Contributor: Brenda Funk Our first guest post is from Brenda Funk. Brenda writes from southern Manitoba, has a keen interest in subjects that challenge and produce growth in her spiritual journey, and has provided a reading recommendation for Prairie Thistle followers. Check it out! — Deciding which of my many favourite books to review was … More Book Review: My Bright Abyss
In 1903, Katharine C. Bushnell published a specialized study in the literal translation and interpretation of Genesis along with its theological and societal implications for women. The foreword, written by Amy Francis in 2016, describes Bushnell as “an intellectual and cultural colossus of the twentieth century”. Indeed, a brief account of Bushnell’s life reveals her … More Book Review: God’s Word to Women
Being in the midst of another public health lockdown has got me missing a lot of things. I miss seeing family and close friends, and sharing a meal together (I love food). I miss getting together in larger groups and I especially miss singing in a group. However, one of the things I miss the … More In Pursuit of Shared Meaning
Most Christians don’t believe in a seven day literal creation story, but some do. What is the danger in believing the creation story as allegory? Does it in some way remove God’s power? What is the difference between an intelligent designer that creates using atoms and molecules that fuse together out of energy and evolve … More Great Big Magical God
Previously, we attempted to define deconstruction for anyone on a faith journey. Deconstruction isn’t for everyone. It can be disorienting, disheartening, distressful. I also want to say that deconstruction should be and may actually happen to everyone. It is a natural part of human developmental psychology and developing personal identity and resilience. Pretending it doesn’t … More The Names They Called Me
A little light Sunday evening musing for you. Overall, I’m writing today because I’m wondering if there is any church community locally anyone would recommend where I might fit. Friends and mentors have suggested I might seek a United or Lutheran church, or even Catholic. I’m Mennonite by culture and history, and evangelical by my life’s … More Deconstruction
Gardening Know How calls the bull thistle “…a free-seeding weed with a prickly demeanour and rapid spread”. I think they are beautiful. I can’t escape the metaphor dancing around in my thoughts about thistles, how I see myself and how I desire some of my thoughts on life to affect others. Here’s a poem I … More The Prairie Thistle
Back in November 2020 as COVID-19 cases soared in Manitoba, I shared about churches flouting pandemic restrictions. I aired some of my own experience of navigating theological and philosophical differences with my own local churches during the first six to eight months of the pandemic, using it and other sources to encourage critical thinking and … More #notallchurches
This past month, we have arrived at a certain milestone as we mark – certainly notcelebrate – the anniversary of the arrival of COVID-19 in North America. Post-COVIDlife has changed our daily routines in many ways, or at very least has impacted the waywe see the world we live in and how we operate in … More The Anniversary Post
Been thinking that I’d like to write a reflection on where I’m at with God lately. It’s been a journey of nearly 2 years since I realized I was wrestling with the existence of God. It also happens to be Christmas time right now, and it kind of brings Christianity and God to mind for … More From the Archives: Schrodinger’s Christmas
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