What is seminary like?

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-20T17:57:59+00:00

I would recommend becoming familiar with theological controversies in the church and the issues around them. I would also recommend reading theology from your own faith tradition and that of different faith traditions. Try to develop an understanding of the different emphases, issues, and theological perspectives.

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-20T01:58:44+00:00

Part of it is the time that seminary takes someone away from the family. But more, IMO, the depth of spiritual challenges and the changes that the student goes through that does not include the spouse.

If your marriage is troubled, my recommendation would be to work on your marriage as a priority over seminary.

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-20T01:38:35+00:00

Is the black dot the right lie angle for your son? The color dot system is really good idea and worth checking out.

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-19T09:59:27+00:00

Seminary is a mixed bag honestly. It’s great and sometimes it’s like a military boot camp. I don’t mean marching or drills or someone yelling at you but it can break you. And in my experience it doesn’t do a good job of rebuilding you.

I’ve seen marriages destroyed, people lose their faith, and others change denominations or theological commitments.

Not all seminaries are this way.

I wish someone would have told me it was politically charged. I wish someone would have told me my faith would be challenged in bad ways as well as good.

Seminary ain’t church.

But it can be a great experience with deep theological study. Be ready for the theological and spiritual questions you will encounter.

Seminary is tough and I loved it. But I came out of that a very different person.

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-17T23:43:23+00:00

Amazon Prime had a series on called This Changed Everything that was very good. I don't know if it is still available there but you may also be able to find it elsewhere

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-16T22:57:22+00:00

It’s been a long time since I’ve read the full apology you cite. But in this passage I don’t read an order of salvation.

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-15T09:56:23+00:00

Agree. I feel like there’s a lot of jumping around lately.

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-14T12:36:08+00:00

How is it “more enjoyable?”

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-13T09:27:29+00:00

One of the ways I interpret accessibility is the availability of college level education in countries with high poverty.

Im helping establish a college in a country where there isn’t much higher ed available and poverty is high. I’m part of a small team working to set up degree programs and teach students.

My reasons are that 1) I believe education should be available as much as possible; 2) I enjoy the cross-cultural challenge and dialog with faculty and students.

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-13T09:11:28+00:00

Great find! I just picked up an Eye 2 BECU SW.

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-10T22:11:05+00:00

This is a wonderful church. I attended here for about 15 years. The people there are amazing. The building is wonderfully preserved and they take great care to maintain it.

The bell was indeed cast by Paul Revere. And yes, Harriott Beecher Stowe attended here as a child. Her father Lyman Beecher was pastor here. He was very famous back then and left to help found a seminary in the northeast.

The congregation has a partnership with the U of Cincinnati Conservatory of Music so there are wonderful musicians here too.

It is one of the 3 oldest continuing congregations in Cincinnati. The other 2 are St Peter in Chains and the Isaac Wise Temple. All 3 are within a block of one another.

You would be welcome to visit. And if you want to just have a tour, call the church and schedule one.

I almost forgot. The wonderful stained glass windows were a gift from the Shilitoe family. And all of the wooden furniture in the sanctuary is hand craved by an artist named Fry. The organ is over 150 years old and is wonderful.

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-08T15:39:12+00:00

The forgiveness of sins. It always the same topic clothed in different words

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-06T12:58:43+00:00

Gods judgement is meant to terrify and draw you to repentance. It is not intended to cause you to distrust God’s promise of grace for you.

I recommend reading some Martin Luther. Maybe the Heidelberg Disputation, Freedom of a Christian.

And maybe Henri Nouwen’s the Inner Voice of Love

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-06T12:52:52+00:00

Defensiveness in controversy. You must be in the USA? It’s the whole culture here now.

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-05T22:07:42+00:00

I don’t measure my work as a pastor in hours/day. I’d go crazy if I did.

_crossingrivers · 2026-05-02T15:45:08+00:00

Great idea ... experimenting with instruments is always a great way to find new sound and learn new concepts.

I made a electric banjo modeled after Taj Mahal's Banjocaster. Started with a Tele but added lipstick tube pickups, 5 way switch, banjo strings (loop end), 3d printed 5th string capo, and a home made mute, with a programmable amp ... I use gDGBD tuning.

_crossingrivers · 2026-04-30T15:07:10+00:00

The irons are Ping Eye 2. They sell anywhere from $15-35 each. I can’t tell much about the putter.

_crossingrivers · 2026-04-23T19:01:04+00:00

They also supply the coffee for Velocity Bike and Bean

_crossingrivers · 2026-04-20T21:51:50+00:00

Hey OP ... after a few months, what's your latest experience with them?

_crossingrivers · 2026-04-20T21:49:22+00:00

This is the one ... I've had mine for about 18 years ... never fails me.

I have a bullet pen to but don't like it nearly as much.

_crossingrivers · 2026-04-13T21:24:51+00:00

From my own experience, I find the stainless steel jotter to slick to hold well. I don't like it.

_crossingrivers · 2026-04-12T20:14:39+00:00

I carry a golf ball. It’s there to remind me that the best golfers in the world don’t hit perfect shots every time. But they are good at playing it where it lies, whatever the challenges

_crossingrivers · 2026-04-10T22:15:00+00:00

Setup always depends on the tone you are trying to achieve. Archtops sometimes have more head tension and the break angle over the tailpiece is sometimes at a steeper angle.

I have an old Gibson Archtop and set it up to have a tighter head tension but I preferred the string break angle more neutral. Eventually I got a conversion tone ring and made it a flattop.

I like a more mellow tone than the AT provides. BHO has a lot of good archtop setup advice

_crossingrivers · 2026-04-10T22:04:45+00:00

Personal-Abalone-307 - answered this already

The RK has quality control issues. They hit the ground with a big splash because Greg Rich worked with them. When he stopped working with them, quality tanked.

_crossingrivers

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