September 27, 2021
Episode128
John Pavlovitz on A Loving God and Progressive Christianity
Our guest this week is John Pavlovitz. John is a pastor, writer, and activist from Wake Forest, North Carolina. He’s spent nearly three decades teaching, studying, dissecting, deconstructing, and reconstructing the Christian faith. His new book If God Is Love, Don’t Be a Jerk invites us to re-examine the modern faith community and ask if it is as loving as it should be. ABOUT IF GOD IS LOVE DON’T BE A JERK: Thou Shalt Not Be Horrible.
Imagine for a moment what the world might look like if we as people of faith, morality, and conscience actually aspired to this mantra.
What if we were fully burdened to create a world that was more loving and equitable than when we arrived?
What if we invited one another to share in wide-open, fearless, spiritual communities truly marked by compassion and interdependence?
What if we daily challenged ourselves to live a faith that simply made us better humans?
John Pavlovitz explores how we can embody this kinder kind of spirituality where we humbly examine our belief system to understand how it might compel us to act in less-than-loving ways toward others.
This simple phrase, “Thou Shalt Not Be Horrible,” could help us practice what we preach by creating a world where:
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spiritual community provides a sense of belonging where all people are received as we are;
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the most important question we ask of a religious belief is not Is it true? but rather, is it helpful?
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it is morally impossible to pledge complete allegiance to both Jesus and America simultaneously;
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the way we treat others is the most tangible and meaningful expression of our belief system.
In If God Is Love, Don’t Be a Jerk, John Pavlovitz examines the bedrock ideas of our religion: the existence of hell, the utility of prayer, the way we treat LGBTQ people, the value of anger, and other doctrines to help all of us take a good, honest look at how the beliefs we hold can shape our relationships with God and our fellow humans—and to make sure that love has the last, loudest word.
Listen:
Sponsors
| Intro | |
| SEPARATION of CHURCH and HATE - 1-Thinking It Through (October 4, 2020) - The Hills Church | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYZbyoI4los |
| Christian Leaders Pray Over Trump During Launch Of Evangelicals For Trump Coalition | NBC News | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrBvMFJ_drs |
| Christian Leaders Pray Over Trump During Launch Of Evangelicals For Trump Coalition | NBC News | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrBvMFJ_drs |
| "Redemptive Community in Trump's America" - John Pavlovitz - CT Shorline Indivisible | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeIuyiHX9bY |
| Homophobia in the church | |
| Christian Pastor Supports Killing “Sodomites" - The Young Turks | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbgT_52-OF8 |
| Churches supporting 1/6 | |
| Florida pastors arrested in connection with Capitol riot - WKMG News 6 ClickOrlando | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeLTb9DAERE |
| Trump Stoking Fear | |
| How Trump Stokes Fear in Midterm Ads | NYT News | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyP1sH_cfAo |
| Racism in Christian Ministry | |
| Racism - Confessions of a Christian Nation - Rex Harsin Films | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfSpWXMubus |
| Trump Access Hollywood | |
| Donald Trump: The Comments On Women You Hadn't Heard | Access Hollywood | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--6QO-Ewml0 |
| church in the real world | |
| The role of church in community - Bill Crooks | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOXsgBZkPeM |
| Role of Progressive Churches | |
| 4/26 Minister’s Minute: Activism during Covid-19 Ptown Unitarian Universalist Meeting House | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-4To0Qg8EU |
| Churches Fighting Against COVID Restrictions | |
| Coronavirus and churches fighting restrictions -FOX 4 Now | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lujxsx7n1zs |
| Outro | |
| John Pavlovitz – What it means to be a Christian - Vote Common Good | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFAgw-UaIGM |
Show Credits
Host: Alyssa Milano
Executive Producer: Alyssa Milano
Associate Producer: Ben Jackson
Editing and Sound Production: Maciej Lewandowski
Music by: Josh Cooke & Eleisha Eagle and Milo Bugliari
