Category: church
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Snow
The past couple of days in Chicago have been defined by snow. Lot’s and lot’s of snow. This storm has taken its place among the great Chicago blizzards of winters past. Maggie snapped a couple of photos while out shoveling yesterday. I was at our denomination’s Midwinter conference near O’Hare on Tuesday when the storm…
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Christmas Pageant
A couple of weeks ago, on the coldest and windiest Sunday of the year, our church held a Christmas pageant. The folks who put it together did a phenomenal job, from the set and script to the congregational worship interspersed throughout. Christine Otte took some great photos during the service and in the lobby over…
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“…in the form of a slave.”
This evening I’ve spent some time working on Sunday’s sermon. Appropriate for Advent, the sermon focuses on the incarnation, God taking on human form. Less appropriately perhaps, I’ve titled the sermon, “A Profane Christmas.” My hope is to show how the birth of Jesus ought first to offend before it comforts us. These sentences from…
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Multi-ethnic Church Conference
Update: Part two of my reflections from the conference can now be read over at Out of Ur. I’ve spent the past couple of days at The Multi-ethnic Church Conference in San Diego. Originally I hadn’t planned to attend, but got a last minute invitation from a friend that was too good to turn down. …
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Political Code Language
My latest article for Out of Ur has been posted and is meant to coincide with tomorrow’s election. There is a sinister trend gaining momentum in the days leading up to the mid-term elections. It is not initially obvious to many of us, but it has significant implications for the American church. The code language…
David W. Swanson 