Dr Paul Allen

Who do you look at to see yourself? Whose opinion of you forms your identity? If you have been like me, perhaps you rely on many mirrors. Does this group think I am fun to be around? Does my wife find me desirable? Does this pastor or small group respect me? Do these people think I am smart, or are those people, funny? Does this group like my writing; does he think I talk too much? Whose opinion of you forms your identity? I see myself, if I am not careful, reflected in a carnival of mirrors. In this one, I’m short and chubby. In that one, I am tall and skinny. In this one, I have an inflated head. In that one, massive feet. In the one over there, I am “too Christian.” In this one here, I am just right — at least for the moment. We too often live from mirror to mirror, always looking into others’ faces to see our own. We live and move and have our being looking for certain people to approve of us. Isn’t it a wonder, then, that there was one who walked among us who cared not for human m...

Last summer the modern hymn " In Christ Alone " made headlines for its lyrical references to the wrath of God and atonement theology. A hymn committee with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) wanted to add the song to their new hymnal,  Glory to God , released this fall. But in doing so, the committee requested permission from the song's writers, Stuart Townend and Keith Getty , to print an altered version of the hymn's lyrics, changing "Till on that cross as Jesus died/the wrath of God was satisfied" to "Till on that cross as Jesus died/the love of God was magnified." The songwriters rejected the proposed change, and as a result the hymn committee voted to bar the hymn. "The song has been removed from our contents list, with deep regret over losing its otherwise poignant and powerful witness," committee chair  Mary Louise Bringle told The Christian Century . The "view that the cross is primarily about God's need to assua...