Category Archives: religion

Dogma

Posted on January 12, 2011 by The Rev. Ryan Wiksell

I’ll admit to being way behind on this one, but I just saw the 1999 film Dogma for the first time last night, 11 years after the Catholic League boycotted it, and 10 years after the controversy was completely forgotten … Continue reading →

Posted in movies, religion, spirituality | 7 Comments

What Is Hipster?

Posted on September 15, 2010 by The Rev. Ryan Wiksell

So you became part of the new breed. Been smoking only the best weed. Hanging out with so-called hippest set. Been seen in all the right places, Seen with just the right faces. You should be satisfied, But still it … Continue reading →

Posted in church, culture, religion | 5 Comments

Will the Real Muslims Please Stand Up?

Posted on December 4, 2009 by The Rev. Ryan Wiksell

A great question came up in our Socrates Cafe discussion last night. (Topic: Muslimerica) The question is, does a Christian have any right to decide who the True Muslims are? Or the true Hindus? Or the true Buddhists? Do Muslims … Continue reading →

Posted in bible, culture, religion | Comments Off on Will the Real Muslims Please Stand Up?

New Look, Same Old Taste

Posted on October 13, 2009 by The Rev. Ryan Wiksell

When the vision of The Core and the Front Porch were in their embryonic stages, (a glimmer in our eyes, so to speak) I was writing a lot of negative stuff about the sacrosanctity of our church service formats. “Why … Continue reading →

Posted in church, religion, the core | 2 Comments

Jesus the Con-Artist

Posted on September 4, 2009 by The Rev. Ryan Wiksell

“Can I ask you a question?” “Sure.” “Who is Jesus to you?” “Oh, Jesus? Jesus is a womanizer. He’s a megalomaniac and a paranoiac. He’s also a brainwasher, a con-artist and a compulsive liar.” “OK… that was unexpected. How did … Continue reading →

Posted in church, jesus, religion | 3 Comments

Wiksell’s Hierarchy of Deeds

Posted on June 10, 2009 by The Rev. Ryan Wiksell

I was thinking this morning about what motivates us to do what we do. Why we make certain choices, and why we later stick them, or abandon them. As I thought about it, I realized that there is a spectrum … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, jesus, religion | 2 Comments

Christianity and the Maps of War

Posted on May 2, 2009 by The Rev. Ryan Wiksell

I was thinking about Christianity as an institution; as an establishment, versus Christianity as a Spiritual Commitment, and I ran across this short video. All that blue area… how did that happen? Was it a result of the Spirit-driven success … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, regrets, religion | 2 Comments

Ctrl-Alt-Del

Posted on March 6, 2009 by The Rev. Ryan Wiksell

Ctrl-Alt-Del is the new message series at The Core Worship Gathering. It will run from March 8 – 29. “Paradigm”. It’s one of those pretentious words you hear in coffeehouses. And since the Front Porch is like a coffeehouse, let’s … Continue reading →

Posted in post-modernism, religion, the core | Comments Off on Ctrl-Alt-Del

Simple, Complex, Easy, Hard

Posted on September 11, 2008 by The Rev. Ryan Wiksell

Something simple and easy: Washing a car. Something simple and hard: Pushing a car. Something complex and easy: Driving a car. Something complex and hard: Building a car. So what is Christianity? Simple and easy? Simple and hard? Complex and … Continue reading →

Posted in creative writing, religion | 12 Comments

In Defense of the Edifice Complex

Posted on August 21, 2008 by The Rev. Ryan Wiksell

One of the cleverest phrases to come out of the emerging church is right there in the title to this post: Edifice Complex. In case you’re not sure why this is clever, I’ll explain. An “Oedipus Complex” (pronounced Ed-i-pus) is … Continue reading →

Posted in church, culture, religion | 20 Comments