More on Progressive Christianity courtesy of Brian McLaren

Throughout the Animate study, I’ve noticed that many of the speakers we’ve heard have been attached to the Progressive Christianity movement. I went looking for more information on the movement, and ran into an article by Bryan McLaren, the pastor who kicks off the Animate: Faith series.

The article is titled:
Not Conservative, Not Liberal: Progressive
Being a progressive Christian means more than being lax, lazy, fuzzy, flimsy, proud, and dying.

http://www.patheos.com/Resources/Additional-Resources/Not-Conservative-Not-Liberal-Progressive-Brian-McLaren-06-13-2011?offset=2&max=1

Consider this description of Progressive Christians:
“When it comes to fuzziness and flimsiness, the progressive Christians I know are making great strides beyond old liberalism. What initially seemed like a morass of complexity—the quest(s) for the historical Jesus, biblical criticism, revisioning the Bible's inspiration and authority—is turning out to be highly productive. The scholarly process just needed some time to mature. As a result, Progressive Christians aren't disregarding the Bible; they're studying it even more diligently than their conservative counterparts, and they're producing sparkling, challenging, inspiring theologies rooted in the Bible. Fueled by this renewed biblical engagement, they aren't simply functioning as the religious chaplains of the Democratic party (as their counterparts have often been for the Republican party); they're articulating a vital political theology and a vigorous theological politics that challenges everybody to seek the common good.”
McLaren’s article is part of the symposium, "What Is Progressive Christianity?" presented by the newly launched Patheos Progressive Christian Portal and in partnership with the Wild Goose Festival, which was held in 2011.

There’s a long list of articles about what Progressive Christianity is and isn’t on Patheos, including one by Phyllis Tickle comparing Progressive Versus Emergence Christianity. Check them out here: http://www.patheos.com/Topics/What-Is-Progressive-Christianity-06-13-2011.html

A large number of our speakers throughout the Animate: Bible series have used Patheos to host their blogs. So, what is Patheos?

“Founded in 2008, Patheos.com is the premier online destination to engage in the global dialogue about religion and spirituality and to explore and experience the world's beliefs. Patheos is the website of choice for the millions of people looking for credible and balanced information about religion. Patheos brings together faith communities, academics, and the broader public into a single environment, and is the place where many people turn on a regular basis for insight, inspiration, and stimulating discussion. Patheos is unlike any other religious and spiritual site on the Web today.

"As evidenced by the company founders' story, religion and spirituality continue to be an important part of American life, with more Americans today than ever before identifying themselves as spiritual. In fact, according to the Pew Internet Project, more than 82 million Americans (and 64 percent of all Internet users) utilize the Web for faith-related matters. The importance of religion and spirituality, coupled with the growing use of the Internet for religious matters, point to the ongoing need for an online resource for religious and spiritual engagement and dialogue. Patheos fills this need.”

From: http://www.patheos.com/About-Patheos/About.html

“Faith Channels” on Patheos include:
    Atheist
    Buddhist
    Catholic
    Evangelical
    Hindu
    Jewish
    Mormon
    Muslim
    Pagan
    Progressive Christian
    Spirituality

You can compare religions. You can read blogs. There are teacher resources, a religion library, and a book club.

Sound like a great resource for us all!