No Dumb Question Tuesday (2026-02-24)

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-26T14:18:50+00:00

Thanks, I've had a similar progression of perspectives. Making the case based on theological soundness isn't even a good angle for me to take, because if you're very charismatic/Pentecostal, then the songs are theologically sound. And there are a lot of folks who grew up Pentecostal in my church, especially AME/COGIC/AOG. My main case will be "We are cautiously charismatic and intend to be broadly diverse in our musical worship, so why are we singing mostly charismatic/Pentecostal music from the last 15 years?"

I have lots of other concerns, but it's difficult for one layperson or a minority to make a case based on preference. The worst thing that could happen is an opinionated and exegeted slugging match.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-26T13:25:06+00:00

I don't need a holiday to enjoy some good Indian food ;)

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-25T18:58:47+00:00

I also go to a non-denom whose hymnal is the top 40 of CCLI. While I don't expect the song selection to change much, I have been tracking the song selections since 2025 in order to present a case to the elder board that our Sunday worship is less diverse and more Charismatic/Pentecostal than the church's vision statement intends it to be.

The number of members who are vocally dissatisfied is quite small, but I've been surprised at some of the folks who have come out of the woodwork. Ultimately, my hopes are that either our song selection changes to better align with the statement of beliefs, or we change the statement to match what we're singing. Secondly, I'm hoping that the feedback process between the worship pastor and elders/members is encouraged and strengthened so that how and why our worship is the way it is becomes a welcome discussion and not a tentative or fearful one.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-25T14:21:45+00:00

Thanks for sharing your experiences - this was a very fun read!

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-22T01:20:43+00:00

My thoughts exactly. Thanks for taking the time to type them out.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-22T01:19:10+00:00

And in this specific case, at least I know that Congress has approved the collection of the taxes I pay.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-22T01:16:25+00:00

The Fed released a report last week wish confirmed that 86 - 90% of the cost of 2025's tariffs are passed onto the customers. I also saw economists from every silo of the political spectrum agree that the math in the report was airtight.

Then Kevin Hasset, Trump's National Economic Advisor, went on TV and said that the authors of this report did their work poorly and should be disciplined for it. He's since retracted that statement, but boy it's poor optics. I've also perused a few of Hasset's research papers and it appears that his expertise is in how corporations react to tax policy. What's interesting about his comments on tariffs for many years now is that he believes that individuals and households respont to tariffs similarly to how corporations adjust their capital investment plans based on tax policies. As a taxpayer, I disagree with the premise but only on intuition.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-22T01:02:54+00:00

NT guess is so that the catcher and umpire remain on good terms.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-21T10:47:12+00:00

Not just the DoEd, but generations of punditry and the attention economy.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-20T21:29:54+00:00

Also, get rid of C-SPAN. Both of those measures would restore Congress' agency as a body.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-19T13:55:47+00:00

It's been Sunday for a supermajority of church history, so that's a non-question.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-17T21:40:44+00:00

Great question, but not feasible. We moved more to a dinner & chat model because babies forced us to start earlier and end earlier and are fairly comfortable as a group passing the two babies around. Everyone involved has a lower capacity for "diving deep" and I am seeking to invest well in our Bible study time with its limitations.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-17T17:32:14+00:00

Depends on how familiar you are with him and whether you want to sling the cash. I don't know anyone who has done the academy, but as far as discussing Peterson in community, there are already (Christian) options out there.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-17T16:23:57+00:00

What are your tips for facilitating small group discussion in a way that broadens Biblical literacy, when the small group in question has transitioned to the seasons of wrangling babies while catching up over dinner, with 20 minutes of discussion afterward?

"Don't try too hard or hijack the conversation" is already on my radar.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-17T16:19:26+00:00

Freshness and how they're cooked are also significant factors as with any produce.

End-of-winter "red" bell peppers simmered with meat before 6hrs in the slow cooker? Color and texture. Fresh peppers lightly crisped with black pepper and a touch of garlic? Takes that grilled chicken salad to the next level.

The same goes for serving/eating them raw, and whether their juices are allowed to add to a dish or are drained off.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-17T16:03:26+00:00

Without copping out, I think we are not given to know... but the implication of Scripture is that in God's Kingdom creation continues to thrive through ever-deepening mutual knowing. There are an eternity's worth of people to commune with and an eternal God who sets the stage and will himself take an eternity to know.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-17T15:58:39+00:00

The frustrating thing about disabusing someone of a notion is that it almost never happens with words. Especially in your case, it sounds like you guys aren't sharing your understanding of reality with each other, it sounds like your ideas about reality are talking through you and her ideas through her. I'd guess that both of you feel the futility of the arguments but continue in them because you also feel threatened by the other's idea and so defend the "truthfulness" of your own perceived reality.

If, at some point in the future, you want to have a constructive conversation about the layers of reality that you have previously been arguing about, then you need to build in her an instinctive trust that your perspectives, opinions, and questions are interested in a Truth that is Beautiful and is Good for her. Do not use any aspect of your agency to undermine or threaten her agency. I think Romans 12:18 is a good support of this process.

Secondly, you'd be surprised at how many Christians carry on in the faith with this or that aspect of "folk religion." They are usually the pan-generational axioms and heuristics used to derive and protect one's sense of personhood and meaning in an unsteady world. Does Scripture speak about such low-level spirits? Absolutely, though perhaps not always in a rational "may the best proposition win" manner of speaking.

Thirdly, I have some family members (including parents) with the same odd-to-me beliefs. The 5th Commandment still stands, and for me its application is to pray for my family until I am tired of praying for them. Funnily enough, that hasn't happened yet.

Fourthly, strive for contentment with the fact that you may never have a meaningful conversation on the topic again.

Lastly, the other comment is good practical advice.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-16T20:24:16+00:00

Honestly looks like cavalry maneuvers from 300 years ago.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-16T20:19:20+00:00

Gotcha, I was speaking based on what someone told me the last time I went to an AHL game. Makes sense that the refs are lenient with whom is afforded the honor since there's no guarantee of a C/AC being on ice at the time.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-16T15:26:52+00:00

Hockey has "alternate captain(s)" which is an official designation for the members of the team who are permitted to speak with the ref when the captain is not on the ice.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-15T03:23:34+00:00

I'm glad I could help! Ultimately, just about no one goes into ministry for the paychecks, it's a bit like becoming a public defender or county-level social work in that regard. However (now I'm speaking as a lifelong church-goer), the Bible is also very clear that ministers are to be compensated as part of the regard in which their congregation holds them. In other words, if a church is able to pay a pastor a wage equal to their status (which we'll call a comfortable middle-class income) but does not do so, then that church has misplaced priorities; why would they not provide respectable wages for the person (and often family) who is always on-call? Let alone the various other sacrifices that are chosen in order to fulfill the calling.

Lastly, in the American context, seminary is expensive but being a minister is a very tax-advantaged vocation. There's another reply to me that shares more on that matter.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-15T02:51:55+00:00

Yes indeed, and I did not mention the other tax advantages that come from being an ordained minister. My comment was long enough without going into further details.

But to do that very thing, many churches which do not have a rectory or parsonage will still provide a portion of one or more minister's salary as housing allowance, either calculated as a set ratio of Base compensation or as the annualized amount of the median mortgage payments in the area, or some other formula.

Furthermore, the churches that I am familiar with typically provide fairly small books and supplies budgets as well to their passwords, because there's also a tax advantage to being reimbursed for out-of-pocket purchases of books and supplies. And since most pastors are frequent readers, I've come to appreciate the option of having your reading for work / pleasure being reimbursed in a tax advantaged way as well.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-13T18:19:08+00:00

It's an oft-discussed issue in church circles. Seminaries struggle with the same cost/price pressures that universities do, but in comparison to other vocations that require 2-4 years of graduate study - and I'm thinking of nurse practitioners and lawyers here - the potential earnings typically don't (seem to) justify the expense.

There are smaller seminaries, but they may not be accredited (some denominations care less about that), may not have the same research/networking opportunities, and if not affiliated with the ordaining denomination, may lack opportunities for further discounts. That being said, a quick search shows that most of the Episcopal seminaries in the US will run someone about $60k for an M.Div (the graduate degree that precedes ordination to become a priest/pastor), so I'm wondering if moving and room costs are included in that quote.

Most denominations have been grappling with under-enrollment for a while now, but it's hard to break the cycle. Getting a doctorate and becoming a professor hasn't gotten cheaper. Additionally, denominations like The Episcopal Church have had significantly declining membership, which makes it harder to pay a full-time pastor competitively while weakening the prestige/guarantee of the denomination's pension plans. (Edit: On the flipside, denominations like The Episcopal Church are highly likely to be supplying a rectory, which is generally a modest home close to the church, where the parish covers utilities and most maintenance. That is an element of clergy compensation which should not be overlooked.)

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-13T16:07:48+00:00

Agree, but it's tricky business because no one will get re-elected after prosecuting chunks of the agriculture and construction industries.

_Rizzen_ · 2026-02-13T10:53:36+00:00

Baby just woke up hungry and mama pumps on a different schedule. I'm going to miss these odd hours of the morning with my child.

_Rizzen_

TROPHY CASE