J4P – Sacrificing the Scarfices of War

Continuing with today’s thread of war, Stanley Hauerwas writes a helpful article on the ethics of war. Below is a brief excerpt from that article called Sacrificing the Sacrifices of War.
In On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society, Lt. Col. Dave Grossman reports on General S. L. [...]

J4P – First Kill: the rest of the story…

There is no one who can speak better to what war is like, than someone who has been to war. There is no one who can speak better to what it does to you when you take a life, than someone who has taken a life. There is no one who can better [...]

J4P – Enemy Love

Blogger: Brent Underwood continues the Community Book Review of Jesus For President
Because my life is in God’s hands, I will never take my enemy’s life into my hands.
-John Howard Yoder

Logan, Jesse and Father George’s stories should give us all cause to pause. If you haven’t had a chance to read these stories yet, I [...]

J4P – God Bless America and no one else

Guest Blogger: Daniel Farrell
God Bless America and no one else
The authors are in the heart of their message at this point. They point out a very interesting thing about the word bless… the bible doesn’t use it like we do. First, it doesn’t use it near as much as we do, and most of [...]

J4P – It’s the Economy Stupid

Sorry for the delay in posting today. I’m speaking at the beach this week.
I posted this quote from Jesus For President once before. Some interesting questions from Wendel Berry’s great book of essaysentitled Sex, Economy, Freedom and Community: Eight Essays.
“The sense of the holiness of life” is not compatible with an [...]

J4P – Identity Crisis: Who is Our Savior?

Guest Blogger: Eric Hasha
Being raised in the Deep South and listening to conservative talk radio, I often heard many an argument being made about the legitimacy of war, especially toward war in the Middle East. Because this nation is characterized as a Christian nation constituted on Christian beliefs, it is assumed that God affirms [...]

J4P – The Empire Has No Clothes / On the Political Fringes

Guest Blogger: David Wolf (this is part two from Davids post on June 18th)
As Shane and Chris note many early Christians were known as followers of The Way. I find this a beautiful description of a Christian, and not that Jesus is the Way to heaven. Instead when one truly follows Jesus, it should [...]

J4P – Compassionate Imperialism

Guest Blogger: Matt Bell

“Was the shift to Christian emperors the best thing or the worst thing that happened to Christianity? Was it God’s voice or the Devil’s? This shift in the fourth century illuminates a strange tension evident throughout church history; Christianity is at its best when it is peculiar, marginalized, suffering, and [...]

J4P – When the Empire Got Baptized / Washing the Dirty System Off of Us

Guest Blogger: David Wolf
Baptism has always been hard for me to connect to. I was baptized in college in a galvanized steel watering trough (I barely fit). I was attending a church plant near Fairborn, Ohio. As I was about to be dunked, I asked if my dad could come up and dunk me. [...]

J4P – Inaguration, Coronation and Invitation

Guest Blogger: Dean Miller
Jesus’ Inauguration Ceremony
I have never enjoyed an inauguration ceremony of any kind. It has always been to me a waste of time, energy, and money. But, I will concede that there is a perceived need for these types of events among many people and nations. It is a sign of victory. A [...]