Pure Church

Smackdown in the Pulpit:
As a little boy, I watched Hulk Hogan flex, body slam, and drop that big leg on tons of opponents. He even inspired his own mania (HulkMania). Actions dolls and a few B-movies followed. I've not seen the Hulkster in a while. Where is he now?

Apparently, he's hanging out with Ed Young and together they're tag teaming in a sermon series called "Larger Than Life." Ed and the Hulkster are gonna teach us "how to live large" this year.

"Secular Fundamentalists"
Now there's a new label for you, and a new movement afoot worthy its name. Nicholas Kristoff's bottom line: "We've suffered enough from religious intolerance that the last thing the world needs is irreligious intolerance."

Want Your Church to Grow? Man Up and Dis' God with a Beat.
The Christian Science Monitor reported on an interesting study. "A new study shows that the fastest-growing churches boast more men, less reverence, and percussion during worship." Growth=more men + less awe of God + drums. Call me crazy but that sounds more like primitive cult rituals than Christian worship, doesn't it?

As if it weren't clear from this 1-sentence summary, a bit of goofiness accompanies the analysis of this study. For example, this contradictory ditty:

"The universal language of rock 'n' roll sets the stage for people of many different backgrounds to be comfortable in our setting," Mr. White says. Although electric guitars have turned off some older members, White says, most have been willing to tolerate it as an important drawing card for younger newcomers.

If a language is "universal" would older members be turned off by it? Personally, I never learned to speak rock 'n' roll. Sandwiched between the R&B and Hip Hop generations. I don't think I'm atypical. Yep, I pretty much worship to a different drum... steel pans these days.

The CSM article also featured a bit of level-headedness: "I don't think there are any bonuses just for getting people in the door," says Mr. Kenneson, an associate professor at Milligan College in Tennessee and co-author of "Selling Out the Church: The Dangers of Church Marketing." "I want my children to be formed by a community of believers [that shape] a certain kind of people. It's not enough to just be there being counted."

Does anyone know this book Selling Out the Church?