Shade Tree Theology

Recently, the Roman Catholic Church laicized Frank Pavone . This basically means Frank Pavone was previously a priest in the Roman Catholic Church, but is no longer. Without getting into who is right or wrong, because I really don't know, I think this case illustrates an important idea. Father Frank Pavone was the director of the pro-life organization Priests for Life. From the outside Father Pavone seemed to be everything the Catholic Church would want in a Priest, but according the Vatican,  Pavone continually bucked the Catholic hierarchical structure and took some of his pro-life positions to the extreme.  In C.S. Lewis' novel "The Great Divorce" a character called Pam, is so stricken by the death of her son Michael, that she puts her grief and misguided love of her son above her love for God. Lewis asserts something as pure as a mother's love for her son can be twisted in such a way it pulls us away from God. In Father Pavone's case, the Roman Catholic Ch

There are approximately 600 million blogs in the world. There are 31 million active bloggers in the United States alone, and against those staggering numbers you are reading this blog. If you have come here by random chance, welcome. If you have been directed here, welcome as well. What's the purpose of this blog? Chiefly, I wanted somewhere to collect and process my thoughts. I believe writing helps develop more concise, accessible, and critical thought. Writing an introduction to any incomplete work is often a tricky proposition. Generally, a blog is a reflection of the current environment and the current mindset of the blogger (which are both dynamic). The very natures of a dynamic system, such as a blog, should evolve over time to reflect the environmental and personal evolution of the individual.  With an eyes open approach to the possibility of changing scope and direction as needed, I see this blog as a tool to work through my theology, distill my theology, apply my theology