A Thanksgiving Model that Must be Rejected

https://churchandfamilylife.com/podcasts/6540dea48035f112bf38cdf8

Modern Thanksgiving was born out of the US Civil War – In 1863, Lincoln wanted the country to be thankful for the turning of the tide post-Gettysburg and following his lead the government issued proclamations in the 1870's.  

In 1939 FDR moved the date up a week wishing to extend the Christmas shopping season – and this remains the practice today.

In other words it's a familiar theme to us even today – it's about the troops and the consumerist economy.

Christmas 2021: AOC Shames the Evangelicals

https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/us-news/2021/12/09/ocasio-cortez-slams-republicans-over-gun-toting-christmas-photos/

What a sad moment. Ocasio-Cortez the much vilified Democratic representative from New York and member of the hated 'Squad' has spoken truth – and a truth that puts Evangelicals to shame.

The Moscow Abomination, Sacralist Worldview and Memorial Day (Part 2)

From the anti-sacralist Two Kingdom standpoint of New Testament Christianity, the aforementioned thin line between Church and State is in fact an insurmountable wall.***

Christians do not celebrate war. They do not take up the sword. They do not seek revenge and they do not put themselves in service to mammon. As such, Christians are necessarily divorced from the cultural mainstream and cannot have any part in the political apparatus. Life of course is complicated and saints have at times found themselves in difficult situations and have been pulled into realms and spheres that they did not seek. These realities are part of life in a fallen world. But this is quite different from a mode of thinking that not only embraces these categories but sanctifies and glorifies them.

Calvinist Narratives, 19th Century Princeton and Christmas (Part 1)

https://calvinistinternational.com/2019/01/24/charles-hodge-and-a-19th-cent-presbyterian-christmas/

 It's a little disturbing to me but for some the idea seems to be that if Charles Hodge said Christmas was okay, then it's okay. I suppose some might feel they have some ammunition for their pro-Christmas/revisionist argument if they can pull out a 'big gun' like Hodge.

Twisting Scripture and History to Justify Christmas

http://evangelicalfocus.com/magazine/4072/Eight_AntiChristmas_Arguments

This was a rather lackluster attempt by the author but it's useful in that these trite, silly and erroneous pro-Christmas arguments are commonly used and thus must be answered. I thought it worth taking a moment to examine and interact with them.

Christmas: Obfuscation and The Lord's Day Gambit

I have to confess this was an argument for Christmas I had not encountered before.

The Day of Lies

This Sunday will effectively be the July 4^th Sunday, the day in which the National holiday is commemorated. In the Patriotic liturgy that has overtaken American Evangelicalism we might call this a high holy day.

But in truth it is a day of darkness, a day of evil, a day of lies.

Memorial Day: A Lamentation

Memorial Day was born out of the US Civil War. All wars deal heavily in propaganda but a civil war can be the most vicious in this regard and perhaps the most emotional and subject to future sentimentality. The US Civil War and its many myths is no exception. It was only a lesson in what was to come.

Christmas: Dan and Bethel Revived

The embrace of Christmas is a rejection of Scripture as the ultimate authority and arbiter of all matters concerning the faith and Kingdom. Christmas is perhaps the perfect example of syncretistic religion and worldliness wedded to the Church. There is no better way to bear witness to our culture than to categorically reject Christmas. This will say more to people you know than any attempt to 'keep Christ' in something that He was never part of to begin with.

Questions for Christmas Keepers and Celebrants

On what basis do we approach God? On what basis do we petition and praise Him? How do we enter the Throne Room so to speak? What gives us the right to do that?

Holy Week and The Temptation of the Tactile

I guess it's that time of year again, the Spring Equinox is coming and that means another full moon.

The Re-Christianization of Valentine's Day

Dominionist thinking demands that all of culture must be subsumed and conquered or else eliminated. At its heart it is a theology of conquest.

In the Middle Ages this was expressed as 'Christianization'. It's tough to explain this to your kids, how on the one hand we speak of Medieval Europe as being 'Christianized' but in no way does that mean it was Christian. It's a Social and Cultural concept that hijacks the word 'Christian' and recasts it in a social mold. You'll be hard pressed to even find a Church history that will deal with this topic in an honest and Biblical fashion.

Everything in society has to fit into this power structure. It must be transformed and given 'christian' value and interpretation or it must be burned at the stake as it were.

Holy Week 2013

I've been so busy (actually far too busy) I forgot it's 'Holy Week'. That means it's time to re-post some old links appropriate to the season. Down the left side of the main page there's a 'holiday' section where I've left these up all the time. Many will have already read them. Some will read them and probably be a bit offended.

If so, please read 'The Temptation of the Tactile' and the last link about the spirit in which I say all of this. It will help you understand where I'm coming from. If you're coming out of mainstream evangelicalism some of my views regarding the holidays will seem especially strange. But as you will see, even if you don't agree with me, there's both historical precedent and a Biblical case for my position. You still may think I'm completely wrong, but I can almost guarantee it will get you thinking a bit.

Easter and Holy Week Part 1

Easter and Holy Week Part 2 - Binding the Conscience

The Temptation of the Tactile

Easter- Supplemental Discussion

The Spirit in which I say these things....

So-Called Christmas 2012

Once again I offer the following to consider during this time of....whatever it is that's happening right now.

It's interesting that those who decry the materialism of this season have failed to grasp that our retail economy and thus much of the national economy is absolutely dependent on Christmas related sales. Many stores break even at best nine months out of the year. Christmas related sales make or break them. If there was a nationwide rejection of materialism...the national economy would implode and collapse.

Of course as one who spends absolutely zero on Christmas, I care little other than I would like to see the country adopt a different economic model...one that would necessitate a different political order. But that's for another time.

In the meantime for those interested in contemplating or reconsidering this holy day....

Thanksgiving 2012

For those who haven't read it yet or for those who are interested, here's a link to my 2010 article on Thanksgiving.

As is usually the case, I approach these questions in a different manner. I'm not binding your conscience, nor do I want to ruin your day but it's interesting to observe the responses I get when I tell people I couldn't care less about the American holiday of Thanksgiving. This year will be no different, it's just another Thursday and I'll most likely be at work.

Being counter-cultural in this case is viewed as being somehow anti-Christian. To me it just further exemplifies the confusion in most people's minds regarding these issues of Kingdom, culture, and state.

I realize virtually no one will accept my argument. I realize very few will accept my arguments in general. But as always, it's something to ponder and meditate on.

Halloween 2012

Every year at this time I post the following link. I'm afraid for those of us in the Eastern United States, this year's Halloween will be a bit of wash out. Nevertheless the issue doesn't go away. In terms of spending, it's now the second biggest holiday in the United States and all the culture warriors and Dominionists feel the need to respond. 

My take is a bit different.

All Sacralist's Eve

Christmas, Communion, and the Incarnation 2

The Blessing of Communion

If it's a blessing, is it desirable or even prudent to neglect it?

Is frequent or regular Communion superstitious?

I could argue those who regularly abstain are either failing to understand its import or are themselves superstitious.

I'm thinking of those who believe having the Lord's Supper every time we meet or frequently approaches the realm of danger wherein we might be eating and drinking unworthily, failing to examine ourselves and thus falling under condemnation.

Christmas, Communion, and the Incarnation 1

How Christmas overrides the Scriptural way of corporately celebrating and recognizing the Incarnation.

So, why don't you celebrate the Incarnation?

I was asked this one year by a friend. It was asked in a non-hostile spirit. This particular person comes from shall we say a rather High Church, Anglo-Catholic position...as in Newman and Pusey. If those names mean anything to you, you'll understand where the question was coming from.

I found the question interesting in how it was framed. My rejection of Christmas was immediately assumed to be a rejection of the Incarnation.

Christmas as a Federal Holiday...the Implications (Part 3)

Of course if I accepted the premise of Christmas I would go much further and celebrate all 12 days of Christmas ending on 6 January with Epiphany. That's the origin of Happy Holidays or Holy-days. Evangelicals, completely ignorant of Church history have embraced Catholic principles without even understanding them! Christmas was a cycle of days not just 25 December. Of course to the Orthodox 6 January is a bigger deal. Why isn't that a Federal Holiday? If it's okay to celebrate 25 December, then you certainly cannot argue against the other 11 days or any part of the liturgical calendar, civilly or theologically.

Christmas as a Federal Holiday...the Implications (Part 2)

What of the other symbols of Sacralism the Evangelicals fight for...the Pledge of Allegiance, the motto on our currency, Scripture quotations on public buildings?

These questions need to be thought through in light of the Sacralist or anti-Sacralist position.

The waters are muddied because there are some Sacralists who argue against the Pledge...because of its Socialist origins, not because Americans are swearing allegiance to a 'nation under God.' They have no problem with a Sacral pledge, just not that one.

Some wouldn't have a problem with it if the country was cleaned up and made Christian. Because it's not at present, they (at this present time) have a problem with it. Same with the motto on the currency. Change the Constitution to acknowledge Christ...and then yes, 'In God We Trust' belongs on the coins.