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Jesus never heard of “Original Sin”

By Jennifer Schwarz | February 18, 2013 | 4 Comments

Not only is Original Sin NOT in the Bible, Elie Wiesel says that Original Sin is alien to Jewish thinking (and therefore alien to Jesus’ way of thinking). Let’s ditch the whole thing, shall we? Matthew Fox says, “Jesus never heard of ‘Original Sin’.” The term wasn’t even used until the 4th century, so it’s…

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The Journey of Liberation

By Jennifer Schwarz | January 30, 2013 | 0 Comments

Liberation is about “being on a journey, being in a movement.” It’s “the process of coming into an awareness that there is definitely a better life for people to be had. Not just for myself but for all of us. The Church should be part of that. And where it is not, it is not…

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From Violence to Forgiveness?

By Jennifer Schwarz | January 28, 2013 | 0 Comments

When it comes right down to it, Lent is all about preparing for an unjust execution. All these years later, is it possible to cross the breach from state-sponsored violence to a radical forgiveness?  Is it possible to heal our culture of the notion that the solution to violence is more violence? Sr. Helen Prejean, author…

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A Christianity That’s Not Stuck

By Jennifer Schwarz | January 24, 2013 | 1 Comment

  Stephen Patterson thinks that Progressive Christianity is about “being willing to think critically about one’s faith and about the traditions of one’s faith and the resources like the Bible — to think critically about these things and not simply assume that it all has to make sense. Progressive Christianity means you’re free to explore and…

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An Antidote to Suspicion and Fear

By Jennifer Schwarz | January 19, 2013 | 0 Comments

“Martin Luther King may have never made it to the promised land, but the vision of that promise inspired him to do everything he could to get there. That vision — that promise — requires of us what it required of King: to be in solidarity with the poor, to counter the idolatry of wealth,…

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Violence is our God. Hallowed be its name.

By Jennifer Schwarz | January 11, 2013 | 2 Comments

We spank children to teach them not to hit one another.  We sanction the killing of killers as a deterrent against killing. We advocate the arming of citizens to promote personal safety. Is it any wonder that people are being deluded into complying with a system that allies them with violence, not compassion; with death,…

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Evolution as a Sacred Story

By Jennifer Schwarz | January 8, 2013 | 1 Comment

Bruce Sanguin understands evolution as a divine strategy for making a world that can make itself, and that God is in the business of alluring all of creation into the deep enjoyment of realizing the highest possible expression of goodness, truth, and beauty.   “Everything and everybody is involved in a sacred, evolutionary process, including…

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Christian Jerks

By Jennifer Schwarz | January 7, 2013 | 0 Comments

“You can believe all the right things and still be a jerk.  You can believe all the right things and still be miserable, still be in bondage, or still be untransformed. So, the emphasis upon belief is, I think, modern and mistaken. It’s also very divisive – once people  start thinking that being a Christian is about believing…

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A Meditation for the New Year from LtQ – 2013

By Jennifer Schwarz | January 1, 2013 | 0 Comments

The words of Rumi are visualized as a meditation for the New Year. May 2013 be a time when you hear the music others don’t… EVOLVE The Mystic dances in the sun Hearing music others don’t  Forget any sounds or touch you knew that did not help you dance.  You will come to see that all…

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Crossan on Destroying Ourselves with Violence

By Jennifer Schwarz | December 19, 2012 | 1 Comment

In the aftermath of the Sandy Hook massacre, the  loudest voices seem to be focusing on curbing the availability of certain weapons and preventing unstable individuals from acquiring weapons. But Dom Crossan believes that “The most important question we have to face today really is violence.” Recalling John’s version of Jesus’ trial before Pilate, Crossan points…

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