Monthly Archives March 2010

CPT report on Iraq, seven years later

31 March 2010 Nonviolence  One comment

It's sad to say I was glad to see CPT's report on Iraq after seven years come in my email today. The update, titled "Iraq Reflection: Iraq, After Seven Years of War," by Peggy Gish should be a welcome reminder for everyone. You can read

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When is killing my enemies justified? The one-on-one idea

29 March 2010 Nonviolence  4 comments

If you're a Christian pacifist, no doubt you've come across advocates for war who challenge our understanding of the words of Jesus in the Sermon of the Mount (Mt. v-vii or Lk. vi). One challenge in particular has to do with the application of these

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The NLT is not a scholarly translation?

29 March 2010 Bible Translations  9 comments

I recently noticed a short burst of folks on Twitter linking to James White's blog post, "Ephesians 1:11 and Bible Translation."

When I read Dr. White's post, I noticed the focus of the post was not on Bible translation, but on a debate he's

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Failings of Just War

27 March 2010 Nonviolence  2 comments

As I continue to read and think about the so called Just War theory, I more often question how many Christians who advocate for war actually believe in the Just War theory. Do we see the theory being applied? Are wars being tested by it's

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Loving those enemies within

26 March 2010 Nonviolence  One comment

But even if they refuse to hear me, and to respect the restraints they are theoretically committed to , I owe it to their dignity as fellow humans, some of whom are fellow Christians, to address them in terms of their moral culture, not only of

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Our Spring Garden 2010

24 March 2010 Gardening  One comment

This past weekend into Monday our family has been working on getting our front and side yards into shape for planting. While pulling weeds in the front I uncovered three volunteer squash plants coming up! There are also quite a few volunteer

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Rejecting alternatives, and a book to give away

24 March 2010 Featured Highlights, Nonviolence  4 comments

The advocate of war cannot say there is no other recourse before weighing nonviolent alternatives.
That's from chapter 7 of John Howard Yoder's The War of the Lamb: The Ethics of Nonviolence and Peacemaking, edited by Glen Stassen, Mark Thiessen

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The Goshen College Compromise continues

23 March 2010 Nonviolence  One comment

And I mean "compromise" in the very negative sense, i.e. compromising the Good News of Jesus. Goshen College officially started to play the US national anthem before games. I am unable to say all I want to say about this right now (mostly because it

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New Living Translation contest

23 March 2010 Book Review  No comments

Excellent New Living Translation contest. Check it out.

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This whole Beck affair

13 March 2010 Featured Highlights, Theology  2 comments

If you are not sure what's going on with this uproar over Glenn Beck, that's alright. He likes to cause a ruckus. But this one is fairly problematic. For some quick catch up, check out this intro by Eugene Cho, then Glenn Beck's response, and then

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Because words matter

12 March 2010 Anabaptist, Featured Highlights, Theology  3 comments

Words matter. What we say, what we recite, what we repeat. All of it matters. And the meaning behind the words we say matter just the same.

For this reason a Christian must never deny Jesus, especially to save their own life. Many have said they

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Gene Stoltzfus: “block the guns”

12 March 2010 Featured Highlights, Nonviolence  No comments

Founding director of Christian Peacemaker Teams, Gene Stoltzfus, took the next journey in life on Wednesday, and gets to hear those glorious words, "Well done."

I can't say any words of quality here. I will simply point you to some articles and

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Obama’s War and the Way of Jesus

12 March 2010 Nonviolence  One comment

Take a few minutes and watch this video if you haven't yet. Find more at rethinkafghanistan.com.

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The blood of martyrs is seed, but…

10 March 2010 Book Review, Featured Highlights, Islam, Nonviolence  No comments

I started reading Light Force: A Stirring Account of the Church Caught in the Middle East Crossfire, by Brother Andrew and Al Janssen. I read Secret Believers earlier last year, adored that wonderful text, and wanted to continue my engrossing

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Bring our troops home from Afghanistan?

10 March 2010 Nonviolence  No comments

Whether or not you support the war, I think everyone wants our troops to come back home, and come back safe.

On 4 March, Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) forced congress to into a debate on whether or not to continue the war effort in

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The violence continues in Nigeria

9 March 2010 Islam, Nonviolence  No comments

The violence between Christians and Muslims in Nigeria continues to rage. But, to say this is a conflict between Christians and Muslims isn't telling the whole story. Eddie Arthur of Wycliffe UK wrote a very astute observation in his recent post,

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