Perhaps the suggestion presented in Daniel 1:12 points us beyond fad diets to a meaningful way of eating at the “time of the end”—a dietary choice that manifests the Creator’s intentions for greater health and compassion, an eschatological diet, as it were, that is persuasive to those of other faiths. Perhaps it’s time for a new diet much like Daniel’s.
In case you are wondering, my decision to follow a plant-based diet comes down to how I treat God’s creation—animals, humans, and the earth. I am a plant based vegetarian because of my belief in the Bible.
Given the traditions of my Jewish and Hindu friends and the sensitivity of my vegan friends who demand compassion for all creatures, they would be highly offended if I consumed factory-farmed pigs and cows while advocating and otherwise adhering to Biblical principles of love, mercy, and compassion.
The symbolism associated with celebrating a meal with all people reaches beyond the menu to God’s banqueting practices, which are filled with love and generosity towards all the people of the world
Jesus was not a vegetarian while He was here on earth, but might we consider Him one now?
That some wrest a pro-life ethic into an authoritarian morality focused on proselytizing a fundamentalist agenda should not be cause to dismiss the sanctity of life. What we need is a consistent theology for life across the board.
Without a doubt, John 3:16 is the most quoted and well-known verse in the Bible. It’s been repeated by Christians, posted on billboards, printed on banners over highways, displayed at sporting events, and recited at evangelistic crusades. Yet, despite its fame, this verse deserves a second look.
For centuries, Protestants have championed Martin Luther’s legacy of justification by grace through faith, not works. Habakkuk is the prophetic context from which Paul speaks in Romans of the right-making initiative that comes from God, yet it is often proclaimed from weekly pulpits in unbalanced ways that fail to connect to God’s work of justifying and righting all creation.
The last few weeks have been worrisome. Following the senseless death of George Floyd and the unrest and havoc it has prompted, I think it has become imperative that we talk about justice.
It’s amazing how much our lives have changed during the current crisis. The novel coronavirus is dramatically altering the structure of our everyday lives through orders of social distancing, quarantines, isolation, and lockdowns. It’s no longer business as usual, and in a sense, we are all enduring a kind of apocalypse.
Theological InTents 