Patrik Olterman
Before you “come out” as a LGBTQ ally in church…
Read more: Before you “come out” as a LGBTQ ally in church…I am watching a fellow Salvationist lament on the LGBTQ oppressive teaching they are getting at a Salvation Army event. I grieve with here and cringe inwardly at the damage being done in yet another Bible study where no consideration is being given to the possibility of HBTQ people in the room. At the same…
Sexuality in the Song of Songs – Part 4: Sexual Ethics
Read more: Sexuality in the Song of Songs – Part 4: Sexual EthicsIt should be very clear at this point that the Song is unashamedly and explicitly sexual. Describing the growing love and passion between two individuals. While It remains uncertain if they are married (what the Song has to say about marriage will be considered later in this essay) the Song clearly describes a passionate love…
Sexuality in the Song of Songs – Part 3: Symbols
Read more: Sexuality in the Song of Songs – Part 3: SymbolsBefore looking at the Song’s message and theology, some of the Song’s symbols and images must be decoded. It is important to not get carried away in doing this. While the Song is rife with sensual images appealing to all five senses, it is easy to take this decoding too far and end up with…
All living things are my teacher
Read more: All living things are my teacherIn John 3.16 we read that god so loved the world (kosmos) that he gave his only begotten son…. And it seems to me that all through scripture we are reminded again and again that kosmos, that is all of creation, is longing for redemption. When god creates the world, as we read in Gen…
Sexuality and the Song of Songs – part 2: Interpretation
Read more: Sexuality and the Song of Songs – part 2: InterpretationSong of Songs have been read and interpreted in several different ways, the predominant interpretation is some form of allegorical interpretation (Estes, 2005: 396). Most scholars throughout history have approached the Song this way. Starting with Theogenes who interpreted the Song to be about the relationship between Yahweh and Israel. In this tradition great Christian…
My deepest feelings are my guide
Read more: My deepest feelings are my guideThe Church is in trouble every time it instructs us to disregards our hearts or tell us that our hearts are evil/wicked. If Life is to be our religion and being alive is our spiritual practice; If the church is build by authentic relationships and if becoming and being all that I am is my…
Sexuality and the Song of Songs – part 1: Background
Read more: Sexuality and the Song of Songs – part 1: BackgroundThe Song of songs is a much debated and unique book in the Old Testament. It is near impossible to find consensus on any statement about the book except that it is unique. The book has no parallel in the rest of the Jewish or Christian Canon. It becomes difficult to assert anything about authorship,…
Helping you become and be all that you are is my ministry
Read more: Helping you become and be all that you are is my ministryIf my calling is becoming and being all that I am then it falls naturally that my ministry, my service to god is to, within the scope of an authentic relationship, help you to become and be all that you are. This is not first and foremost a call to spiritual leadership, with one spiritual…
Becoming and being all that I am is my calling
Read more: Becoming and being all that I am is my callingHoliness and calling are two central points of a Salvationist theology. Many books have been written on holiness, most of them describing holiness as a tool to get rid of/become sin free and while many of these books describe holiness as an internal process the result becomes an external system of sin management. As if…
Jesus is my brother
Read more: Jesus is my brotherIt may seem like an obvious thing to say, if god is our father then Jesus is our brother. There are some people (in the past myself included) who may have a problem thinking of themselves on the same level as Jesus. It seems disrespectful towards the son of god and almost blasphemous. Jesus himself…
Philosophy + Theology = True!
Read more: Philosophy + Theology = True!I was approached last week by a Soldier that was concerned about my reading and quoting philosophical works in my blogs and my sermons. He quoted the oft quoted: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what…
The kingdom of God runs through my veins
Read more: The kingdom of God runs through my veinsJesus main message, according to most bible scholars, was that of the kingdom of god, or life eternal (aionos zoe). In most churches this has degenerated into an oversimplified message of “pie in the sky when you die”. When Jesus very clearly describes the kingdom as an event, as something that is about to happen and…
This is my voice
Read more: This is my voiceRecently at “Subverting the norm II” I was challenged by Katherine Sara Moody who took the platform together with some heavy hitters in radical theology and opened up with “as a woman and a theologian I am still looking to find my voice”. She made me reflect, and I think I have been reflecting on,…
Authentic friendships is my church
Read more: Authentic friendships is my churchIf life is the religion what are we then to make of church? The English word for church comes from the greek kurios which is best translated as the Lord’s or those that belong to the Lord. In the context of this then maybe the simplest way to express this is that the cosmos, all of…
Humankind is my family
Read more: Humankind is my family“Who are my mother and my brothers?” Jesus asks in Mark 3.33. It is a poignant question, one worthy to ponder as we face this turbulent life. It seems to me that while the biblical narrative in some cases puts an emphasis on family, it also deconstructs the very idea of family. Archbishop Desmond Tutu…
Love is my rule!
Read more: Love is my rule!It may seem to some the most logical place to start: God is love! This it is what I was taught as I took my first stumbling steps as a Christian. I was also taught that the bible is a love letter from god. This, however, struck me as a bit odd given the strangeness…
What about Radical Salvationism?
Read more: What about Radical Salvationism?Since I attended the conference on Radical Theology – Subvert the norm II, I have been asking myself what would a Radical Salvationism look like? Then I stumbled across the following quote by Cadet Christopher Footer in JAC Issue #45: There is only one God, and there is only one Salvation Army. That army however…
Oh My Ego!
Read more: Oh My Ego!I am sittning at the Salvation Army leadership conference in Örebro, listening to Tommy Hellsten talking about finding your true self and how the ego must be crucified, taken apart, gotten rid of. I think of Eddie Izzard that stated last night during his “Force Majeure” show that he had an overgrown ego, he tells…
Deconstruction
Read more: DeconstructionI often end up in conversations about deconstruction. Is it wise, they ask to deconstruct doctrinal and creedal statements, bible texts and above all is it wise to deconstruct god? In the question, I find, there is a fear that deconstruction will somhow damage or break the idea or concept that is being deconstructed. There…
Subverting the norm
Read more: Subverting the normThe last couple of days I have spent at Subverting the norm II, a conference about radical theology, postmodernism and the church. It has been three days of deconstruction, radical thought and repentance. It has been such a privilege and honour to spend three days with some of the greatest theologians involved in this ongoing…
Being alive is my daily spiritual practice
Read more: Being alive is my daily spiritual practiceWhat is a spiritual practice, or a spiritual discipline? Most people I know would place a spiritual practice within the confines of what you do on a Sunday in church or possibly in your daily prayer session at home. A subset of my friends would also extend it to their activities in feeding the hungry…
Life is my religion
Read more: Life is my religionIt is a grand statement: Life is my religion! But what does it mean? Let’s start with the end, religion, what is religion? The word religion comes from latin and means to re/connect (ligare is the same root word that gives us the english word ligament). What is it we need to re/connect? Naturally this…
Theopoetics
Read more: TheopoeticsAfter a long hiatus in blogging I have decided to warm up the keyboard and start blogging again. Any long term reader will immediately notice that the name of the blog has changed and with that maybe the direction of the blog as well. Personally I think the new name “Theopoetics” better reflect the direction…
Steve Chalke breaks the silence
Read more: Steve Chalke breaks the silenceSteve Chalke, theologian, author and leader of Oasis Church has decided to break the silence and believe out loud. It is encouraging to see that more and more evangelical leaders are stepping up to the plate, ready to take a stand for christlike inclusion and justice. If you want to read the longer (and annotated…
In my name ….
Read more: In my name ….This week has been full of questions and reflection. And as I was reading “The idolatry of God” I was reflecting on Jesus asking us to pray in his name. I think in our traditional thinking we connect this with John 4.6 (No one comes to the father but through me) or we possibly se…
