Author Archives: jackpelham

What happens when: a church mis-advertises itself in some way (Bible-based, loving, open-minded, inclusive, The New Testament Church, etc.), and an authentic person starts going there because he or she thinks that whatever’s in the ad is really important, and … Continue reading →

How do I dismiss thee?Let me count the ways! I will be too busy with things more important than you. Therefore, I will not be responsible for dismissing you. I will smile at you and pretend to agree, while I … Continue reading →

After decades of Bible study, I’m convinced that we tend to get lots of things wrong about the Bible for failure to fully decouple from our own ways of thinking and communicating so as to fully grasp the ways of … Continue reading →

It’s not that our society doesn’t appreciate proofs of things. Generally, they do. In the right situation, they love seeing the hero or heroine present a slam-dunk case–as in this brilliant scene from the genius film, My Cousin Vinny. (Be … Continue reading →

If you want to help people, it’s worth noting that you generally have to work with people to do it. And people can be prickly and messy and unpredictable and ungrateful. So there’s that. But then, they can also embrace … Continue reading →

Most of the time, in most matters, most people do what most people do. I don’t mean to suggest that nobody ever has original thoughts or actions. I only mean to suggest that other people are often our guide in … Continue reading →

Humans at their best are a wonder. Humans at their worst are a horror. And humans in their everyday mode? Well, they vary so much that it’s hard to generalize. But few, it seems, strive for their best in all … Continue reading →

I think that Christianity is in a state of emergency. There is a huge difference between what it is supposed to be, and what it actually is. Let me try to explain briefly what surely deserves many articles to treat … Continue reading →

Here’s an old discussion forum post of mine, slightly edited to fit the blog genre better. I’ve seen several people in online discussions about faith suggest that the true or best test of whether someone has a “saving faith” (or … Continue reading →

Having made a study for over a decade about the shortcomings of people’s cognitive habits, it’s an obvious question: How does that play out when it comes to religion? Do people tend to make the standard errors in thinking on … Continue reading →