Philip Friesen

Died in Russia, Resurrected in Germany

Full Churches in Europe We think of Europe as a land of empty cathedrals, but there are also full churches in Europe—immigrant churches. Among the immigrants to Germany are up to 100,000 new Mennonite arrivals from Russia, according to the March 17 issue of Mennonite World Review. People long thought dead and hidden from the world screen for more than half a century since Stalin’s purges—these people...

Philip Friesen

Public Taxes for National Sin

Last evening I heard William Cavanaugh from De Paul University speak on Religious Freedom and the Security State. According to Cavanaugh, the security state in which we live defines religion as a sacred right of every individual, but it must be kept individual. Religion must not impinge in any way upon government, economics, education, or any aspect of “secular” life. Religion is but one...

Philip Friesen

Muslim Christian Dialogue on Answering Atheism

  A Christian Response to Atheism for Muslim Christian Dialogue. Islamic Center Fridley, MN February 2, 2013   There are three references to atheism in the Bible that define what an atheist believes and does as follows:   Psalm 10:4 The wicked, in the haughtiness of his countenance, does not seek Him. All his thoughts are, “There is no God.” This verse could be read to mean: A...

Philip Friesen

EARTH IS THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE DESPITE COPERNICUS!

The earth is truly the center of the universe, despite the perfectly valid observations of science. The earth is quite peripheral in the physical universe, but it is also central to the heart of God who consistently chooses seemingly insignificant particulars as objects of God’s favor. The call of Abraham, the annunciation to Mary, and the choice of Paul, all reveal the importance God places on...

Philip Friesen

New Years Meditation on Incarnation

When God became human, he did not become the cosmic human or the generic human. Instead he became a particular human, just one among many, and will be one among many for eternity, as all of us can be as well. This is not absorption into Brahman as in Hinduism or into a cosmic, universal self as in Buddhism. It makes the particular sacred.  We cannot know ourselves in isolation, but only in relationship to...