Get out of Purgatory (I mean Jail) Free Card

Pope Benedict XVI must have caught the Christmas fever as well, because he is in a particularly generous mood. The Pope is offering relief from purgatory to Roman Catholics who travel to Lourdes to pray to the shrine dedicated to the Madonna of Lourdes.

There is no need to worry if you won't be able to make the trip, Pope Benedict has made provisions. Just pray at places of worship dedicated to the Madonna of Lourdes from Feb. 2 to Feb. 11.

And we were supposed to think the RCC stopped offering plenary indulgences after that whole deal we call the Reformation.

No thanks, I'll just cling to the perfect righteousness that Jesus accomplished on my behalf through his substitutionary work on the cross as my sinless sin bearer.

O Holy Night

A lot of Christmas songs that we sing are extremely well written songs that contain deep biblical truths. It is a shame that they have been deemed “Christmas songs” in the modern sense and are reserved for Christmas time only by unwritten laws.

O Holy Night is definitely one of my favorite Christmas songs. Parts of it remind me somewhat of Paul’s prayers and writings in the first part of Ephesians, where he points us to the glory of God and the treasures and riches that are found in Christ.

I have heard that it is also the first ever music to be broadcasted over radio. I think someone played it on the violin maybe. Here is a video of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra performing it, they do an awesome job with it. It starts in the second half of the video after O Come all Ye Faithful (which is also very good).

Oh holy night! The stars are brightly shining,

It is the night of the dear Saviour's birth.

Long lay the world in sin and error pining,

Till He appear'd and the soul felt its worth.

A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

Fall on your knees! Oh, hear the angel voices!

Oh night divine, Oh night when Christ was born;

Oh night divine, Oh night, Oh night Divine.

Led by the light of Faith serenely beaming,

With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand.

So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming,

Here come the wise men from Orient land.

The King of Kings lay thus in lowly manger;

In all our trials born to be our friend.

He knows our need, to our weakness is no stranger,

Behold your King! Before Him lowly bend!

Behold your King, Behold your King.

Truly He taught us to love one another;

His law is love and His gospel is peace.

Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother;

And in His name all oppression shall cease.

Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,

Let all within us praise His holy name.

Christ is the Lord! O praise His Name forever,

His power and glory evermore proclaim.

His power and glory evermore proclaim.

Rob Bell: Hippier-Than-Thou Pastor

Creative title huh? Well I can't take credit for it...Time Magazine released an article by the same title that is all about the culturally-savvy, megachurch pastor, Rob Bell. There is much discussion these days on the blogosphere concerning Rob Bell--1/3 love him, 1/3 hate him, and 1/3 can't decide what to think. I had the joy of hearing Rob speak at a conference several years ago and I will have to say that he is one of the best communicators I have ever heard. The message he delivered that day is one of the best sermons I have ever heard on many different levels. He hopped around the stage like a rapper with the mic, who was laying down a hot track, yet in the same manner he was able to passionately explain the Gospel message. If any one person fits all of the Evangelical "buzz words," (Emergent, Creative, Relevant, Emerging, Missional) that person would be Rob Bell. Some have claimed him as the heir to Billy Graham, while others have claimed him as a heretic. Love him or hate him, call him a hippy, a heretic, a genius, a geek, or a saint, Rob Bell is here to stay and is having a huge influence on the Church in America.


Check out the Time Magazine article: The Hippier-Than-Thou Pastor

Has anyone ever heard Rob Bell in person, read his books, listened to a podcast, or watched a NOOMA video? If so any, any discussion on the topic?

Box Update- Ephesians Study Notes

The Foundation Box has been updated with notes from two previous Wednesday night services. Notes from Webb's teaching on Husbands and Wives will be uploaded soon. To download or print these notes you can visit our Box or you can direct download the files below.

Ephesians 5.1-10 (Ephesians Series. Sermon Notes. 11-14-07)

Ephesians 5.10-21 (Ephesians Series. Sermon Notes. 11-28-07)

The Golden Compass: What's the Deal?

I will have to say that it was not until recently that I became aware of The Golden Compass, Phillip Pullman or the His Dark Materials trilogy. But after reading several articles online and several interviews with Pullman it is very clear that his agenda in these books is to destroy the Christian church and to debunk the idea of God. Just think of this trilogy as the polar opposite of Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia. In fact Pullman described Lewis's work as "one of the most ugly and poisonous things I ever read."



So what's the deal? Should we protest, picket, hoot and holler, and raise a ruckus at the movie theater when The Golden Compass releases? Well, No....I don't think so...but I do believe that we should be informed. You should "always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have."(1Peter 3.15) It is quite possible that within the next week at work, school, church or the grocery store that this movie will come up in conversation as well as the subversive themes it portrays. And if that is the case then we need not be ignorant, rather we should be informed and ready to talk about the issues that come up. I can see the biggest challenge coming from uninformed parents and family members who take their kids to see the movie...the kids love the movie and then for Christmas the parents buy them the entire trilogy all the while not realizing that the books are about killing God, the idea of the Christian church and original sin.

So, if you are a parent I hope that you especially will do some research and become informed on Pullman and the trilogy from which this movie is based upon. I also hope that you will do some thoughtful consideration when deciding if your child should be allowed to watch this movie and even more so when it comes to reading the books. On another note, the movie should actually be good and for that reason I am excited about watching it....not to mention it has the new James Bond actor as a character and he was awesome!


"Atheists express their rage against God although in their view He does not exist." --C. S. Lewis

"A great many of those who 'debunk' traditional...values have in the background values of their own which they believe to be immune from the debunking process." C.S. Lewis--The Abolition of Man


The Golden Compass--A Briefing for Concerned Christians -- Albert Mohler

'The Golden Compass'--Does Not Point to True North -- Ben Witherington III

Is 'Golden Compass' selling atheism to kids? -- CNN Article

Religion Row Hits Pullman Epic -- UK Observer

"The Golden Compass" Sparks Protest -- The Catholic League

A Good Soldier

John MacArthur has an excellent article on the marks of a good soldier. He says the marks of a good soldier are (1) Willingness to suffer hardship with the rest of the soldiers (2) Being on 24/7 active duty and a separation from "normal life" and (3) A desire to please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.

A Good Soldier