It’s gross. Looking at my shelf this morning, I wish I’d spent half that energy on actually mastering a few books. I’ve confused owning books with knowing what they say. Half of my books I’ve yet to skim, must less digest. As my palate has matured, many of those books turn my stomach.

With this post I’m initiating a category titled seminary detox to track my recovery from theological schooling. My overall experience has been positive, but much harm has come to my soul along the way. I invite you to follow along in the process.

Detox Procedure: Feed The Landfill

Over the last few weeks, I’ve pledged to throw away a tithe of books. I did not say sell or give away – I mean trash them. This is essential to the recovery process, even if you think you can make a few dollars. This is a statement, a public act of defiance against all the trash published in the name of Jesus. Don’t give them to charity or dump them off to friends. You must feed them to the landfill.

Each morning I’ve been filling my wastebasket, then I repeat the next day. I stood at my bookshelves and considered each book. Will I use this again? Do I have superior books that cover the same subject? Has this book actually helped me? I began with the low hanging fruit then progressed to some painful choices.

I’m halfway through and it’s getting easier, almost fun. Among the losers have been a few paperback KJV Bibles, several popular Christian authors, some required schoolbooks, and almost everything published by my denomination. Not counted in the 10% are the magazines, theological journals, and class notes that I’ve dumped.

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Did anyone notice the slavery issue in this same chapter of Titus?

Of course not, because we are working from proof texts and ignoring the 1st century situation. We are letting our ideology about the role of women dictate our interpretation.

We imagine that we’re letting the Bible speak on it own, because we are afraid to question our own presuppositions.

In other words, we twist the Bible to promote our theology of gender. In general, you would could classify me as a complementarian. But I think many of our leaders are projecting their own sexism back on the Bible. They are reading the New Testament like it was written today and equating their own cultural values with the Gospel.

We should be embarrased.

In the meantime, I’ll be adding links to my web publishing properties and other sites that I’ve collaborated on.

Anyone with ears to hear knows that Tom Wright isn’t a poster boy for Reformed Evangelicals. He is widely known for his new perspective on Paul. Too often he is labeled among the radical and sub-orthodox of the evangelical fold. In careful conversations his views are respected but dismissed as the novelty of an otherwise intelligent man. In the hallways of my Seminary, we slander him without hesitation. Granted, only some professors and even fewer students have really tried to understand his writings. But this doesn’t stop our mouths anymore than our ignorance of the Bible stops us from our false witnessing about it.

Today, I need a little self-rebuke. I have no right to criticize Tom Wright. In fact, my knowledge of the New Testament hardly affords me the resources to understand, much less evaluate, his teachings. Most of the time I’m a theological imposter. We’re all living in a real small fishbowl, and I just had a glimpse of the outside.

Have I rejected my beloved confessions and catechisms? No, not in the least, but I’ve found a little humility. Pray for me that I don’t lay it down somewhere and forget about it.

I guess all bloggers think this way sooner or later. Perhaps it explains the short life span of the majority of blogs. The truth is hard; blogging is the toilet paper of the information age.

So, why am I typing this? Why not grab the remote and surf between History Channel and CNN? The answer is complicated and somewhat vain, but it’s worth fleshing out.

I started blogging because it was cool. Not that other people thought I was cool, most didn’t know. It was cool because I became a global person. Imagine – a goofy guy from Indiana can have worldwide voice.

I kept blogging because it was fun. I started making friends and some of what I wrote attracted attention. Eventually I found a way to make a few pennies per hour. I thought, “Well, at least my hosting costs are covered.”

Kummeropolis was a project without a purpose. I launched it with little thought and have devoted only a few hours to it. In other words, it was crap. Now, as a rule, I think crap should be kept private. So, this led to a deletion to the deletion binge I mentioned above.

Don’t quote me on that.

Today, this website is reborn. Kummeropolis will become a place for me to publish larger and more thoughtful articles. I wouldn’t expect more than a few per month. I want to write something that is worth reading and thinking about. Ultimately, the content of any blog is driven by its owner. At the same time, I’d like to create something that you, the reader, can connect with.

Kummeropolis Manifesto

Disposable media is not worth the effort to read, much less to write. I’m trying to leave the cult of the amateur, but they keep showing up for dinner.

Constructive mischief can make the world a better place. Too much of our lives are spend in a dull acceptance of the absurdity and vulgarity of daily life. A little mockery is good medicine for self righteous souls – my own included.

Geschichte happens. We all have a story to tell. I want to hear yours, even if it doesn’t square with my way of thinking. The older I get the more I can feel my own contradictions. So, let’s make room for one another and see how the story ends.

Moderation is underrated. Certainty is a cruel mistress and she’s broken my heart more than once. Wisdom can be found on both sides of any argument. So, I’m learning to like the color grey, even if I’m too timid to wear it in public.