miscellanies (15 Jun 2024)
not so random reads from the interwebs
miscellany [ mis-uh-ley-nee], noun 1. a miscellaneous collection or group of various or somewhat unrelated items 2. a miscellaneous collection of literary compositions or pieces by several authors, dealing with various topics, assembled in a volume or book
Algorithmic Spirituality “According to a Premier Christianity article published in 2018, the 'verse of the day' feature common on Bible apps could actually 'be skewing your view of God.' The apps populate 'their verse of the day lists with those verses most tweeted or shared by the user community.' Because people are more likely to share feel-good verses than more meaty or difficult passages, this algorithmic approach produces a 'tendency towards therapeutic texts,' creating 'a therapeutic filter bubble.' As such, the frequent user of a Bible app runs the risk of placing his feelings and desires at the center of his devotional life, of practicing an 'algorithmic spirituality,' rather than facing the uncomfortable and demanding task of conforming himself to reality.” So, as it turns out, the same shenanigans—I mean, science—behind social media platforms reinforcing the ruts in our lives by giving us more and more of what we like is also alive and well in bible apps. Just another reason to put our blankety-blank phones down for a while and read a physical copy of the Bible.
The Curse of Being Normal “Gone are the days when we actually believed that standing in the House of God was standing on the holy ground of God's presence. Now we sit back in cushioned seats, sipping our designer coffee from our special mugs, waiting to be entertained or for self-improvement tips for our lives — if we come at all. We sit back in our neighborhoods and workplaces doing the same thing — without any real sense of vocation or purpose larger than the next moment, the next thing on our screens, and clock out time to pursue our leisure without constraint.” Oh, wow! Remember when worship was special and mysterious and different than the rest of your week? Me, too. Here is a call to recover that wonder along with the uniqueness of Christianity in a world of unbelief instead of trying really, really hard to be just like the world that we're supposed to stand out from...you know, that whole salt and light thing.
How the Left Stole Evangelicalism Watching this video will take an hour of your day, but it should be required viewing for conservative Christians. Megan Basham, an investigative journalist and author, shows the trail of money and influence from historically-conservative denominations (like the SBC and PCA) and historically-sound publications (like Christianity Today) back to theologically liberal groups funded by George Soros and his ilk. Why? Because Evangelicals have statistically been shown to be the last group of voters keeping the left's agenda from being voted into reality on a number of fronts. If you can change the way Evangelicals vote, then you've successfully removed the last hurdle to a full-speed charge to the left. For instance, did you know one of these groups funneled tons of money into the UMC in the late 2010s to help sway laity into embracing the LGBTQ agenda? Given that, does the recent activity in the UMC come as a surprise? No. She's not afraid to name names (Andy Stanley, etc.) and doesn't pull punches. This is a shockingly informative talk.