A few lines from Dr. Caleb J. Lines

I'm a fan on several social media fronts of Dr. Caleb J. Lines, senior minister of University Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in San Diego.

So here are a few thoughts for a Sunday morning from Dr. Lines, aimed at those of us who still go to church but sometimes are asked (or wonder) why. 

The most straightforward advertisement I've seen on a sign outside a Chariton church popped up many years ago, promoting a congregation's offering to the public as "fire insurance."

That congregation's denomination (and I'm not going to tell you which one it was) has mellowed considerably as the years have passed --- and I doubt anyone there would think of posting it today.

But many churches we call "fundamentalist" continue to maintain that their paths represent the "gospel" --- or the "good news" --- a prescribed formula to avoid hellfire and damnation.

The Lines list incorporates a more accurate representation of the good news and an invitation to get on with the work of proclaiming and promoting it. Much more could be added. 

One way to do that is in collaboration with others in a progressive congregation where radical hospitality is fundamental. So there's one reason for rising up on a Sunday morning --- when you'd really rather nap --- and heading to church.