This Week in Word from the Bird

Christians under Czech Communism. Are Christian in Exile? Cultural Christianity without Christ? Justification by Faith. From Judaism to Gnosticism!

Hi everyone, this week in Word from the Bird, a lot happening!

Also, please pray for the families of the victims of the mass-stabbing murders in Sydney and that the world does not unravel into World War III. Healing and peace, Lord hear us!

Monday: Tomáš Halík on the Underground Church in Czechoslovakia (Free Sign-Ups)
I’ve just finished reading an amazing autobiography by the Czechian Catholic priest Father Tomáš Halík. He was a very important figure in the underground church and a towering figure in post-Communist Czechoslovakia. He has lectured all over the world, written numerous books, received multiple honorary doctorates, and won the Templeton Prize.

Wednesday: Are Christians in Exile in Babylon? (Free Sign-Ups)
The notion that the churches are “exiles in Babylon” is a tad over-drawn for my mind. Yes, we are alienated from the centers of culture in many respects. But the fact is that in the West, Christianity still has a privileged position of sorts, Christianity is not criminalized, and we are not besieged into ghettos, even if there are legal challenges around religious freedom and MSNBC journalists do not speak highly of you.

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Thursday: Cultural Christianity without Christ? (Paid Subscribers)
There has been a lot of commentary on Richard Dawkins’ coming out as a “cultural Christian.” The problem is that Dawkins wants Christianity to sustain his culture and civilization even as he mocks it and berates it for its alleged superstitious absurdities. But it won’t work!

Friday: What is Justification by Faith? (Paid Subscribers)
Here’s my thesis: Justification is the act whereby God creates a new people, with a new status, in a new covenant, as a foretaste of the new age.

Saturday: From Judaism to Gnosticism (Free Sign-Ups)
A short 10-minute video where I explain why I think Gnosticism evolved from Hellenistic Judaism in the late first century.