I received this in my e-mail box yesterday from a Christian friend:
I noticed several things that were glaringly missing from this. Anyone want to take a stab at what they are?
Archives
- November 2011
- July 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- January 2009
- November 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- February 2008
- December 2007
- November 2007
- October 2007
- September 2007
- August 2007
- July 2007
Calendar
Blogroll
- A Great Work
- Abide in My Word
- Babylon Falling
- Confessional Gadfly
- Confessional's Bytes
- Cranach: The Blog of Veith
- Cyberstones: A Lutheran Blog
- Drowning Myself Whenever I Can
- Esgetology
- Extra Nos
- Extreme Theology
- Father Hollywood
- Five Pint Lutheran
- Four and Twenty Blackbirds
- From Virtue to Grace
- Gay and Evangelical
- Glosses From An Old Manse
- Gottesdienst Online
- I Trust When Dark My Road
- Internet Monk
- Just and Sinner
- Letter of Marque
- Lutheran Logomaniac
- Luthermatic
- Mercy Journeys with Pastor Harrison
- Necessary Roughness
- New Reformation Press
- On Rough Seas
- One Lutheran…Ablog!
- One Sheep Ponders
- Pastoral Meanderings
- Putting Out The Fire
- Rev. Cwirla's Blogosphere
- Stand Firm
- Straight Schlueter
- Territorial Bloggings
- The Blawg Office of Andrew, Esq.
- The Brothers of John the Steadfast
- The Elephant's Child
- The High Mid Life
- The Museum of Idolatry
- The Old Adam Lives!
- The Sacrament Is the Gospel
- The Tenth Letter
- The World Wide Wolfmueller
- thinking-out-loud
- UnderEaglesWings
- Utah Lutheran
- Weedon's Blog
- White Horse Inn Blog
No divinity mentioned and Jesus didn’t anything for anyone then and isn’t doing anything for anyone now. Also, I’m not sure why I would even want to live as this Jesus guy did; didn’t work out so well for him.
All that without being nit-picky or too judgmental…
Sometimes I think kitsch is going to kill Christianity in the west if nothing else gets it first.
You’re right on target, Frank!
This sounds more like the Jesus of John Dominic Crossan, Marcus Borg, and Thomas Jefferson. “And they laid him in the tomb. The End.” To “try to live like Jesus did” doesn’t require a divine, risen Savior.
True, Pr. Erickson…this kind of stuff drives me nuts. That “obituary” is heretical in what it doesn’t say. Assumption of the Gospel seems to go hand in hand with all the kitsch.
I’m not sure what to say to my evangelical friends who send me this sort of thing. I’ve “hijacked” a few of the inspirational e-mails to give people the true Gospel instead of kitschy, “heartwarming” banalities or things that are full of religious superstition and overflowing with Law used unlawfully…but I’ve had mixed results in just pointing out the errors directly.
Considering that the resurrection wasn’t mentioned, the “Jesus” of the obituary is certainly not the risen Christ of the Holy Scriptures.
Although, I suppose the last paragraph could mean that He is “risen” where social gospel is practiced, but that nonsense even makes the “Buddy Jesus” cry.
The Gospel?
I think you are generous when you say this thing assumes the Gospel. Seems to me it doesn’t assume it, it just leaves it out and replaces it with the Law.
WWJD doesn’t save anyone, only WDJD does.
Sorry, but what does “kitsch” mean? Yes, I already did a google “define: kitsch” search. I think I know what it means from context (and if so, I’m agreed), but I like to be clear.
Kitsch basically = artwork that is trying very hard to be profound but winds up just being trite, banal, sentimental and/or tacky.