deepest relationships, and even where I moved into the city, were all fruits borne from my time in my home meetings.

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Some of my dearest friends got engaged this weekend. And I have a tape.

/ Paul Burkhart / 5 Comments

Two of my favorite people–Jospeh Yasso and Tara Molthen–got engaged this past Friday.  It was amazing.  Joseph had planned this thing for a long time and it went off perfectly.  And, just as is the case with most all of our lives nowadays, it was all caught on tape.  Actually, like 5 or 6 of them.  And I have one.  As I was writing this post, I found Joseph’s “official” tape” on YouTube and thought that it offered some things that my video lacked.  My video gives the “crowd” perspective from outside the restaurant to when we enter.  His is good for the perspective form inside the restaurant from the beginning of the entire thing.  His is posted first after the break and mine is below it, followed by the lyrics of his song he wrote.  Like I said, it’s amazing.  One last note: so sorry for the crazy audio feedback at the end of my video.  It’s pretty unbearable, but worth it, I feel.  Enjoy.

Joseph and Tara: Congratulations.  I love you two, and can’t wait to watch you get married.
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on Babel, Language, & Identity (a liturgy)

/ Paul Burkhart / 1 Comment

[This was a liturgy I delivered at my church this past Sunday as we concluded our series “in the beginning”.  Here is the amazing message that followed this liturgy.]

Greeting and Preparation

Leader: The Lord be with you.
People: And also with you.

Hello, my name is Paul, and welcome to Liberti Church. Liberti Church is a group of people trying to figure out what it means to be a community of believers in Jesus Christ both in and for this city. This may be your first time here–you may have randomly wandered in here or a friend brought you; or, you may be a regular attender here. Either way, we hope you feel welcome to fully participate in this time and space set aside to worship our God.

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The Gospel & Hospitality (a liturgy)

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[This was a liturgy I delivered at my church a couple of months ago, while we were going through our series “Practice Resurrection”. You can hear the sermon delivered that Sunday here.]

Greeting and Preparation

Leader: Alleluia! Christ is risen.
People: The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia!

Hi, my name Is Paul. Welcome to Liberti: South Philly. We’re a community of believers in Jesus Christ wrestling and struggling trying to learn what it looks like to live in the tensions and ambiguities of an ever-changing world; of a world whose systems too often attempt to isolate and pull each other apart. Maybe you’ve graced these pews many times before, maybe you’re still trying to get over the shock that you’re actually sitting in here in the first place. Either way, we want to welcome you today. We hope your time here is meaningful and that you feel the freedom and invitation to wrestle and struggle alongside us.

The aspect of Christian faith we will be exploring today is hospitality. The God of Christianity is not a distant god demanding things of us; putting ever-increasing weights upon our shoulders. Rather, he is a God that removes our burdens, shows us what a well-lived life looks like and invites us in. He invites us into the experience of His Self and His Works.

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Catholics Aren’t Crazy: The Eucharist & Economics (pt.1 of ?)

/ Paul Burkhart / 11 Comments

I haven’t written a post in this series in a while, but I’ve been reading William Cavanaugh’s amazing book Being Consumed: Economics & Christian Desire as a counter to Jack Cashill’s Popes & Bankers, which I just finished.  It’s pretty remarkable.  Every Christian–nay, every person–should read this book.

Cavanaugh is a Catholic and this influences his thought greatly and wonderfully.  I’ve only made it through the Introduction and I already feel like I’ve been taken for a ride, with my economic thought swirling.  Once I’m done I’ll surely be posting a review here for all of you to enjoy.  He has this amazing paragraph in the Introduction I wanted to share here with all of you:
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Of Liturgy, Communion, and Relationship [a liturgy]

/ Paul Burkhart / 5 Comments

[This weekend, I had the privilege of helping lead the prayers and liturgy at my church. I thought I would post my manuscript up for all to read and take part in as well. I hope this blesses you to read as it blessed me to write.]

Greeting and Preparation

Leader: The Lord be with you.
People: And also with you.

Hello, my name is Paul, and welcome to Liberti: South Philly. We are a community of people–people with struggles, doubts, addictions, and frustrations–who are still in the process of figuring out what it means to believe in this God we believe in, and relate to Him and others in a way that reflects that belief. This may be your first time here or your hundredth, but either way we want to welcome you all and we hope that your time here today is meaningful.

The part of the Christian faith we will be talking about today is that of community and relationships. Most likely all of us in here have our own sets of insecurities, uncertainties, and baggage concerning this topic. Our relationships seem to be the area that can frustrate us like no other; the area that it appears no amount of mere intellectual knowledge can change. It is often the source of our greatest joys, our deepest sorrows, and our most profound change.

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I’ve Moved to South Philly! (hence no blog posts)

/ Paul Burkhart / 3 Comments

Hey, this is one of those posts I have to put up every couple of months apologizing for not having updated things around here on the blog.  As anyone that reads this site knows, I don’t really do “personal” posts very often.  Sure, most every article is timely and has some sort of inspiration within my life, but the resultant product is still more “essay”-y and “article”-y.  This is just the way I am, and I’m fine with that.  But with the immanent demise of my “online magazine” (post on this forthcoming), I might have a place to put those “essays” and “articles” thereby reserving this space for “posts”: you know; quotes, links, quips, thoughts, witticisms, and the like, updated more than once a day.  But as I parentheticized earlier, all this will be talked about in the next week or so.  On to the personal stuff!

This past weekend I moved into my new place in South Philly.

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Wright, the Neo-Reformed, & Unity in the Church (If you read one thing all day, let it be this)

/ Paul Burkhart / 2 Comments

easterDon’t worry, the title is not referring to this very blog post you are reading right now.  It’s actually referring to this article at Christianity Today by Brett McCracken:

Wrightians & the Neo-Reformed: ‘All One in Christ Jesus – A dispatch from Together for the Gospel and Wheaton’s Theology Conference with N.T. Wright

The article compares and contrasts the general ethos of two very different conferences that occurred very close to the same time.  One conference was the Together for the Gospel Conference and Wheaton College’s Theology Conference with N.T. Wright.

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