Viral Faith

 "No, my friends. Don't do this wicked thing. Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don't do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof."  Genesis 19:7-8 I was reading this chapter in the Bible for my devotions today and was arrested on the verses above.   Genesis 19 is the story of the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.  The narrative states that "The outcry to the Lord against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it" (Gen 19:13).  Although traditionally, it is felt that it was sexual immorality that brought the wrath of God upon the cities, scripture reveals a more foundational reason: Ezekiel 16:49-51 "'Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty and did detes

"Desire is not a trustworthy indicator of human identity" Janell Williams Paris, Cultural Anthropologist at Messiah Colleg e Several days ago, President Barak Obama stated clearly that he supported Gay marriage.  The reaction has been mixed, but very passionate.  In light of a recent referendum in North Carolina that banned Gay marriages as well as common-law marriages between a man and woman, it seems that this issue is something Americans are deeply passionate about.  Our social media timelines are filled with strongly worded responses of anger, celebration, provocation, and ignorance. Personally, I believe that this pulls the cover off of a few things.  These deep feelings are signposts to some of our hidden fears.  However, like an individual with generalized anxiety, our culture has little insight into the genesis of its anxiety.  Instead of trying to thoughtfully understand our reactions and fellings, we immediately turn the anxiety we feel into anger we express.

For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. Habakkuk 2:14, NIV The word "glory" is an old fashioned religious word.  It is the kind of word that is used so often in the Bible that it can become cliche or ordinary.  Yet, it is one of the most important theological concepts in all of of scripture, impacting every sphere of our lives.   The Bible says that we were created for God's glory (Isaiah 43:7) and that all creation is simply a reflection of God's glory (Psalm 19).  Jesus himself came to demonstrate God's glory (John 1:14) and frequently related his life purpose to give God, the father, glory (John 17:4).  Even our prayers are to give God glory (John 14:13) Although the precise translation of the Hebrew words most often translated as glory has been widely discussed by scholars, there is general agreement that glory means "weightiness" or "impactfulness".  It is a re