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Jason Lief

Essay

The Promise of Serve Projects

At the institution where I teach I've come to be known as the "guy who hates serve projects." This comes from my ineffective attempts to carefully critique all of the money and time that go into these projects, as well as the terrible theology that is…
Jason Lief
July 17, 2015
Essay

Ad-Vocate

"Contrary to what people often think, the key to easing people's suffering is not in offering some insidious theodicy, but in allowing a place for people to mourn, and to meet others who know what it is to have been burned by that same black…
Jason Lief
June 19, 2015
Essay

The Beauty of Baseball

In my former life as a high school teacher I was a coach. For 10 years I coached baseball at every level—freshman, junior varsity, and finally varsity. I wasn't the greatest coach in the world, but I wasn't the worst either. We won some big…
Jason Lief
June 5, 2015
Essay

Stained by Our Experiences

This morning we welcome April Fiet as a guest blogger. April is a mom of two, school-age kids, and a co-pastor of Dumont Reformed Church in Dumont, IA alongside her husband Jeff. About a year ago, my husband, two kids, and I were heading from…
Jason Lief
June 1, 2015
Essay

David Letterman and Carnival

A friend, who happens to be an excellent preacher, has said on numerous occasions that there's an important connection between comedians and preachers. There's timing—the right word at the right time evoking a specific response. There's the use of language, words that mean something specific,…
Jason Lief
May 22, 2015
Biblical StudiesEssay

Birdman: A Secular Parable

Birdman, the 2014 winner for best picture, tells the story of a washed up former super hero actor trying to make a come back by directing and starring in a broadway play. Directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu—who directed the trilogy 21 Grams, Amores Perros, and Babel—the film…
Jason Lief
May 8, 2015
Essay

Is This All There Is?

Five more episodes—that's all that's left for Don Draper. It's been a magical ride through the 1960's as Don's meticulously constructed life has been woven into the significant events of the decade. The first half of the last season ended with the moon landing—a hopeful end…
Jason Lief
April 24, 2015
Essay

The Birds, the Bees, and a Herd of Deer

5th grade at our house always makes for interesting conversation. It's in the 5th grade that students first get the talk. "5th grade science" has a reputation in these parts—it's when my kids first learn about sex. When I say "learn" I mean it's the…
Jason Lief
April 10, 2015
Biblical StudiesEssayTheology

Augustine and Hannah

Two pieces of my work this semester couldn't be further apart--or at least they seem to be disconnected. I'm writing a book on Heavy Metal music. It's a positive treatment that brings Slavoj Zizek, Jurgen Moltmann, and Michel de Certeau together with Led Zeppelin, Gorgoroth, and Mastodon.…
Jason Lief
March 27, 2015