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Tom Booker

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03/02/2012 - 12:18am

I read responses to comments, esp to my own (much earlier) and think there's not much dialogue, not much attempt to speak to the other directly in this forum. (Are there any on the internet?) I tried to address what was inferred from Ms. Harper's essay and what's inferred from what's heard of larger issues about evangelism and poverty. Those who responded to me seem to be doing something similar.


One intent was to broaden discussion about these 2 topics, beyond what this essay seems to say about them. Perhaps that's too big a goal for any forum like this. Again, recent postings in my blog have more background on these 2 topics.


For what it's worth: my perspective is more Anabaptist than anything else, and I defer to a God v world paradigm which emphasizes the dichotomy of the ways and values of God with those of this world. This perspective tends to lead to questioning anything conventional, inasmuch as it tends toward the wide gate "that leads to destruction" (Mt 7:13f) What's of God's way doesn't come from any literal reading of scripture but from discernment with the help of the Spirit.

 Black Evangelicals, White Evangelicals and Franklin Graham's Repentance view
03/01/2012 - 5:44pm

Reading the headline, I had hopes that Rev. Graham had actually repented. Reading this article, Ms. Harper's friend sounds like another who misunderstands the concept of evangelism, what's been infused with so much religiosity as to be unrecognizable to so many Christians. Evangelism needs to be and can be recovered as a calling from God to share the broad message of salvation, esp with all who can hear it. I hope Rev. Graham and Ms Harper's friend don't have minds narrow enuf to exclude what real evangelism is.


Similarly I hope Ms Harper appreciates the breadth of the Biblical concept of poverty. As I read the Bible "the poor" include people lacking things of value, either what helps us live in this world or what helps us find God. Thus "the poor in spirit" isn't a mistake in Mt 5:3, and "the poor" are often linked with "the oppressed", people lacking status and human power.


It's too easy to get hung up on this world and material poverty as God's primary concern. God is concerned with all critical human need. I refer anyone interested to my blogged commentary on poverty in the Feb 10 and 13 entries--http://allofmetb.talkspotblogs.com.

 Black Evangelicals, White Evangelicals and Franklin Graham's Repentance view
01/19/2012 - 6:28pm

I connect the word "evangelical" broadly to any earnest or altruistic Christian, and thus include myself.  Believers who are lukewarm or unfocused upon the ways of God are not included.  It's part of the way of this world that the word is connected to so many other ideas, including those your cited authors refer to.  True evangelicals can never hope to influence (for long) what the world thinks about them, but I hope we don't connect ourselves too closely with the similar term "evangelism", which is a human construct with meanings and connotations among Christians that often keep us away from God's call to teach and witness to the good news.  (See my blog entry of Jan 14, 2011--http://allofmetb.talkspotblogs.com)

 Defining "Evangelical" and Other Unsolved Mysteries view
Election 2012