Deeper Well
By David Morris

September 2010

  • Do You Know Your Neighbor's Religion?

    Yesterday a study released by The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life made headlines when it reported that atheists and agnostics, Jews and Mormons outperform evangelical Protestants, mainline Protestants and Catholics on “questions about the core teachings, history, and leading figures of major world religions.”

  • My 8 Favorite Podcasts for Innovative Faith

    I have a long commute to work, and one of the ways I adapt is by keeping quite a number of free, downloadable, subscription podcasts on my iPod Nano. I don't actually have time to listen to them all, so I skip around a lot to see what's interesting.

  • Is God a Daring God?

    One of the biggest traps people of faith fall into is the idea that God is all about saving us from ourselves, but then that’s it.

    We like this God who comforts and heals, but we don’t necessarily want to do anything about it. We like a God who will relieve our guilt over the mistakes we’ve made by offering us the forgiveness of the Cross, but not necessarily a God who asks us to turn those mistakes into action.

  • Should Worship Be Cool and Hip?

    One of the biggest changes in religion across America in recent years has been the growth of nondenominational churches.

    Perhaps most striking in that change is the growth of megachurches. Just from 2000 to 2005, the number of megachurches doubled from 600 to 1,200, and new ones continue to form.

    What these churches are known for, especially the large ones with big budgets, are high-end, big-sound, praise and worship bands, and pastors and leaders who dress fashionably, sound anything but churchy, and like the band, engage what’s going on in popular culture.

David Morris, PhD, is the editorial director for Guideposts Books. He keeps busy mending his old house, playing guitar, and volunteering. He, his wife and two daughters live in northern New Jersey. Follow David on Twitter @davidrmorris or get the RSS feed to his Deeper Well blog.