A Follower of Jesus of Nazareth is Confused About “The Rules”

by Tyler Dirks

I started following Jesus of Nazareth, and now I’m a bit confused. All my life I was taught to obey and honor the religious leaders, and the religious leaders have consistently and vehemently provided an authoritative code of conduct for Sabbath-keeping (in the name of “upholding God’s holiness” and “ascribing glory to the Almighty”). But […]

A Man From James Reacts to Paul’s Letter to the Galatians

by Tyler Dirks

I’m upset. I’m upset because you say that we are troubling people and distorting the gospel. I’m upset because you dishonor us, and you devalue and diminish our significance by REPEATEDLY referring to us as, “those who SEEM influential,” and “those who SEEM to be pillars.” I’m upset because you ACCUSE us of being “false […]

τὰ ἴδια

by Tyler Dirks

Approximately a year ago, we were walking the streets of Neos Kosmos, in Athens Greece with our good friend Erikos. As we crossed paths with the various hooligans and yobbos in the neighborhood, Erikos would joyfully greet them with the expression, “τὰ ἴδια!” This would lead to big smiles and huggie back-slapping embraces. So we […]

Redemptively Confounding

by Tyler Dirks

I received the following text message from my friend Sean (from Buffalo NY): “So I just finished reading The Bible. And my impression is that IT’S A REDEMPTIVELY CONFOUNDING MASTERPIECE! God is unapologetically upending human logic! Ultimately, God insists on displacing sensibility and propriety with the spectacle and scandal of a degraded and abased man […]

Our Leadership Agenda

by Tyler Dirks

Our goal is not to lead from the front as seen and celebrated figures, but to lead from beneath as compost. We die to our own reputations, and we sabotage social norms that esteem and idealize punctiliousness, prestige, and propriety. Our leadership agenda is to provide the subterranean/unseen/uncelebrated nutrients for the “non-ordained” body to flourish […]