February 5, 2010
Believe it or not, but we all take risks. We take a risk every time we drive, go to the store, or eat dinner at a restaurant. When we drive, there is a risk of an accident. When we go to the store, there is a risk that we could slip and fall on spilled milk in isle 8. At a restaurant, there is a risk of eating contaminated food and getting sick.
Some risks are bigger than others. Football, skiing, snowmobiling, ski diving, and racing are all risky activities. Men are responsible for 68% of all injuries, while women only 32%. Young people under the age of 24 account for a third of all injuries. Unfortunately, for me, these statistics ring true for me, but that’s another story.
Insurance companies make money by discriminating people based on age, sex, and past medical history to account for the likelihood of accidents, medical procedures, or injury. Financial companies charge people more money for loans if they are deemed more likely to default on a loan. The bigger the risk, bigger the potential reward or loss. Millions of dollars are invested in “venture capital” projects that could either fail or make a ton of money.
Risk is big business… I guess you can say a risky business.
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Posted by Alan Rudnick
January 22, 2010
Mission statements are used by individuals, non-profits, companies, and even government. Mission statements are supposed to focus or clarify an organization’s purpose or outcome. 
It is easy for a mission statement to be confusing, too wordy, and just too long. Instead of mission statements empowering people, mission statements can be used as corporate propaganda to make investors feel like the company is working hard. Here are some examples of confusing mission statements:
“We have committed to synergistically fashion high-quality products so that we may collaboratively provide access to inexpensive leadership skills in order to solve business problems”
“It is our business to quickly maintain competitive sources while continuing to globally simplify virtual services.”
“We strive to globally provide access to multimedia based intellectual capital and efficiently simplify effective sources to stay competitive in tomorrow’s world.”
“Our mission is to collaboratively leverage existing high standards in content while promoting personal employee growth.”
What the heck does all that mean? Catch phases like globally, leverage, competitive… Katie Irons at Blogcritics.org offers some insight to mission statements:
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5 Comments | mission | Tagged: christian, Christian values, christianity, church, church growth, Epiphany, mission statement, rick warren, theology | Permalink
Posted by Alan Rudnick
November 9, 2009
As I mentioned before, I was very hopeful that Jon and Kate Gosselin would patch things up, but things have certainly gotten worse since Jon and Kate have split. The media circus has heighten the tension of the conflict between Jon and Kate. Despite Jon’s disclosure of seeking a “higher power” the relationship between him and his family is almost at a point of no return. The girlfriends of Jon, other “reality celebrities”, and the media have virtually wrecked any chance of reconciliation. I cringe every time Jon says, “I’m just here for my kids… I love them.” If he truly loved his kids then he would not engage in activities or conflicts that bring the worst out of the couple. Kate has admitted to her own issues, but Jon’s are more public.
In a strange development, Jon was planning a show with “Octo Mom”:
There were terrible, terrible rumors going around that Jon Gosselin and Octomom Nadya Suleman were going to have their own reality show entitled, Jon – Kate = Jon + Octomom. However, Jon has had time to have a long, hard think about this career decision and has come up with the surprising decision to opt against famewhoring.
You got to be kidding me. I think it is a little late for cashing in on his family’s publicity. However, one silver-lining could be the fact that Jon now has “spiritual advisers”:
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1 Comment | christians | Tagged: christian, Christian marriage, Christian values, christianity, God, Jon and Kate, Jon and Kate plus 8, reality tv, religion | Permalink
Posted by Alan Rudnick
October 30, 2009
Some of us may be uncomfortable with the holiday that is upon us: the dreaded Halloween! What an evil holiday! But, wait! Is Halloween really that evil? The word “Halloween”, as originally indented, was a Christian term. More accurately called, “All Hallows Eve” (hallow meaning “holy”) was a preparation day for All Saints Day, a day that was originally created to remember the Christian martyrs and saints.
Halloween is often associated with the pagan concept of Samhain, the festival where ancient pagans believed that the worlds of the living and dead would been thinly divided. But, we have seen from the other ancient pagan festivals associated with Christmas and Easter, pagan connections do not serve as a reason why we cannot celebrate a Christian holiday. The pre-Christian practices of Samhain have been clearly separated from All Hallows Eve by the historical Church, but many Christians have abandoned this day of remembrance.
However, by understanding Halloween through All Saints Day, rather than evil occult connections, Christians can take comfort in knowing that All Hallows Eve or Halloween be a Christian observance. Here is why:
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Posted by Alan Rudnick
October 12, 2009
As part of Judson Press’ blog tour for Russell Rathbun’s new book, nuChristian: finding faith in a new generation, I have had the wonderful opportunity to preview and review this insightful book. In addition, Wednesday of this week, I will feature a Q & A with Russell about his new book. On Friday, Russell will be featured as a guest blogger.
nuChristian begins with a very brief forward by author and activist Shane Claiborne (fellow Eastern University alum), of the Simple Way. Claiborne, known for being a radical voice and champion for the poor, harmonizes with Rathbun’s message of how Christianity must shape “nuChristians”. That is, Christians who are no longer identified by hypocritical actions, scandal, and hot button issues.
In the preface, Rathbun lays out that the purpose of this book is to join the conversation of David Kinnamen’s book UnChristian. Back in 1996, Kinnamen’s Barna Group, found that 83% of Americans identified themselves as Christians, and that fewer than 20% of non-Christians held an unfavorable view of Christianity. Between 2004 and 2007, nine out of ten non-Christians between the ages of 16-29 found Christians to be too anti-homosexual. In addition, almost as many saw Christianity as it as “hypocritical” and “judgmental.” Seventy-five percent of non-Christians thought Christians were too involved in politics. UnChristian used these statistics and made the case that non-Christian resentment is focused on perceived Christian attitudes. Kinnaman used these statistics to form a bleak picture of Western Christianity.
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1 Comment | Book Review | Tagged: Christ, christian, Christian values, christianity, Emergent church, faith, Generation X, House of Mercy, Judson Press, megachurch, nuChristian, post modernity, Russell Rathbun, seekers, theology, UnChristian, young people | Permalink
Posted by Alan Rudnick
October 7, 2009
Be sure to vote in the poll at the end of this post.
Is the cross just a cross? Is there a way that a cross cannot be a religious symbol? In the interest of
separation of church and state, the Supreme court will rule on an upcoming case that could redefine the boundaries of how religion can play a role in governmental life: Salazar v. Buono
The story goes like this:
A white cross erected on a rock outcropping on federal land in California’s Mojave Desert is at the heart of a Supreme Court case about the government’s display of religious symbols. The Veterans of Foreign Wars’ Death Valley post first built the cross at Sunrise Rock in 1934 to honor Americans who died in combat in World War I.
Neither the VFW nor Sandoz ever owned the land where the cross is located — nor did they have permission to build on the land.
But in 1999, a Buddhist asked the National Park Service for permission to erect a Buddhist shrine on federal land near the cross. The agency refused, setting in motion a series of events in the courts and Congress, culminating in Wednesday’s Supreme Court hearing.
Is it possible that a cross could be refined by the federal government as a non-religious symbol? If you think that is impossible, then consider this:
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Posted by Alan Rudnick
August 10, 2009
(I use the term “Christian Wedding Crashers” as a tongue and cheek way of referring to those people who are not typical church member seeking marriage. Please do not be offended. This is a light hearted term that some Christians have used for this situation. I do not believe these people are really crashing a wedding. Please keep reading. )
“What an awesome wedding! You did a great job. You opened new doors
for us into Christianity.” – is the comment that I heard from a wedding I once officiated. Over the years, I have been conflicted by couples who come into my office asking me to officiate their wedding. Normally, I have no problem doing a wedding for a church member or Christians who do not have a church home. What has been a growing trend for a number of pastors, including myself, is what to do with non-Christian weddings?
Many Christians have been troubled with what to do with Christian “wedding crashers”, which are those people (who some Christians deem to be conflictual) who do not meet the “typical Christian” engagement period. The typical Christian premarital situation looks like this:
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Posted by Alan Rudnick
August 5, 2009
After months in a North Korean prison for illegal entry, two American journalists, Laura Ling and Euna Lee, were returned to U.S. soil on Wednesday. Former president Bill Clinton acted as the save-the-day envoy to secure the two American’s captives release. Clinton met with the reclusive dictator Kim Jong Il in a rare meeting to negotiate the return of Ling and Lee.
Lee recounted the experience:
” . . . When we walked in through the doors, we saw, standing before us, president Bill Clinton… We were shocked. But we knew instantly in our hearts that the nightmare of our lives was finally coming to an end. And now we stand here, home and free.”
Some have pointed out that the Clinton visit has sidestepped the larger issue of North Korea’s illegal weapons and nuclear capabilities . Many political pundits have scoffed at the Obama administration for sending Clinton to North Korea. American international relations often dictate that speaking to a “rouge” nation legitimizes that government’s existence. For instance, John R. Bolton, a former US ambassador said:
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Posted by Alan Rudnick
July 24, 2009
There is a developing movement within literature to chronicle an outsider’s perspective on the strange land of Evangelical Christianity. It seems that the world sees all Evangelical Christians as fervent, ignorant, and misguided by a holy book. Being an Evangelical myself, I can see how the outside world can group all Evangelicals into this stereotype. The media tends to pick up on the extremes of any group, ideology, or religion and usually tries gives us the most radical angle. You would think that I would NOT recommend books about non-Christians views on Christianity, but there are two books that are worthy of your consideration about strangers in a strange land that yield some surprising insights.
In the first book, A Jew Among the Evangelicals, by Mark Pinsky, he provides a brief introduction: a religion reporter for the Orlando Sentinel, uses his unique position as a Jew covering evangelical Christianity to help nonevangelicals understand the hopes, fears, and motivations of this growing subculture and breaks down some of the stereotypes that nonevangelicals have of evangelicals. “I hope you’ll find laughter, perhaps puzzlement, and heartfelt interest in how people just like you wrestle with feelings, values, and beliefs that touch the core of their beings. And I hope you’ll catch a glimpse of someone learning to understand and get along with folks whose convictions differ from his own,” Pinsky writes in the introduction.
The second book, The Unlikely Disciple is by Kevin Roose. Roose leaves his Ivy League setting to spend a semester at Liberty University, a conservative Christian college. The book gives this description: “His journey takes him from an evangelical hip-hop concert to choir practice at Falwell’s legendary Thomas Road Baptist Church. He experiments with prayer, participates in a spring break mission trip to Daytona Beach (where he learns to preach the gospel to partying coeds)… He meets pastors’ kids, closet doubters, Christian rebels, and conducts what would be the last print interview of Rev. Falwell’s life.”
Both of these books provide 3 things you should consider before judging Evangelical Christianity:
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Posted by Alan Rudnick
July 20, 2009
I try to be non-political on this blog, but I could not help but notice the recent scandals that are occurring for several Republicans. Now, do not 
get me wrong here. The Democrats have had theirs too (Bill Clinton). Maureen Down from the New York Times wrote a scathing piece about Christian/conservative Republicans. In her article entitled, “Pharisees on the Potomac” she points out that the party of morality has hardly been moral. The hypocrisy of some in the Republication party, she feels, has been obvious, but no one is making waves about it. She points out:
Who can forget the glory years, when the Gipper invoked God but never went to church?…When Newt Gingrich and other conservatives indulged in affairs with young Washington peaches as they pushed to impeach Bill Clinton?
There has always been a push by some Christians to articulate their undying support of the Republican party, but if those Christians dug deeper they will find some embarrassing facts. Down continues the article by mentioning the Christian “C Street house“, where Christian law makers go for support during tough spiritual times:
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Leave a Comment » | politics | Tagged: C St house, C Street house, Christian politics, Christian scandals, Christian values, John Ensign, Mark Sanford, politics, The Family | Permalink
Posted by Alan Rudnick
