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Jake MeadorChurch

Gratitude 2022 (1) - Commonplaces

I decided this past Lord’s Day to start a new custom on the blog, which is to write short pieces about gratitude and specifically things I am grateful for as we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, which I dearly love, even […]

Kirsten SandersFeaturedChurchEvangelicalismFormation

Kites - Mere Orthodoxy | Christianity, Politics, and Culture

I taught my sons to fly a kite the other day. It was a beautiful Sunday morning and the wind was just right for it. They are old enough to know how a kite should fly but not old enough […]

Kirsten SandersFeaturedChurchEvangelicalismFormation

Can I Get a Witness?: A Response to Tim Keller - Mere Orthodoxy | Christianity, Politics, and Culture

In his recent essay, Tim Keller has entered his bit in a persistent dialogue regarding how Christians should speak in public. The players in this dialogue, including James Wood, Aaron Renn, and Simon Kennedy, are working to sort out how […]

Jake MeadorChurchCommunities

Church and "the Therapeutic", Ctd. - Commonplaces

Two different things, both of which I have seen in churches: Church One The church’s leadership distinguishes carefully between spiritual care/shepherding work and mental health/therapeutic care, preserving space for both, but keeping them clearly separate. “Parishioner” is not another word […]

Jake MeadorChurchCommunities

HR Goes to Church - Commonplaces

The longer that I listen to folks who didn’t like Samuel’s review talk about Samuel’s review the more I think Samuel has it exactly right. Perhaps this is a good way of getting at the concern I have, which is […]

Patrick MillerFeaturedChurch

Holographic Spurgeons and AI Sermons - Mere Orthodoxy | Christianity, Politics, and Culture

At a fête for one of evangelicalism’s largest online media outfits, a colleague shared how he asked GPT-3, a language AI, what the Bible says about transgenderism. The AI produced a cogent theological explanation with Biblical citations. A senior editor […]

Jake MeadorChurchCommunities

The Barnacle Problem - Commonplaces

Back in my marketing agency days, we’d sometimes talk about the concept of “barnacle SEO.” What that meant is that you basically had to find ways to attach your client or brand to some larger entity and profit off of […]

Jake MeadorChurch

Networks v Institutions - Commonplaces

One of the primary difficulties facing local churches right now is the emergence of large online networks which shape and disciple church members in ways that are conducive to the growth of the network but not conducive to the health […]

Jake MeadorChurch

Haunted by Mars Hill(s) - Commonplaces

Years ago I remember my pastor giving a sermon on forgiveness and bitterness. I was in college, still recently removed from a fairly nasty church situation, and, well, I was struggling a lot with bitterness. After church, I was talking […]

Jake MeadorChurch

Alternatives to Culture War - Commonplaces

One of the lines we have taken for a long time at Mere Orthodoxy is a skepticism about culture war strategies and motifs in Christian public speech and Christian political strategy. (This is one of the first pieces I wrote for […]

Jake MeadorChurch

The People Who Don't Ask Questions - Commonplaces

Jemar Tisby: How can a group of people be so certain about topics that are so complicated? How can they say with so much certainty, “The Bible says…” when so often their interpretations have led to injustice and oppression? The […]

Jake MeadorChurchBook Reviews

Schaeffer's Legacy - Commonplaces

I am a former L’Abri student. Every time I visit Rochester, MN, I make a point of visiting Dr. Schaeffer’s grave. He’s something of a spiritual grandfather to me. My most treasured book in my home library is a copy […]