Christmas weekend, a commercial invitation for Community of Christ will be airing on local TV stations in the greater Kansas City area. It is being aired by three mission centers: Central Mission, Midlands Mission Center, and Far West. The commercials were created by a team including Tom Cochran, Brady Cackler, and Bryce Veazey. The commercial advertises [...]
Archive for the ‘religious identity’ category
A Real Gift: Community of Christ Commercials
December 24, 2011What is the future of the Community of Christ in a North American post-RLDS perspective?
November 18, 2010I just published a long-ish blog post that responds to the question, “What is the future of the Community of Christ in a North American post-RLDS perspective?” The post focuses on questions of Community of Christ identity in light of its North American heritage. I share the link here to invite reactions and comments to [...]
Some Walls Just Came Tumbling Down
November 11, 2010The boundaries separating Community of Christ from other Christian denominations have just gotten considerably more porous. Item No. 1: Last week CofC leaders released details on new procedures for church membership for Christians previously baptized in other denominations. An interim policy takes effect January 1, 2011, and will be valid through the following August 31. [...]
Appalling…
August 21, 2010On September 11, 2010, the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida is hosting International Burn a Quran Day. From 6-9pm “Christians” can burn the Quran at the local church. The city of Gainesville has refused a burn permit for safety reasons, however the church has vowed, “BUT WE WILL STILL BURN KORANS.” Dove World [...]
Sticks and Stones and … Compliments?
August 19, 2010Several years ago when my congregation attempted to join the local ministerial alliance (in a town right next door to Independence, Missouri), I was met by a coalition of fundamentalist and evangelical pastors intent on keeping out the (then) RLDS Church. Their reasoning ranged from claims we were “non-Christian” all the way to “not Christian [...]
Holy Tentles of the Restoration
August 17, 2010Community of Christ produces a special edition of the Hymns of the Saints hymnal, to commemorate the dedication of the temple. It’s bound in blue, rather than red, and has a large picture of the Temple in Independence within the first few pages. I’m telling you this to relate a story involving my three-year-old daughter, [...]
Blogging about Blogs
August 1, 2010Blogs are everywhere now, and the number of people who have their own personal blog grows constantly. Its only logical that the subject matter on blogs should by now cover virtually every topic imaginable. Search any imaginable term in Google Blogs, or your search engine of preference, and undoubtedly someone’s blog will come up talking [...]
Community of Christ and the telos of the Restoration
June 3, 2010I want to introduce a word: telos. Telos is a Greek word that means “aim” or “purpose.” However, the “aim” or “purpose” in the meaning of telos is not the goals and objectives that defines today’s business or organizational thinking. Telos refers to the purpose or aim unfolding, guiding, and innate within a thing or [...]
Is Mormonism Christian?
May 28, 2010I’d like to revisit the theme of the most recent Restoration Studies, while keeping my comments largely to the LDS Church (although with obvious implications for Community of Christ). For most Mormons, to be “Christian” means being a believer in Christ. But orthodox Christianity has higher standards, not unlike the standard of “the one true [...]
“I would present to you, my brethren, Joseph Smith”
April 6, 2010In traveling to Amboy, Illinois 6 April 1860, Joseph III shared these words (150 years ago today) with the gathered conference preceeding consideration of him to the prophetic office: I would say to you, brethren, as I hope you may be, and in faith I trust you are, as a people that God has promised [...]
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