Reflecting on idol worship over at draught-ing theology

Good questions posed over at draught-ing theology this morning!

Bishop Mark Dyer says that every 500 hundred years the Church holds a giant rummage sale.

Phyllis Tickle (among others) says the classified ad space has been purchased, and the sale is ongoing.

The lessons for this Sunday say that it is and will be ok.

The OT lesson, the 10 Commandments, reminded me this morning of how often the Church makes idols of things; the Bible (KJV or otherwise), the Book of Common Prayer, collars, vesteture, narthex(es), altar rails, etc. Because we associate this stuff with the worship of the LORD, it often finds its way into our "sacrosanct" category - the stuff we can't live without.

At some point, however, it becomes hard to discern what we are actually worshiping. Is it stained glass windows, altar rails, and organ music or the LORD? If you try to eliminate any of the first three, you'll quickly find that the last is just an innocent bystander.

Jesus turned over the tables in the Temple because the system had become an idol - they went through the motions to get their card punched, and plenty of people were willing to make some money helping others assuage their guilt.

What would Jesus thrash with a whip of cords in our day and time? What has become an idol? Who are our moneychangers?

What do you think?

draught-ing theology: idol worship

Superior Scribbler Award from Kirkepiscatoid: Gracias!!

Kirkepiscatoid was kind enough to award me the "Superior Scribbler" award back in November, and I was pretty lame to not acknoledge it and pass it along to my five nominees. I think she caught me in a "end of term," "getting ready for dozens of Advent services" kind of time, so at long last, Gracias to Kirkepiscatoid!

Many thanks!


The guidelines as to how each ¨Scribbler¨ must, in turn, pass the Award on are as follows:


The Award may be passed on to FIVE deserving Bloggers (my choice).


Each Superior Scribbler must in turn pass The Award on to 5 most-deserving Bloggy Friends.


Each Superior Scribbler must link to the author & the name of the blog from whom he/she has received the award.


The envelopes please....


The winners are...


Steve, at draught-ing theology, has a great blog in which he reflects on the Sunday lectionary readings, comments deeply and intelligently about the Church, about the Episcopal Church as well as the Emerging Church. Steve is a priest in Alabama who spends time each week doing "draught-ing" theology -- that is -- discussing theology and such things in a local watering hole. Beyond all of these things, Steve is a great priest and a respected leader in our church. I read his blog daily, and feel blessed to call him one of my friends.

Check out his blog!

John, at "Reverend John's Spot," is another wonderful priest in our church who blogs daily (yes, I said DAILY) about the daily readings in the "Daily Office" - the readings of Morning and Evening Prayer from our Book of Common Prayer. John is intelligent, an insightful commenter, and is a deeply spiritual (and fun), person, and all of these qualities come through in his writing. He is a priest in our nation's capitol, and is doing wonderful things. His blog pops up daily for me, and I enjoy it a great deal.

Do check it out!


Caminante, no hay camino, is a blog written by a priest in my home state of Vermont who has recently moved to a new church in the central-Southern part of the state. The priest is extremely well-versed in the goings on of our church as well as of the goings-on in the Anglican Communion. However, these "large" issues do not take the forefront in this blog, more often the writer tends to focus on the way the Spriit is at work in the lives of the people of the parish, and of the everyday struggles and blessings that are our lives.

Do check out this great blog!


The Five Dollars and Some Common Sense, is a blog written by a Ellen Painter Dollar, a wonderful writer who is a mom and a thinker, and a person of great Faith. She reflects on the life of her family, on being a mom, as well as issues of disability. She is a great writer, and has many insightful observations about "everyday" life. As a fellow parent, I really enjoy reading her stuff, and I know that you will too!

Check out her great blog!


Communion in Conflict, is a great blog written by Nathan Humphrey. He is an extremly intelligent priest in the Episcopal Church who is a wonderful theologian and scholar of Anglican Ecclesiology (theology of the "church"). He is wonderfully well-read in the major schools of ecclesiology and has found a pathway between and through these various "camps" and has begun to formulate his own views of an Ecclesiology based in a Communion in Conflict. I read his work with great interest, especially after my own forays into a construction of what I termed a "Dynamic Ecclesiology of Communion." Fr. Humphrey has an important voice in these conversations and I encourage anyone who cares about our Anglican Communion to read his work.

Do check out his blog!

Steve says this is the Single Most Important Verse in All Scripture

John 1:14

It could be!

My friend Steve over at Draught-ing Theology has written a wonderful, concise reflection on John 1:14 (no, not John 3:16) and on the Feast of the Incarnation (otherwise known as Christmas). Do travel over and read his entire reflection HERE...I've posted a bit below ...

~ Rev. Peter M. Carey

From Steve at "Draught-ing Theology"

The Single Most Important Verse in All Scripture

OK, that might be overstating the case just a little bit, but John 1.14 is, despite what lots of signs at sporting events might argue, the most important verse in John's gospel.

The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood... (1.14a, The Message)

The ramifications of the Incarnation, the Word becoming flesh and blood, are enormous. The word John uses for flesh [and blood] is sarx, the same word Paul uses in those lists of sins of "the flesh"; the same that the Greek philosophers used when railing against the messiness of humanity.

That God (or any god for that matter) would deign himself to the messiness of flesh is radically unorthodox in John's time and place. While we might be very familiar with the great poetry of the prologue to John's gospel we can't forget how mind-shatteringly huge this phrase from 1.14 is. Read it all HERE.

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