You certainly don’t need religion to have a sense of guilt. You don’t even need religion to be totally overcome by guilt. All you need is a sense of an ideal self—some version of a hero-project going on in your head—and you are a lifelong candidate for guilt. The atheist is always tempted to believe…
“The problem with the black American psyche,” my roommate in college informed me, “is that we don’t know where we came from.” He explained to me that when Africans were pulled from their homes throughout West Africa during the transatlantic slave trade, they did not bring with them any trace of their ethnic-communal-regional roots. Once…
I was surprised when I first heard that our local Antiochian Orthodox Church decided to close all services for the remainder of Lent. I was even more surprised to learn moments later that all Antiochian Orthodox Churches in the United States were to be closed by order of our archbishop. Soon after that I was…
My wife recently put me on a mandatory book-buying fast. Begrudgingly, I complied but figured I’d make the most of it by rereading some old books that I haven’t touched in years. All in all, it’s been a highly productive fast (finally we have enough money left over to spend on senseless, impulsive purchases in…
Driving on the freeway in Tulsa a few years back, I saw a billboard advertising a wildly popular church in the area. The ad featured a photo taken from behind the pastor who was looking out on the congregation. The pastor had both fists in the air as if celebrating a touchdown. The caption read:…
Having studied a fair amount of dream analysis and utilizing various forms in therapy, I thought it would be fun to write a quick review comparing and contrasting the three figures with whom I have the most experience: Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, and Fritz Perls. This article is primarily aimed at therapists in the counseling…
Revised Introductory Note Since the first posting of this article in 2013 it has received 100’s of comments on my blog and has been reposted to numerous atheist forums and private blogs. What I’ve noticed about the general nature of atheist responses to this article is an unfortunate misunderstanding concerning my purpose. Most seem to…
Two distinct schools of theology developed in the ancient capital cities of Alexandria and Antioch. Both schools reflected their unique cultural influences in their approach to the Christian faith. Some differences were fairly benign in terms of doctrinal cohesion and overall good relations between the two sees; however, there were some differences that became so…
I have been accused by nearly everyone I know of being too humorous. I’m not alone, of course. Many people find it necessary to constantly inject humor into their routine daily affairs. Do any of us ever stop to ask ourselves why? I first became suspicious of my humor soon after getting married. My wife…
“I’m spiritual, not religious” I wish I had a back massage for every time I’ve heard this line. What gets me most is the presupposition it stems from, that “spiritual” is the assumed equivalent of “good” and “religious” is the assumed equivalent of “evil.” Who made up this language game? Honestly, who decided that “spiritual”…
"Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced" -Kierkegaard
Doctrine Matters
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