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2021-06-21T07:50:16-06:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Why Is There So Much Disdain for Universalism?

Last updated on: June 21, 2021 at 7:50 am By Matthew Distefano

Universalism pisses a lot of Christians off. Not all of them, but a lot of them. I would know; I’ve been a Universalist in some capacity for nearly a decade and I’ve pretty much seen it all. Typically, these “Jesus-loving Christians” stick to the traditional insults like wolf in sheep’s clothing, heretic, apostate, and the like. But sometimes these shining lights of love take it a step further by wishing we could go back to a time when it was... Read more

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2021-06-17T12:03:43-06:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Some Thoughts On My Recent Discussion/Debate

Last updated on: June 17, 2021 at 12:03 pm By Matthew Distefano

Earlier this week, I had an informal debate/discussion with a radio host named Frank Holzhauser on the topic of universal reconciliation. My opponent took the position that it is unbiblical and, in his words, “dangerous.” I took the position that it is among other biblical positions and that it is the most philosophically sound. At the end of the debate, we still disagreed. And that’s okay. It’s okay to disagree. It’s okay to not see eye to eye. My problem... Read more

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2021-06-15T12:02:27-06:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Gehenna Misunderstood

Last updated on: June 15, 2021 at 12:02 pm By Matthew Distefano

When Jesus talked about hell, he used the Hebrew or Aramaic equivalent of the Greek word “Gehenna.” This is a literal valley south of Jerusalem that has a long, storied, and ominous history for the Jews. In sixth-century BCE, it became the place where their dead bodies were tossed into after the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem. Before that, it was a locale where worshippers of Baal sacrificed and burned children to honor the god Molech (see Jer. 7:31–32; 35:35). What’s interesting about... Read more

2021-06-08T09:14:21-06:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Sex-Obsessed Christians Need to Get a Life

Last updated on: June 8, 2021 at 9:14 am By Matthew Distefano

Please don’t get me wrong; I love sex. It feels amazing. It’s a great way for my wife and I to connect physically, emotionally, and spiritually. And did I mention that it feels amazing? But holy crap are there some sex-obsessed Christians out there! Last week, we at the Heretic Happy Hour podcast received 52 voicemails from one listener on our hotline. Fifty. F***ing. Two. At roughly 3 minutes per voicemail, that comes in at over 2 and a half... Read more

2021-06-04T08:50:24-06:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

An Open Letter to the Homophobes and Bigots

Last updated on: June 4, 2021 at 8:50 am By Matthew Distefano

Dear Christian Haters, Bigots, and Homophobes, Forgive me if this letter comes across as nothing but a jumbled mess, a stream of consciousness better fit for a journal than anything else. But, given that this is my first Pride Month as an openly bisexual man, I didn’t want to hold in what I am feeling nor let those of you who continue to demonize us off the hook for the harm you have caused and continue to cause people whom... Read more

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2021-06-04T07:58:22-06:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

What The Bible Says Doesn’t Matter

Last updated on: June 4, 2021 at 7:58 am By Matthew Distefano

I recently read an article by my friend Keith Giles that got me thinking (I know, dangerous, right?). It was about how we should explore the idea of having a fresh canon of Scripture. Of course, he was being a bit tongue in cheek, but I understood his point. Marcion had his own set. Origen had his own set. Athanasius had his own set. So why can’t we? However, as Keith points out: “I actually think creating any sort of ‘Canon... Read more

2021-05-26T07:56:56-06:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Can We At Least Be Consistent? Slavery, the LGBTQ Community, and the Bible

Last updated on: May 26, 2021 at 7:56 am By Matthew Distefano

A few weeks back, I was watching an online debate between my friend Keith Giles and some dude I’ve never heard of (sorry, bro, I can’t remember your name). The topic was “how to read the Bible.” Keith took a more Christocentric approach (meaning: if it doesn’t look like Jesus, it’s probably wrong) while the other guy was closer to an inerrantist (meaning: all of it is correct to some degree). Overall, it was a pretty interesting debate, but when... Read more

2021-05-24T10:19:23-06:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The Absurdity of Hell

Last updated on: May 24, 2021 at 10:19 am By Matthew Distefano

The moment when you take your first step through the gates of hell, the only thing you will hear is all of creation standing to its feet and applauding and praising God because God has rid the earth of you. That’s how not good you are. ~ Paul Washer For most Christians, even to this day, hell is eternal. It is a place of either literal or figurative flames. Most “sophisticated” thinkers argue for figurative flames due to the grotesque nature... Read more

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2021-05-20T13:09:53-06:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

“10 Rules of Sex for Wives”: A Response

Last updated on: May 20, 2021 at 1:09 pm By Matthew Distefano

The other day, my man Derrick Day ironically shared to Facebook an asinine article called “10 Rules of Sex for Wives.” Here’s how it begins (bold font is my emphasis): Hello Sir! I’m so glad that I found your site! It’s hard to find a Christian blog that is honest about sexuality and marriage. I wish that you had been around when I got engaged. I got married when I was only nineteen and had a lot to learn, it would... Read more

2021-05-19T07:33:50-06:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Theology Matters

Last updated on: May 19, 2021 at 7:33 am By Matthew Distefano

I have friends who believe that theology doesn’t matter, and while I respect where some of them are coming from, I can’t agree with them. Of course, on the one hand they are right; theology is NOT of utmost importance. Meaning, our theology is not our identity. But on the other hand, whatever we believe about God matters in how we actually live our lives. As you’ve probably heard me talk about over and over ad nauseum, we are mimetic... Read more

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