Outside the Pigeon Holes

The folks on the Ohio Valley Camera Club rave about it, some people are snobs about it and some people pick and choose when they use this thing called RAW when shooting photography. I recently took a workshop that introduced me to this bit of the craft. This is what I gather... -RAW is not at acronym (which is why I have stopped spelling it in all caps most of the time, because if it's not an acronym, then there is no reason to capitalize all the letters. That's confusing....But I digress). Raw is, just that, the raw information that is given to the camera when you press the shutter release. It is like a digital negative. It is unprocessed information. In fact, there is actually no such thing as a raw image. There is only raw data. It only becomes an image when the data has been processed through a program (such as Adobe Camera Raw, Lightroom, Photoshop or Picasa) that converts it into an image file.  -Raw files are HUGE. If I set my camera (her name is Natasha and she is...

This next part covers the sections of the book that expound on the details and history of the fundamentalist fight against the gay community as well as the more hopeful side of things. What I liked: -White makes a pretty darn good case for there to be more awareness of what some groups of Christians believe and put forth regarding the gay community. -One of the best lines in the book comes when White is discussing the 'gay agenda' that many anti-gay groups talk about: "It was fairly obvious from my first days as an activist that a room full of gay men and women could hardly agree on three toppings for a deep dish pizza, let alone lay out an agenda to 'destroy the nations values'". -I love that Mr. White allowed the non-violent/pro-community teachings of Martin Luther King to influence him when he was turning bitter toward the fundamentalist Christian community who wouldn't even meet with him to discuss the inaccurate information they had been pedaling...

I have been invited to do book reviews for the Speakeasy blogging network. It's a pretty cool dealio so I accepted the invite... Yeah - this first one is kind of an explosive topic, but I guess that's just the way I roll (wait'll ya see the book that's on deck!)...I seem to find that I mix and mingle with and love people from diverse viewpoints. I have a penchant for trying to find common ground without compromising my own convictions. For this topic I will state up front that I am politically independent with libertarian leanings. I support the rights of gay couples to join together in a legally binding committed relationship. I also support each church's right to choose whether or not to perform religious ceremonies for homosexual couples. I believe we all should be free to disagree and engage in healthy debate, but I don't care for bullying from either side of any issue or using the political system to override individual and religious liberties (for any ...

This road of love is not an easy one to follow. But it is, I believe, the narrow road that Jesus spoke about. The way of love is so much more than living a 'clean' or 'moral' life or having 'the right beliefs'. Jesus spoke pretty clearly about that when he discussed whitewashed tombs ( Matt 23:27-28 ).   'Living right' is sometimes not much more than outward appearances that can become, if we let them (Lord, forgive me, because I have let them) leverage for pride. I may smile at someone while inside criticizing them. I may go to church and pay a tithe and remain faithful to my spouse (all of which are hugely honorable) but at the same time my heart wallows in a life of 'anti'... It's easy to be 'anti'. It is a hard road to see every person and every creature as belonging to God and worthy of honor. It is a narrow, sometimes stifling, claustrophobic journey to be the only one in a group that is speaking 'anti-_...

I hate to be the bearer of bad tidings... But... Facebook isn't actually FREE. There's another recent push by FB users, trying to deny Facebook and other entities the right to use their personal information. Well, this is kind of silly... See, when I signed up with Facebook, I was making an agreement...The same agreement everyone makes when, you know, I voluntarily told Facebook my full name, address, e-mail address, etc.  The Agreement:  I get to enjoy the benefits of the social media experience and they get to use my information and things that I do on Facebook for their financial benefit (I.E. - marketing to companies with money who make it possible for me to enjoy Facebook without having to pay cash money). What I allow Facebook to do with my information can be only partially limited by adjusting my privacy settings. I have restricted them as much as is allowed, but I understand that my basic user information is out there. It can and will be used. I AM being...

I used to believe that when I entered a situation that might need God's help that I, being a Christ-follower and trained in prayer and scripture, was the chosen one, called to be the illumination that ushered in God's presence (because obviously God was not working there before my arrival). It's funny the things I have believed in my time Thank Jesus that my high horse is getting shorter the older I get. The other day I got a cool download. The place I work has a few classrooms in it for a program that deals with what we call 'behavior kids'...Basically these are the 'bad kids' that can't be in a regular classroom. Sometimes you hear outbursts coming from down that hallway. I happened to hear one such outburst and just as a passing thought wondered how much of the stuff that happened down there was spiritual as opposed to emotional and mental (though I think those things tend to overlap a lot since it's all connected). I had a quick flash of the ...

I love bread. I love cake. I love cereal. Until recently I had a bready product with almost every meal of the day. A typical day might looks something like this: Breakfast: a combo of cereal such as grape nuts, wheaties and corn flakes and a banana. Lunch: sandwich or soup with crackers, Multi-grain chips Dinner: Jim makes a wonderful variety of crock pot or stir fry delicacies which we usually accompany with bread and butter, Spaghetti and sauce.  Desserts and snacks: cookies, cakes, muffins, etc. Basically I was fueling myself with wheat and gluten. These days you hear a lot about people eating wheat-gluten free diets. And aside from those with honest to goodness celiac disease or wheat allergy, it's the newest 'this will cure everything' dietary bandwagon which I was not interested in jumping on. However, when a friend at work mentioned that wheat/gluten can cause inflammation I started to wonder, reluctantly, if perhaps I might need to look further in...

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Christianity What is hateful to you, do not to your fellow man. That is the entire law; Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful. Buddhism What is hateful to you, do not to your fellow man. That is the entire law; all the rest is commentary. Judaism No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself Islam Blessed is he who preferreth his brother before himself. Baha'i Faith Regard your neighbor's gain as your own gain, and your neighbor's loss as your own loss. Taoism  borrowed from brianmclaren.net

I no longer believe in the hell theology I grew up with. It undermines and misrepresents the God I have come to know through Christ Jesus and the infinite grace and mercy that He has shown me. I don't discount the Scriptural references to hell or judgment, I'm just no longer convinced that it is anywhere near the image of hell I was taught in traditional evangelical church. Those images are largely based on human constructs, fear-based soul-winning and Dante's Inferno. The discussion about hell has been going on for centuries, it's not a new theological issue. I can't wait to check out this film that delves into the many ideas and images of hell that have come down through the ages. It includes interviews and information from some of my favorite pastor/writer/preacher people (like Brian McLaren and NT Wright) and least favorites(those who must not be named). www.hellboundthemovie.com Hellbound? Teaser Trailer 1080 from Darren Hull Studios Inc. on Vimeo . So...

When Jim retired from his many years at Shiloh United Methodist church, we decided to embark on a tour of various other churches in and around Cincinnati - not to shop for a new place, but to get a sampling of what other Christ-centered faith communities were up to musically, theologically and spiritually. These blog entries summarize our experiences and thoughts at each place. Let us know if there is somewhere we should check out! Week 1 - Greendale Vineyard, Greendale, Indiana. Located on Rt. 50 in what I would call Lawrenceberg, Greendale Vineyard could be easily missed. It's a small building next to a parking lot for Hollywood casino. We knew this was a friendly church when a young man waved to us as we pulled in to park. Because of its humble size, I had a feeling that as newcomers we might stand out like paisleys on plaid.  We did. We were enthusiastically greeted by: -The door person who gave out bulletins -The official greeter (who chased...

Below is a list of books that I own that I am parting with and which I will share with anyone who wants one - in exchange I only ask that you make a donation to the local chapter of the organization Love146 - which fights child sex trafficking in the US and beyond. Two ways to donate: 1.) Donate directly on the site linked above (please use donation code TF115 ). -A donation of $5 gets one book, $10 gets two books, and on up.  2.) Purchase a ticket to the Route 146 to Freedom Fundraiser (music, food, crafts, raffles, etc). -Tickets are $5 -Date: Friday October 7, 2011 -Time: 6:30-10:00pm -Place: Impact Church 6420 Bridgetown Road Cincinnati, OH 45248 You can get a ticket from me or from Refuge Coffee Bar.  If you see a book you would like simply leave a comment with the title and whether you are donating via the website or purchasing a fundraiser ticket. If more than one person requests a particular book, the one who commented first will get the book...

    This is my friend Nichole...But I share her sentiment.... Earlier today I was attempting to add funds to my pay pal account. In order to do so I needed to confirm my ownership of the account by having a code sent to the phone number associated with it. That phone number was the one ending in **36, according to the site. That would be my home phone number. Easy, right? Well, I was not at home and I was using my cell phone. No problem...In order to have the code sent to my cell phone, I had to select my address and then enter the phone number associated with my account - that same one ending in **36 .I did that. It gave me an error message saying that the number was invalid. I tried again and then once more. For some reason it didn't accept the number even though that number was clearly the one on file.  I then tried finding my issue in the help files. No luck. So I tried to use the 24/7 online bot. It asked what the problem was. I typed: 'unable to ...

This makes me sad...  http://www.abpnews.com/content/view/6666/53/ I agree with Professor Schneider and I am sorry that he was forced to resign for having intellectual integrity and the courage to present honest questions based on honest study. I must be as lost a soul as him because I don’t understand how reading Genesis 1 as metaphor makes Christ unnecessary. Whether Adam and Eve were literal people or a literary representative of all humans who decide to distrust God’s way to live and instead go their own way, it is still Christ who reconciles and restores creation to God. Creative expression in poetry, prose, allegory, etc. are beautiful ways to share ideas and truths about God and His relationship to us. Literature can be true without being factual. While I think this is an important discussion, this one, like the gay issue, has become an unnecessarily polarizing debate…One that distracts from more serious issues in our world, pitting people who could be working tog...

Despite all the other issues that the Church could be going after with as much venom and fervor,  so often the nastiest attitudes and panicked (sometimes hate-tinged) actions seem to center around homosexuality (a close second maybe to the creation vs. evolution debate). It isn't that I think it is bad to discuss this matter through our lenses of faith, I know that most people have the best of intentions in this debate. But seriously, the energy, fear (which is not of God, btw) and resources put into this topic I think are largely disproportionate to its importance. If one of the devil's schemes is to get God's people to pour their energies into demolishing a molehill while he dances off to add more casualties to his hideous mountain of child sex trafficking, environmental destruction, murder and torture, then I think he has succeeded. This victory of his is often at the expense of people who want to follow Jesus but know that in most churches they would be objects ...