Revelation

The disruptive way of the Lamb

What would the global church look like if we all honored our ancestors as members of the communion of saints?

From dust I came and to dust I shall return—but not forever.

Do we really want God to live with us in a poisoned and degraded world?

Do we really want God to live with us in a poisoned and degraded world?

Sarah Ruden writes some of the most sumptuous words about Bible words I’ve ever read.

John of Patmos presents readers of Revelation with fantastical visions of what life could be, just as Dickens does to Scrooge.

John of Patmos presents readers of Revelation with fantastical visions of what life could be, just as Dickens does to Scrooge.

The reading from Revelation 22 concludes the book’s resurrection songs: the baptized enjoy the fruits of the tree of life.  But the tree is not merely one of the countless archetypal trees that religions and cultures everywhere have imagined.

“You, Lord, are both Lamb and Shepherd.” So begins “Christus Paradox,” a hymn penned by Sylvia Dunstan more than three decades ago. According to notes on the hymn text, Dunstan first scribbled down the lyrics--rich with paradoxical, tension-laden images of Jesus--while she rode the bus home after a difficult day of prison chaplaincy.

A shepherd’s staff has a crook for drawing the sheep away from danger, and a blunt end for prodding them toward places they would rather not go. This week’s texts embrace the tension between the two in the shepherd’s role.

People do not float through life in the bubble that is their skin. We are grounded, dependent beings that live through the lives and deaths of others.

I want the kingdom of God to be civilized. If possible I'd like to be able to keep sleeping in my own bed.

I want the kingdom of God to be civilized. If possible I'd like to be able to keep sleeping in my own bed.

I want the kingdom of God to be civilized. If possible I'd like to be able to keep sleeping in my own bed.

These days, we need a strong current of theological explication of Christian eschatology. Richard Middleton has stepped forward—and his book doesn't even mention zombies.

These days, we need a strong current of theological explication of Christian eschatology. Richard Middleton has stepped forward—and his book doesn't even mention zombies.

Not all endings are bad.