The Maddening Thing

On June 17, 2016June 17, 2016 By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Subverting EmpireLeave a comment

tabbi An excerpt from Matt Taibbi’s recent Rolling Stone piece “Democrats Will Learn All the Wrong Lessons From Brush With Bernie:”

The maddening thing about the Democrats is that they refuse to see how easy they could have it. If the party threw its weight behind a truly populist platform, if it stood behind unions and prosecuted Wall Street criminals and stopped taking giant gobs of cash from every crooked transnational bank and job-exporting manufacturer in the world, they would win every election season in a landslide. Continue reading “The Maddening Thing” →

Confronting Legion

On June 16, 2016June 11, 2016 By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Subverting Empire, Theological Animation5 Comments

By Ched Myers, Fifth Sunday of Pentecost, Luke 8:26-39

Note: This is part of a series of weekly comments on the Lukan gospel readings from the Revised Common Lectionary during year C, 2016.

This Sunday’s text is Luke’s version of the infamous Markan “political cartoon” of the Gerasene Demoniac (Mk 5:1-20). Here Luke follows Mark relatively closely (whereas Matthew changes and shortens it significantly, Mt 28-34), including placing it on the heels of Jesus’ crossing and storm-stilling on the Sea of Galilee (which Luke insists on calling a “lake”). Continue reading “Confronting Legion” →

The Price of Political Ambivalence

On June 15, 2016June 21, 2016 By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Subverting Empire3 Comments

By Tommy Airey

When I see an act of evil, I’m not accommodated. I don’t accommodate myself to the violence that goes on everywhere; I’m still surprised. That’s why I’m against it, why I can hope against it. We must learn how to be surprised. Not to adjust ourselves. I am the most maladjusted person in society.
Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel

Detroit, Michigan

Last month, water shut-offs were ramped up for residents of this city two months behind on their bills. Tens of thousands already live in homes that do not have running water. Leaders of the city make claims that both payment plans and cash assistance are available for those who cannot afford water. Unfortunately, a vast majority of people take them at their word. Continue reading “The Price of Political Ambivalence” →

Daniel Berrigan: Ten Commandments for the Long Haul

On June 14, 2016June 9, 2016 By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Cloud of Witnesses, Uncategorized1 Comment

re-posted from http://rosemarieberger.com/

1. Call on Jesus when all else fails. Call on Him when all else succeeds (except that never happens).

2. Don’t be afraid to be afraid or appalled to be appalled. How do you think the trees feel these days, or the whales, or, for that matter, most humans?

3. Keep your soul to yourself. Soul is a possession worth paying for, they’re growing rarer. Learn from monks, they have secrets worth knowing. Continue reading “Daniel Berrigan: Ten Commandments for the Long Haul” →

I Will Not Serve As An Empire Chaplain

On June 13, 2016June 21, 2016 By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Biography as Theology, Subverting EmpireLeave a comment

Antal From former U.S. Army Reserve Chaplain Captain Chris Antal, who spent time based in Afghanistan. In April, he wrote an open letter to President Obama detailing his reasons for leaving the U.S. Army Reserves, citing his opposition to the administration’s use of drone strikes, its policy on nuclear proliferation, and what he calls the executive branch’s claim of “extraconstitutional authority and impunity for international law.” Continue reading “I Will Not Serve As An Empire Chaplain” →

Sabbath Economics

On June 12, 2016June 4, 2016 By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Sabbath EconomicsLeave a comment

Bartimaeus Cooperative Ministries has proclaimed a Jubilee on their Sabbath Economics curriculum, packaging their regular Sabbath Economics book bundle with the Mammon to Manna DVD at a super Sabbath price of just $7.77 for all three (plus shipping, and tax where applicable). Click here to order. This is a quote from The Biblical Vision of Sabbath Economics by Ched Myers (2001):

Privately controlled wealth is the backbone of capitalism, and it is predicated upon the exploitation of natural resources and human labor. Profit maximization renders socio-economic stratification, objectification and alienation inevitable. According to the gospel, however, those who are privileged within this system cannot enter the Kingdom. This is not good news for First World Christians–because we are the “inheritors” of the rich man’s legacy. So the unequivocal gospel invitation to repentance is addressed to us. To deconstruct our “inheritance” and redistribute the wealth as reparation to the poor–that is what it means for us to follow Jesus.

She

On June 11, 2016June 9, 2016 By RadicalDiscipleshipIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Be welcomed again and again

On June 10, 2016June 9, 2016 By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Biography as Theology, UncategorizedLeave a comment

An Invitation. By Lydia Wylie-Kellermann

This is a space that lives in the
unknowable interweb,
that lives beyond the boundaries
of state or nation.
It is rootless
and yet is always honoring the rooted.

It is a space that is dreamed
and humanly kept
with love and foibles
for a movement of radical disciples. Continue reading “Be welcomed again and again” →

Do You See Her?

On June 9, 2016July 28, 2017 By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Feminist/Womanist/Queer Liberation and Theology, Theological Animation1 Comment

By Ched Myers, Fourth Sunday of Pentecost, Luke 7:36-8:3

Note: This is part of a series of weekly comments on the Lukan gospel readings from the Revised Common Lectionary during year C, 2016. Thanks to Wes Howard Brook and Sue Ferguson for their reflections that took us through Eastertide and into Pentecost; we’ll again now trade off more regularly during “Ordinary Time.” As this story represents a hermeneutic key to Luke’s social outlook, my comments here will be longer; their purpose is to reveal exegetical details that can help restore the dynamism of this encounter (I recommend acting the story out). Painting (above right) by Wayne Forte. Continue reading “Do You See Her?” →

A Call for 10,000 Black Women, Girls & Femmes

On June 8, 2016June 11, 2016 By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Feminist/Womanist/Queer Liberation and Theology, RaceLeave a comment

What does it mean for Black Women, Black Girls and Black Femmes to respond to dying cities and the death of Black families in dying cities? What does it mean for Black Women, Black Girls and Black Femmes to call out from Detroit to the world to not only recognize the humanity of Black lives, but to challenge the world to respond with the full of their own humanity? We live in movement times. A time where we can clearly articulate all that is wrong in society and all that is wrong in the world. A time where the stark contrasts between which Black lives matter and which don’t, are becoming more and more prevalent within the Black community. Continue reading “A Call for 10,000 Black Women, Girls & Femmes” →