HT to Christine Sine who posted Tom Sine is Blogging (April 13, 2010). Looking forward to Tom’s entering of the blogosphere 😉 His first question is with regard to what difference Easter/the resurrection is making in our troubled world, not just our personal lives. To show that ESN’s thinking about this question, I shared some material from Amish Grace and Recognizing the Messiah. What comments/thoughts do you have to share?
PS. Wish I could point to a post on Desiring the Kingdom of God (James K. A. Smith. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books. 2009). But even with the requirement to have read parts of it by the end of the month for a faculty ministry discussion and Byron Borger, Hearts & Minds Books, calling it one of the most important books of 2009, it still sits in queue. Anyone who has read it is welcome to comment as to whether it helps address Tom Sine’s question.
“One of the truly significant books of the year. . . . In this deeply philosophical study, [Smith] invites us to ask how to relate worship, life, and a radically Christian way of life. . . . Can universities help us become Godly dreamers? A huge, huge question, and this is a book worth working on for a long school year. Highly recommended.” — Byron Borger, Hearts & Minds Books
About the author:
Tom enjoys daily conversations regarding living out the Biblical Story with his wife Theresa and their four girls, around the block, at Elizabethtown Brethren in Christ Church (where he teaches adult electives and co-leads a small group), among healthcare professionals as the Northeast Regional Director for the Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA), and in higher ed as a volunteer with the Emerging Scholars Network (ESN). For a number of years, the Christian Medical Society / CMDA at Penn State College of Medicine was the hub of his ministry with CMDA. Note: Tom served with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship / USA for 20+ years, including 6+ years as the Associate Director of ESN. He has written for the ESN blog from its launch in August 2008. He has studied Biology (B.S.), Higher Education (M.A.), Spiritual Direction (Certificate), Spiritual Formation (M.A.R.), Ministry to Emerging Generations (D.Min.). To God be the glory!
I hate to say this, but there has recently been an increasing number of posts on this blog that have very little to do with the relationship between the academy and Christ, which should be the almost exclusive focus. The result of this is that it’s becoming less and less likely that I’ll actually pay attention to the ESN posts that cross my RSS reader. Too many blogs end up becoming sources of noise rather than information, and I’d rather not see this happen here.
Hi Andrew,
Thanks for your comment. Are there some specific topics that you are looking for? We try to stay within the subjects that we laid out in this post. Lately, we’ve been focusing a bit more on spiritual formation, which I think is appropriate considering the Lenten and Easter seasons.