To which I replied, “You are correct. You do. And I told you so.”

While Bartholomew’s name is fiction, this snippet of conversation occurred in the fall of 2001 in a church parking lot. The broader subject was the institutional mistreatment of a local church organization. The context spanned months of interpersonal antagonism between him and me. 

My second Kinko’s-published edition of had been circulating Montgomery County Maryland for some time. This individual had read a copy though he didn’t get it from me; I was later to learn it was a copy of a copy of a copy given by a pastor I’d never met. The evidence for the book’s truth had been stacking up for years. The human outcomes were toddled through Montgomery County, Maryland churches like an epidemic of Canadian Geese: Even if one could not see the birds, it was impossible to miss if anyone would actually look at the droppings everywhere.… Read the rest

The excerpts that follow are from the book’s second chapter circulated in PDF form by the Peace Makers organization (click here). I haven’t read the whole book. But since the PDF is being circulated as a self-contained document, I am going to focus my comments on the ominous undercurrents of this chapter.

It is my understanding that Ken Sande is a lawyer. And in light of what follows, I’m curious how good a legal beagle he actually is. I’m not a lawyer, but I’ve watched enough Law & Order to get the gist of a good legal argument.… Read the rest

In the first week of December 2009, I found out that a woman I know died. The papers declared it a “non-suspicious death” found under a bridge. My contacts in Law Enforcement said this is code for suicide by hanging. She was 40 and beautiful, and two kids and two grand kids. The news took my breath away. The words hit my heart like a hammer. To this minute, the reality twists inside: a knotted, ugly thing.

I knew her well and understood her thinking and grasped the core of her thoughts. Indeed, we talked at length about her thoughts, ideas, and deeply-held beliefs. In moments of transparency, she read me her poetry. The words and rhythm and meter were crafted together, sonnets to psychic pain that questioned her moral clarity to live: intimate songs with verses of despair, counterpointed with a refrain of hope.… Read the rest

The Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. (John 8: 36)

From the inside, people hunger, yearn, and need

The cry of their soul; to be free indeed

Elusive like a reputation that cannot be bought

Corrupted by death, a hope vainly sought

Indulge my thoughts, my words, my whim

Give me no law, Give me no duty, Give me no sin.

The addict, The alcoholic, The Whore;

Doing as they please, bound by a fleshly door

Man is snared as surely as he lives

By his lusts, passions, enemies, and friends

Indulging his whims, fearing their wrath

Like a dog to its vomit, praise he must have

Freedom’s mother is Choice, its father is Want

Birthed of these parents man can plot his course;

Tyrants tremble, and slaves weep

for the power of choice, the power to keep

The counsel of one’s soul, the determination of desire

To live as one wills, to throw off the mire

To the free Joy no longer wars with grief,

Success is not stolen by failure’s thief

Liberty puts health and Life in the hands

A thrill in the heart where Courage stands

Embracing all, condemned by no expectation

Fearing no God, or man, or mortification

The melody of freedom sings over the shame

Destroys the guilt, and heals the pain

A life of choice: both good and bad

Overcoming the chaos, by word, by will, and hand

IF the Son, therefore shall make you free

To choose what you will, whatever you will be

Copywrite 2003 John Immel.  All rights reserved

Julie asked me to comment on SGM’s thoughts on Biblical Manhood.

I was originally going to answer some related blog posts point for point or at least premise to premise…and I may yet do that in the future. Mandated date nights? The endless squabble over  egalitarian vs complementarian gender benders? The continuous preoccupation with correct expressions of male sexuality? The obsessive preoccupation with female modesty? The prevailing assumption that men really don’t know how to love their wives and women are to be lovingly reminded of their proper place in God’s overarching plan? As I was reading through the dizzying array of thoughts on SGM-related blogs, I realized my point for point commentary is insufficient without some effort to explain the assumptions, presuppositions, and filters driving that commentary.

That is gonna take me a bit. So when you see this rather lengthy intro preceding a post, what follows is foundational ideas that ultimately address “biblical” manhood and “biblical” womanhood.… Read the rest