Who knew mercy was nasty?

We shouldn’t be surprised about people defending the president’s rant and demand for an apology from Bishop Budde for the proclamation and plea for mercy for those on the margins of society.

Russell Moore told us in 2023 that he had numerous conversations with pastors who had congregants complaining about the preaching of the Sermon on the Mount — and those were Jesus’ literal words. They said that it didn’t work anymore, that it was “liberal talking points,” and that the teachings were too “weak.” When I hear things like this it often confirms a theory I have — that religion used to play a central role in defining one’s identity, but this has shifted to politics, partisanship, and ideology now playing a central role in defining one’s identity. That’s not a healthy shift, in case you were wondering.

We need to get better at asking which Jesus someone is supposedly following so we know if we are talking about the same person or not. This extends beyond just Jesus too. There are many words that are thrown around quick easily by many people that we need to start asking for clarification on — freedom, liberty, Christianity, faith, values, people, etc. We’re using English, but we’re not all speaking the same language. And we certainly aren’t all using the same words the same way. Definitions are important to understand what someone is actually talking about.

The biggest questions that seem relevant right now in the midst of all that is going are these — what does a faithful person do? How are we to live? How are we to…