Crazy Faith Talk

As we continue our summer series exploring why the separation of church and state is good for both sides of that arrangement, we explore the way our voice as Christians can be a helpful check and balance on the actions and decisions of government.  Most folks who have lived in the United States understand the concept of how we are supposed to have "checks and balances" within government itself, in...

This summer on Crazy Faith Talk, we're taking a look at the separation of church and state in the American experiment, and why it's a good thing.  Around the table as usual are pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve, and this week, we're looking at the possible dangers of a church or religious faith taking control of the wheels of government.  While some might think it would only mean getting to have Chr...

This week on Crazy Faith Talk, we continue our series exploring the separation of church and state by looking at what happens when governments overstep their bounds and claim to speak for God (or the gods). Whether it's pagan empires like Pharaoh's Egypt, Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon, or the Roman Empire of the first-century, or even the kings of Israel and Judah claiming God's endorsement for everyth...

Should the government get to dictate what the correct belief in God is?  Should the church be able to punish people with jail time for incorrect theology or unorthodox biblical interpretation?  Are there good reasons why the Founders of the American experiment chose deliberately NOT to establish an official religion when the United States was formed?  These questions kick off a new series for this...

In this final episode of our series on the Psalms, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve explore ways to use the psalms in our own individual and corporate lives.  While there are some parts of the Scripture we may struggle to come back to for multiple readings (let's be honest, it's hard to be inspired by genealogies or records of how long different kings reigned for), the psalms continually invite us...

In this week's episode, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve take a look at a difficult group of psalms in the Bible--those that wish for revenge or cursing on the enemies of the ones praying.  For many of us, we wouldn't have even known this was in the Bible, and for others, we just don't know what to do with such angry--and often violent--words brought to God!  So in this conversation, we'll explore...

As they continue exploring the poems and prayers in the biblical book of psalms, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve take a look today at the royal psalms, often used in enthronement or coronations in ancient Israel's life, which asked for God's blessing and help for their kings and for long dynasties of continuity in their rule. To American ears, used to the constant turnover of elections and trained...

There are a few essentials for a good traveling song: it needs to help make the trip go quicker, it needs to be memorable for people to sing along, and it helps make the journey as much of a memory as the destination.  Well, ancient Israel had its own set of traveling songs, at least for the times when the people would be going up to Jerusalem for worship at the Temple at festivals and other speci...

In their ongoing series this summer on the psalms, pastors Sarah, Erica, and Steve take a look at the laments in the Psalms.  These prayers, poems, and songs feel like the blues--they name the times when our worlds fall apart, when we feel abandoned (even by God), and when our hearts are heavy.  And rather than discouraging us from lobbing those feelings at God, the psalms of lament actually give...

In our new series this summer exploring the psalms, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve now take a look at different kinds, or genres, of psalms. And in this episode our conversation takes us to psalms of praise and thanksgiving.  In a sense, these kinds of prayers and songs seem obviouus--when you are happy or something is going well, sometimes the joyfulness just bursts out of you, after all.  But i...

In a new series for the summer, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve invite you to get to know the psalms better.  While many people know phrases or selections from the psalms (like, "The Lord is my shepherd," or "Be still and know that I am God..."), this is a book that is often underused and possibly misunderstood.  So as we begin this series, we'll explore why it can be valuable to "borrow words" fr...

In this final episode of our series for Eastertide, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve take a look at how other Christian traditions think of the sacraments and how differing definitions lead to different counts of how many sacraments there are, and what they mean.  We'll look at how many of the ritual moments named "sacraments" in other denominations are still practiced by others--things like marria...

As we continue to explore the meaning and development of the sacraments this Eastertide, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve now turn to how Holy Communion (or the Eucharist, or the Lord's Supper) has been understood across different traditions within the church, from the medeival and Roman traditions, through the different branches of the Protestant Reformation, to various kinds of practices in the c...

As we continue exploring the sacraments this Eastertide, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve take a look at how the early church's celebration of the Lord's Supper developed, from the memory of Jesus' last meal with his disciples to the emerging practice in Christian gatherings over meals as the gospel spread across the empire.  With resurrection stories from the gospels and snapshots from New Testame...

As we continue to explore the sacraments this Eastertide, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve begin to look at Holy Communion (known also as The Lord's Supper, the Eucharist, and the Sacrament of the Altar). And as we did with our conversation about baptism, we'll trace the through-lines from Jesus and his practice to the witness of the New Testament era church and then to later church history.  But s...

As pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve continue to explore the sacrament of Holy Baptism, this time we'll look at how Christian practice has developed, deepened, changed, and grown over the centuries.  Along the way, we'll pick up questions from throughout Christian history about the how, when, and why of baptism, things like: does it matter how much water is used when I'm baptized?  Do I have to be a...

In our new series exploring the sacraments, baptism and Holy Communion, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve are tracing these essential Christian practices from their rootings in the teaching and institution of Jesus through the present day.  Today we'll look at the New Testament as a bridge between Jesus' own baptism by John in the river Jordan and the many forms, modes, and practices around baptism...

In a new series for Eastertide, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve will take a deeper dive into the sacraments: what they are, what they do, and why they matter.  Our series begins with a look at baptism--in particular, with Jesus' baptism in the river Jordan by John.  What is Jesus doing in the water there if he doesn't have any sins to "repent" of?  Where did the idea of baptism come from?  And wha...

In this final episode of our Lenten series for 2024, pastors Sarah, Erica, and Steve explore one final temptation the church faces--the lure of being the saviors ourselves, rather than pointing to Jesus as Savior.  Sometimes it's the way we want to conflate "faith in Jesus" with "being a card-carrying member of our congregation." And sometimes it's the impulse for MY church to have to do it all to...

In their ongoing series for Lent 2024, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve continue to look at temptations the church faces in our modern-day experience.  And this time we'll explore the temptation to fall for prosperity theology, or what is sometimes called the "health-and-wealth-gospel."  And we'll see what's missing in this approach to the faith, as tempting and popular as it might be (and as much...

As we continue our Lenten series exploring the different kinds of temptations the church faces, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve take a look at the powerful temptation to become judgmental.  In the pursuit of holiness, we can end up being "holier-than-thou."  In the pursuit of righteousness, we soemtimes fall prey to being self-righteous.  And in the name of holding one another accountable, we can...

As we look continue our series for Lent 2024, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve keep looking at modern-day temptations that the church faces in our own mission and work, and how they might echo the temptations Jesus faced in his own forty days in the wilderness.  And this time we'll explore the temptation to chase after attention, popularity, and the latest trend, all in the name of being "relevant....

This Lent, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve are taking a look at ways the worldwide community of Jesus, the church, face temptations today, and how they echo the temptations Jesus faced in the wilderness story as well as throughout his whole ministry and public life.  Today, we'll look at one of the most obvious connections to Jesus' encounter with Satan in the wilderness--the temptation to take ea...

In a new series for Lent this year, pastors Erica, Sarah, and Steve are going to be looking at some of the major ways the community of Jesus' followers, the church, may be tempted away from the path and way of Jesus.  We'll be exploring things like the temptation for the church to wield governmental or political power, the temptation to sell out to what is trendy, and the temptation to make oursel...

In this final episode of our series, "Books That Shaped Our Ministry," pastors Erica, Steve, and Sarah offer a reading list of a few other titles that we have each found helpful, provocative, or useful in our ministry lives, and we commend them to you for your reading as well.  Listen in for an introduction to each of these books and see what might pique your interest: The Epic of Eden--by Sandra...