About Mars Hill AudioA Sampler of Recently Explored Topics
The challenge of lived theologyPastor/theologian Eugene Peterson is in the middle of an ambitious writing project: five meaty books on "spiritual theology." By that term, he wants to call our attention to the fact that true spirituality always begins in theology — the revelation and understanding of God — and must always be lived out in the dynamic circumstances of our lives. The first of those books, Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places, was published in 2005. In anticipation of the publication of the fourth volume sometime this Fall (Tell It Slant, Eerdmans), MARS HILL AUDIO has released a 70-minute Conversation called Dancing Lessons: Eugene Peterson on Theology and the Rhythms of Life. Read more about Dancing Lessons Aliteracy as a pastoral and diaconal challengeA recent report released by the National Endowment for the Arts indicates that fewer Americans every year are bothering to read books, and those that do read less well than a generation ago. Is this a value-neutral cultural change, or is it a true cultural loss, a decline which should be resisted and remedied, especially by the ministry of local churches? That’s a question addressed extensively on Volume 90 of the MARS HILL AUDIO Journal, with interviews with Dana Gioia, Eugene Peterson, Makoto Fujimura, and other guests... read more about aliteracy and the Church C.S. Lewis and the baptized imaginationThe message of the Gospel is meaningless apart from the story of Creation. Unless God is recognized to be the Author of all of reality, belief in his identity as Judge or Savior is an arbitrary religious preference, not bedrock belief. C. S. Lewis saw clearly how modern culture made Creation seem pointless and arbitrary. And he believed that our imaginations, not just our reason, needed to be realigned so we could properly honor the Creator... read more about Lewis and imagination Is "Christian lawyer" an oxymoron?Do you have any lawyers in your church? Do they see their jobs as a Christian vocation, or as a way to enable them to be generous supporters of “full-time Christian ministries”? Law professor Michael Schutt has written a book about the practice of law, about how the law can be honored as a Christian vocation. And his book, called Redeeming Law, is not a superficial, moralistic tract about being honest and offering pro bono services from time to time. It raises deep questions about vocation, truth, community, and virtue... |
Your first visit?New to MARS HILL AUDIO? Read what we think about the delicate task of configuring Church and culture... Free listeningOne of the guests on Volume 90 of the Journal is Gregory Reynolds, pastor of Amoskeag Presbyterian Church in Manchester, New Hampshire. Rev. Reynolds is the author of The Word Is Worth a Thousand Pictures: Preaching in the Electronic Age (Wipf & Stock). His book is a study in how lessons from the discipline of “media ecology” can inform the work of preachers. Hear Rev. Reynolds describe how media function in an ecosystem.Good readingUniversity of Virginia English professor Mark Edmundson has a keen eye for cultural ecosystems. He has written perceptively about how changes in the texture of the everyday lives of his students affect the orientation of their souls. In a 1997 article in Harper’s, “On the Uses of a Liberal Education,” he described how the conditioning of his students by consumer/entertainment culture (and their desire to be cool) made it hard for them to acquire a passion for learning. . . . Echoes"I love listening to the Journal. It is so encouraging to listen to the interviews from an amazing broth of guests. You regularly introduce me to new people and ideas as well as new twists on old ones." —C. R., Ohio |