I used to write posts like this more often; I think it’s time for another one. What I want to briefly do is explain my theory of blogging, and then discuss how and why I write blog posts in the main. I also want to clarify what I’m open to and not open to in regard to feedback here at the blog.

Blog posts are going to be bloggy, they aren’t essays. At most they will be something like an abstract to a paper rather than the paper itself; they will be suggestive (most of the time) rather than substantive (in regard to development). So blog readers, at least here, need to adjust your expectations to these standards as I understand them per my blogging activity. There will be variance with regard to my many blog posts, some will be more developed than others; but you should know by now (if you have been reading here for any amount of time) that my posts are typically me interacting with whatever I am reading at the time. I will often attempt to creatively apply what I am reading to current events in the Christian world; but again, those applications will typically be in line with the standards I just laid out.

As far as the style of my blog: It is unapologetically Christian academic in orientation. On my last post I received two comments—one rude and snarky (which I spammed), and the other not as rude in its language—which either wants me to quit using “academic jargon,” or wants me to offer greater depth of clarity and explanation (so something like a paper).  I read academic theology, it is all I read! I am trained as an academic. I have internalized academic parlance. Academic jargon is not jargon to me but my internal-conversational lingua franca. I will never EVER be apologetic about that! If you read my blog hopefully you are being challenged to stretch (if in fact academic theology is not your first or second language). I don’t have the time to break down all of these things; when I blog I, as I have noted often!, am simply throwing my thoughts out there (free of charge!—whereas pastors expect to be paid for their services). Again, when I write blog posts I am not writing a research paper with finished thoughts; typically my posts have beginning thoughts that would need to be finished off at a later date (but that’s what makes them bloggy).

I hope this makes sense to you all. Indeed, I will post provocative things with provocative titles; I always have and always will—that’s my blogging mode. I have opinions and view points, and will attempt to align those with substantive theological developments even if I don’t have time to always develop those developments myself (which is why I often quote others who have). Thanks for reading, and I hope you can appreciate where I’m coming from.

P.S. I am not open to being edited, or told how or what I should write. I write what I write, when I want to write, if I feel like writing. This is the joy and freedom of blogging I have always appreciated, and will continue to. I have never written for blog stats or large audiences. I am thankful to have readers, and glad that my writings have blessed some over the years. I plan on continuing my blogging activity up and until the eschaton. Pax Christi