By Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.A., M.Div., MFT When I was growing up, I was told that I must “believe.” In our house, belief was equated with faith so believing in the right things made a person faithful. What were we supposed to believe? It was the standard affair for anyone growing up in middleContinue reading “Asking “Why?””
Tag Archives: faith
Faith, Judgment, and Edification
As many of you are aware, I have been teaching philosophy and ethics for the past years, and a written response I received from one of my ethics students was as interesting as it was informative. The student wrote: “Ethics is based upon knowing the good, knowing the good inside each one of us. WhatContinue reading “Faith, Judgment, and Edification”
Faith Without Religion
By Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.A., M.Div. I have to admit, I enjoy TikTok, and I am a little concerned that on my feed at least, there are so many expressing their dismay about religion in general and Christianity in particular. Now, before the chorus of loud “Amens!” begin to ring out, let me alsoContinue reading “Faith Without Religion”
Faithful Living and the Difference between Kerygma and Myth
By Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.A., M.Div. It is impossible to use electric light and the wireless and to avail ourselves of modern medical and surgical discoveries, and at the same time to believe in the New Testament world of spirits and miracles. We may think we can manage it in our own lives, butContinue reading “Faithful Living and the Difference between Kerygma and Myth”
Beware the Mask of Fascism
By Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.A., M.Div. I wondered. Why had she said that? How could someone make such a blatantly false assessment of a message of love and peace? Sure, the topic of my talk that evening was a premillennial romp through the apocalyptic literature of the Bible, making almost no distinction between theContinue reading “Beware the Mask of Fascism”
Faithful Living and the Difference between Kerygma and Myth
by Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.A., M.Div by Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., M.A., M.Div It is impossible to use electric light and the wireless and to avail ourselves of modern medical and surgical discoveries, and at the same time to believe in the New Testament world of spirits and miracles. WeContinue reading “Faithful Living and the Difference between Kerygma and Myth”
Faith…But Faith in What?
by Harold W. Anderson, Ph.D., LMFT, M.Div. It is difficult to know what the word for faith in the New Testament means because all too often, the term is used without definition. One of the few biblical definitions is given in Hebrew 11:1, which states “Now faith is being sure of what we hope forContinue reading “Faith…But Faith in What?”
The Sermon: A Dialogue of Faith
With the encouragement of my wife, some of my future posts will be edited versions of sermons that I have preached over the years. Before doing so, I wish to take a moment to briefly express what I believe a sermon to be and what it needs to do. There is…awesome power in a sermonContinue reading “The Sermon: A Dialogue of Faith”
Rushing Headlong towards Civil War?
Two clergy worry about the divided nature of our country and wonder what type of sacrifice is necessary for the division to be healed. They worry if it can it be healed or are we as a country rushing headlong into another civil war? Hundreds of thousands died in the last one. What will happenContinue reading “Rushing Headlong towards Civil War?”
Red-Letter Christians and the Prophetic Imagination
The basis of spiritual community is truth; the basis of emotional community is desire. The essence of spiritual community is light. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together “The red letters are the words of Jesus.” Told to me by my mother as a child When I was a young child, our church had a contest. The firstContinue reading “Red-Letter Christians and the Prophetic Imagination”