tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61524142802369238902009-07-12T20:42:33.199-04:00Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.comBlogger130125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-41378088750065607332009-07-10T09:22:00.007-04:002009-07-10T10:25:48.335-04:00

Our generation loves a good cause. Ay least that is the appearance. We proudly wear the "Save Africa" T-shirts and we buy all the {RED} gear we can find. There is no doubt that causes are cool. But how many of us have moved from talking to doing?A while back, I wrote about the atrocities going on in the Darfur region of Sudan. People are dying in record numbers from starvation, refugee camps are

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-43741014380539576922009-07-06T15:29:00.004-04:002009-07-06T16:08:31.017-04:00

Today, United States President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev agreed to pursue a significant reduction in nuclear arms. America and Russia possess the largest nuclear stockpiles in the world by far, which is why Obama told reporters in Moscow, "We must lead by example, and that's what we're doing here today." The treaty includes "effective verification measures."I have written

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-41500948917243733842009-06-30T22:30:00.009-04:002009-06-30T22:50:27.950-04:00

If you want a break from the unbridled coverage of Michael Jackson's death and legacy, check out the Relevant article, "Vintage Green," by Kaylin King. The colloquial web exclusive opens with a story about King's grandmother to illustrate that living "green" often means rediscovering the way life used to be. "Not only did (my grandmother) sew and mend many of her own clothes, but she washed them

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-77364523251655855492009-06-29T10:24:00.005-04:002009-06-29T11:00:02.075-04:00

America can't stop talking about South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, the cheating state executive who disappeared for several days to make a love connection with his Argentinian mistress. In fact, Sanford is probably the only person in the United States who was giddy to learn that Michael Jackson had died because it would eat up some of his air time on the evening news.It was this scandal that

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-45802583223788914312009-06-24T19:17:00.004-04:002009-06-24T19:38:54.655-04:00

A few weeks ago, I was outraged when I read in the Washington Times that Liberty University's administration revoked the official club status of its College Democrats. I am not a registered Democrat, but I am a Liberty alumnus. Anything that so blatantly squelches the free exchange of ideas on a university campus will naturally compromise that university's (and its graduates') credibility. I sent

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-72018760465924893062009-06-20T20:11:00.005-04:002009-06-20T20:29:17.262-04:00

Early tomorrow, I will be leaving Atlanta for Louisville, home of the famous baseball bat, which bears the city's name. The large Kentucky metropolis is also host to this year's Southern Baptist Convention, an event that promises to have people swinging a few clubs of their own. The SBC annual convention is always a great place to watch old people cat-fight over things the rest of the world cares

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-55775479066660048662009-06-17T08:11:00.004-04:002009-06-17T11:39:42.319-04:00

I have said before that pro-life Christians must move beyond the sandwich board, candidate-driven mentality and be willing to do the hard work that our faith demands. Peachtree Presbyterian in my hometown of Atlanta is a perfect example. Their pastor has announced that they will accept any unwanted babies that the community brings them. Working with Bethany Christian Services, the nation's

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-42946930245516130492009-06-02T10:42:00.006-04:002009-06-02T11:31:59.365-04:00

FACT: The Southern Baptist Convention is an archaic denominational dinosaur with a bloated bureaucratic infrastructure on the fast track to irrelevance. Whew. I said it. The decline of the SBC has been signaled again and again by the work of individuals like Ed Stetzer who speak with the authority of rigorous research. It can no longer be denied.To illustrate the progression of SBC internal

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-42782873322387450132009-05-23T11:29:00.015-04:002009-05-23T12:21:17.285-04:00

Thursday, the Chicago-Sun Times released a story titled, "Gay marriage views all about age, region," which pointed out the shifts going on over same sex issues. The article cited the 22-year-long "Political Values and Core Attitudes" study conducted by The Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, which shows that public opinion over gay rights has changed significantly among the

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-88657385039783293462009-05-22T12:58:00.005-04:002009-05-22T13:57:54.828-04:00

Creation care can't be separated from people care--they are intimately connected. This year at Flourish Conference we were able to profile an organization that does both well: Land of a Thousand Hills (LOATH) coffee company. LOATH primarily works in the country of Rwanda, where citizens are poor and jobless in the wake of devastating genocide. By sustaining coffee farms in Rwanda, LOATH provides

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-3692061043669446382009-05-21T17:00:00.008-04:002009-05-21T18:54:04.747-04:00

One of the most sincere pastors I have ever met is Leroy Barber. According to his bio, Leroy has spent more than 20 years working to eradicate poverty, confront homelessness, and heal racism. As with most bios, this one doesn't fully portray Leroy's life and ministry. Leroy leads an intentional community in one of the poorest communities in Atlanta. The members of his church reside in the

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-85138025342292958152009-05-20T13:46:00.007-04:002009-05-20T14:01:23.056-04:00

One of the most striking presentations at Flourish Conference this year a video on new urbanism called "Built to Last." It was produced by Chris Elisara of Creation Care Study Program and John Paget of Paget Films and was winner of the Congress for New Urbanism's video contest. The artistic quality of this video is through the roof and the message is powerful.Check out the 3-minute video out and

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-51604330173544738492009-05-19T10:57:00.004-04:002009-05-19T11:10:17.881-04:00

Floresta is the coolest organization you've never heard of and their program Plant with Purpose may be the neatest creation care initiative around today. Through Plant with Purpose, Floresta is working to reverse poverty and deforestation by planting trees internationally. They currently have programs in Mexico, Tanzania, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic.We showcased Plant with Purpose at

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-56886508324667567252009-05-18T14:02:00.005-04:002009-05-18T14:31:56.300-04:00

This week, Cross Pointe Church hosted the first annual Flourish Conference. As a small part of the Flourish staff, I can tell you that the conference exceeded our expectations in many ways. First, our speaker list was amazing: Joel Hunter, Margaret Feinberg, Gabe Lyons, Matthew Sleeth, and Andy Crouch to name a few. Second, the community being built was unprecedented. People were connecting with

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-63941791106501969172009-05-06T09:42:00.010-04:002009-05-06T22:22:58.485-04:00

Recently, I became a part of what I believe is one of the most important Christian movements in America. The Two Futures Project (2FP) is a non-partisan Christian movement seeking to abolish nuclear weapons from the face of the earth.  2FP does not call for America to disarm unilaterally, but rightly advocates for nuclear disarmament that is multilateral, verifiable, and irreversible.As I stated

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-59383844082249279742009-04-28T18:06:00.005-04:002009-04-30T00:40:05.622-04:00

A new effort to revitalize and unite Southern Baptists is underway called The Great Commission Resurgence. It is being spearheaded by several Southern Baptist leaders, including SBC President Johnny Hunt and Daniel Akin, President of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.This effort has now launched a website with a declaration that is available for electronic signing. I like this effort and

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-58122826439754113692009-04-23T22:45:00.007-04:002009-04-30T00:32:39.163-04:00

The Associated Press is now reporting that it has uncovered secret statistics held by the Iraqi government showing 87,215 Iraqi citizens have been killed since 2005 as a result of everything from "catastrophic bombings to execution-style slayings." When tallied with records since 2003, it climbs to an estimated 110,600. (That number only includes "violent deaths.")Here's some questions: Was it

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-994400597591233622009-04-22T12:23:00.004-04:002009-04-22T12:33:06.198-04:00

Recently, I had the opportunity to screen Disneynature's debut film, Earth. I was so impressed by the movie that I wrote a review for Relevant. The movie is narrated by James Earl Jones and follows the lives of three animal families as they overcome amazing circumstances. The film is replete with life lessons and redemptive elements that uncover the grandeur of God's creation. In fact,

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-89912332287606797592009-04-20T08:58:00.009-04:002009-04-25T10:45:38.613-04:00

I wrote an article that ran in USA Today this morning entitled "An Evangelical's Plea: Love the Sinner" calling evangelical Christians to begin treating our gay and lesbian neighbors more lovingly. The feedback has been intense with many positive affirmations coming from young adults and a few negative comments and emails from some older Christians.This is actually the second time in less than a

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com77tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-83902871352372472332009-04-16T23:24:00.007-04:002009-04-16T23:35:19.902-04:00

Interesting new research from Ed Stetzer & Co. A LifeWay Research study breaks down protestant pastors' views on most divisive environmental issue as well as how often they address creation care from their pulpit. Clear divisions among political and theological lines. Read the study news release.Has your pastor ever addressed creation care from the pulpit? If so, what kind of church do you attend?

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-32664336689605967332009-04-15T21:22:00.004-04:002009-04-16T14:18:41.153-04:00

(Guest Writer - Katie Corbett, VA) I teach American History and recently we were discussing the abolition movement. For those of you who are not familiar with the our nation’s history, this movement called for the outlawing of slavery in the spirit of Thomas Jefferson’s eloquent and immortal words in the Declaration of Independence: “all men are created equal.” Men like William Lloyd Garrison and

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-69391288025748128622009-04-06T21:26:00.005-04:002009-04-06T22:05:29.105-04:00

Just when you think you've seen it all, someone comes along and denies the existence of Jesus Christ. A recent documentary, The God Who Wasn't There, has just been released to DVD, which Newsweek says "irreverently lays out the case that Jesus Christ never existed." The writers of the New Testament Gospels, they claim, never believed that Jesus existed. Instead, these writers simply wrote about a

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-37428537205712504492009-03-23T10:23:00.011-04:002009-04-15T21:22:47.274-04:00

On my way to speak at a college retreat in St. George Island this past February, I stopped to refuel in Carabelle, FL. It was a quaint little seaside town that was more Georgia than Florida in many ways, not the least of which being the ginormous trucks filled with rednecks aplenty. As I was walking into the gas station to pay for my overpriced octane, I happened to glance up the road and see

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-37677643450007964432009-03-22T00:13:00.006-04:002009-03-24T20:42:38.089-04:00

An interesting article in today's AJC: "Pastor Sees Care of Earth as Duty"At the end of it, I mention Flourish Conference 2009 by saying "I think [this conference] is going to be the primary touch point for the church to get involved in the 21st century."Check out the article and the conference.Update: ABP Article on Flourish

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6152414280236923890.post-75984992814788885602009-03-16T22:15:00.007-04:002009-03-16T23:08:03.870-04:00

For some time, I have been promoting a common ground policy on abortion reduction. I first embraced abortion reduction because my progressive friends were prodding me to join with them to save unborn lives. When these individuals asked me to rally with them around such things as increased funding for adoption and comprehensive sexual education with an abstinence emphasis, I was happy to sign on. 

Jonathan Merritthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18317633914257498372noreply@blogger.com13