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Life is Fleeting: Coping with Trauma in Ecclesiastes
Ecclesiastes, written by an individual named Qoheleth, is one of the most unique books in the Bible, one that the church tends to neglect. I would argue that Ecclesiastes is the “goth kid” (me!) of the Bible, the book that rejects the status quo and acknowledges the brutal truth of human life. In sum, Ecclesiastes…
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Is Homosexuality a Sin? Leviticus Says Otherwise
For much of my life, I believed that homosexuality was a sin. Growing up in the American South, being homeschooled, and attending fundamentalist churches, it is no surprise that I once held these beliefs. Oddly enough, it was in my first year of undertaking the study of the Bible that I began to realize Christianity…
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Psalm 88: Darkness is My Closest Friend
This post will conclude my commentary on Psalm 88. In the previous posts, I discussed the psalmist’s description of his suffering, his reproach, and his questioning of God. In this post, I hope to address the author’s use of repetition and metaphor as he finalizes the description of his suffering. How long can you stand…
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Psalm 88: God Hath Forsaken Me
In last week’s post, I discussed the introductory verses and background of my favorite psalm, Psalm 88. A quick recap of that post—the author is in a dire state of suffering. The psalmist, identified as Heiman in the superscription, is near to death, whether that death is physical, mental, or spiritual. In this post, I…
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Psalm 88: It’s Okay to Question God
The Bible is full of passages speaking to the greatness of God; so much so that mainstream Christianity believes God is perfectly moral. But is this really the case? Psalm 88 may give us a clue. Psalm 88 is a chapter of the Bible that evangelicals and fundamentalists prefer to skip over. Whereas much of…
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Lucifer and Isaiah 14:12: The Morning Star?
It is a story we are all familiar with. In Christianity, Satan was once an angel named Lucifer. But Lucifer fell from Heaven, and decided to malevolently retaliate against God. Since then, Satan has roamed the earth building up an army of evil spirits called demons. But how much of this fairytale is biblical? …
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God, the Satan, and Job: A Theodicy
For many of us living in the modern age with even the tiniest understanding of Judeo-Christian theology, the concept of good-vs-evil is purely instinctual. Throughout the world, but especially in American culture, these dueling forces are personified by God (good) and the Satan (evil). It is practically ingrained in us, Christian or not, to associate…
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Genesis: Christianity and Climate Change
Driving truly brings out the worst in some people. I am one of them. While I will not do anything to endanger myself or other drivers, I turn into my Mr. Hyde when aggravated by other people on the road. The blinker is seriously not that hard to use! Anyways, I was on my way…
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Psalm 121: From Where Will Help Come?
Where does your help come from? This is the question begged in the New International Version’s rendering of Psalm 121:1. Odds are, it won’t take you long to formulate an answer to this question. You answer may be, much like the following verse, “my help comes from God.” That’s it. That’s the end of the…
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What Does Jeremiah 29:11 Really Mean?
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11. Wow! Is God speaking to me in this verse? He has a plan for my life, and I should not let my struggles discourage…