It was exciting to read all the comments about the ways people seek justice. And there were some really good questions raised as well. I'll be interacting with some of those during the upcoming week, so stay tuned for the continuing conversation.

The latest issue of Next-Wave Ezine is out with some great articles. My review of Will Samson's book Enough is included as well.

And I have a new post up at God's Politics – "Daddy's Girls." It's for their series on fathers in preparation for Father's Day and it looks at the important role of fathers in shaping their daughters into healthy whole people.

I reviewed the book here recently – but what I love about it (besides its honesty and humor) is how it admits lies fed to moms and encourages us to live into the person God created us to be – even as a mom. And this book isn't just for moms – but is a good perspective on parenting for dads, grandparents, pastors, teachers, and whoever might encounter parents regularly.

So if you would like to win a copy just leave a comment here by the end of Sunday April 12. One of the comments will then be selected (in a super secret scientific system created by my four year old) as the lucky winner. And if you would rather not just leave a "hi, I want a book" comment, I invite you share what you think are some of the identity struggles parents face these days.

Happy commenting, and good luck.

And if you are really observant, or just really want to increase your chances of winning the book, you'll notice that we have the same offer up at both the Emerging Parents and Emerging Women blogs.

And in honor of Blog Comment Day, here are a few blogs I've commented on today. Join in on the conversation.

Mike (my hubby) on the Relational nature of Sin.

Eugene Cho asks what movies have influenced you?

Alan Knox discusses friendships and what church structures hide

Jeromy asks about church and numbers at A Mending Shift.

Anhinga has a nice picture of the crescent moon, venus, and saturn proximity two nights ago, which was really stunning.

Dave Wainscott discusses the meaning and theology in the new U2 Christmas song.

Andrew writes on idolatry and Christmas.

more to come (hopefully…)

Here's the official scoop from John -

People blog for all kinds of different reasons. Some blog to get their thoughts out in a public diary; others blog to share their expertise with others; many more blog for a dozen other reasons.I blog for the interaction, learning, and friendship that comes from putting my heart and mind out in public and the privilege of people responding through comments.

Though there may be 100 reasons why people blog, I've yet to meet a blogger who doesn't appreciate comments. For this reason I'm starting Blog Comment Day on December 3, 2008. Here's how it works:

• On December 3, 2008 you will leave one comment on at least 5 different blogs.
• Out of the 5 blogs you comment on, at least 2 of them will be blogs you haven't commented on previously.

That's it. Simple, right?

And he'd appreciate it if you'd let him know if you're participating by leaving a comment in this post.

And while we are all sharing the love, it would be fun to post some of links to the blogs where we have commented to encourage further conversation. Anyway – happy commenting, I'm looking forward to the conversations!

"Subversive bloggers are unsatisfied with the status quo, whether in church, politics, economics or any other power-laden institution, and they are searching for (and blogging about) what is new (or a “return to”) – even though it may be labeled as sacrilege, dangerous, or subversive."

The rules of participation are pretty straightforward:

1. If you are tagged, write a post with links to five subversive blogs.
2. Link back to this post on JakeBouma.com so people can easily find the origin of the meme.
3. Optional: Proudly display the “Subversive Blogger Award” somewhere on your blog.

That’s all there is to it. Keep in mind that this award is meant as an encouragement to bloggers to keep doing what they’re already doing – being subversive (however you interpret it). May we never forget that Jesus (and His message) was the original and ultimate subversive.

Alright so onward with my nominations. Some of these bloggers are getting double tagged because they are just that cool.

1. Kathy Escobar – for her good questions and fresh ways of looking at things.
2. Grounded & Rooted in Love blog – a subversive church
3. Matt Stone – for asking the hard questions about worship
4. Friendly Atheist – for moving the atheist/Christian conversation forward in healthy ways
5. Empire Remixed blog – rethinking everything

Thank you all for your subversiveness (is that a word?) and continue in the good fight.

These questions reminded me of the recent discussion we had over at the Emerging Women blog regarding the benefits blogging has brought to marginalized voices. In the church world where the voices of white men predominate (or are at least perceived to do so), blogs have provided women and others on the margins with the opportunity to have a voice. So I find it interesting that it is generally white males in positions of power who don't allow comments on their blogs or who complain (on their blog) about too many voices out there blogging. Why? Some dislike the open source nature of blog discussion preferring instead good old traditional authority. Others think there are too many voices out there for conversation to be meaningful and therefore blogging should be restricted (to those with authority perhaps?). Others don't like giving the "uneducated" or "unsupervised" the opportunity to have a voice. And perhaps some just want theirs to be the only voice that gets heard.

I admit, there can be issues with blogs. I've encountered the crazies out there (blogrush is such great entertainment – did you know that aliens will aid Jesus in his second coming by bringing him to Roswell??), I see the dangers of posting pictures of yourself partying in Cancun that any potential employer can google, and I've stuck my foot in my mouth on a few too many occasions – but I still support the freedoms it brings. I like that blogging helps me to examine my world and think critically about ideas I encounter. I like that I get pushed to justify my opinions (not that I always succeed at doing so). I like that as a mom who is often confined to the house I can have adult conversations and maintain friendships with people around the world. I like that women are breaking free from the lies the church has told them and realizing that yes, they can do theology and have a voice in these sorts of discussions. Without the blog many post-evangelical women would be left with no one to talk to, no one to encourage them, and no way to move forward in their faith. So for a man who has never experienced the same confines and dismissal as these women to say that our blogs are just noise that need to go away in order for the important voices to be better heard really irks me (even though I know that most of the men making such statements are not necessarily directing them at women).

I'm all for the conversation. I want to learn from others and I want to question, challenge, and clarify what I read online. To me, such interaction is the trademark of a good discussion, a good educational setting, or a good church not to mention a good blog. I find it frustrating these days to listen to a sermon or read a book and not be able to push deeper by questioning it. I recall the most frustrating classes in college were the ones where the profs refused to respond to questions – instead saying meaningless things like "that's a good question" and continue on with their lecture. I didn't want more notes to take, I wanted to engage with what I was learning. Blogs have provided me with that opportunity to continue learning by engaging my world. Sure I enjoy "real-life" conversations, but once a month or so is far too infrequent and I don't have the babysitting funds for much more (and don't even get me started on the local Feminist Thought Club I tried to join which ended up being a bunch of college guys trying to pick up women…). I need more than that.  So I am grateful for blogs and for the discussion they should support. I am not afraid of the hard questions nor do I think the "simple questions" are just creating noise. The opportunity to read and engage daily with others is needed at this stage in my life. For me, it's what helps me grow.

Tags: Blogging, Emerging Church, women, christianity

Pick up the nearest book of 123 pages or more. No cheating!
Find Page 123.
Find the first 5 sentences.
Post the next 3 sentences.
Tag 5 people.

So the book closest to me is Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser (since it hasn't moved from the spot on the coffee table where I stashed it after you returned it on Sunday Karen…). Anyway, here's what I discovered.

The flavors of childhood foods seem to leave an indelible mark, and adults often return to them, without always knowing why. These "comfort foods" become a source of pleasure and reassurance, a fact that fast food chains work hard to promote. Childhood memories of Happy Meals can translate into frequent adult visits to McDonald's, like those of the chain's "heavy users," the customers who eat there four or five times a week.

Interesting – maybe that explains my lovely pregnancy diet of tater tots and Cinnamon toast crunch…

Anyway, I'll tag – Heather, Shawna, onesmallstep, Sally, and Helen.

"how to convince mormon wife to wear spaghetti strap dress" because there so would be how-to manuals for this

"where can i recycle cans and plastics closest to chicago" and they found my blog?

"why does god allow sexism" good question

"prosthetic pregnant belly" do I even want to know…

"church more interested in getting rid of trouble makers than reaching them" common enough practice to get googled

"bible scholars comments on dead flies in the apothecary's" if anyone can explain this please be my guest

"spanking julie" a bit disturbing and specific of a request

"bathroom denied punishment slave diaper" even more disturbing

"stuff to do with one hand" do you really have to google this?

"can one hand clap" the world wants to know

"famous wheaton college alum" wow, I'm famous

"educated beyond eligibility" eligible for what, is what I would love to know

"gangster disciples learn how to spell in signs" what is this referring to?

"bible say deformed and cripple children don't go to heaven" I've actually seen many different variations of this statement land people on my blog. Is there a theology out there that holds to this? It is seriously disturbing.

And for the winner of "How the Internet has Improved our Lives Award", we can all now satisfy our curiosity and research the -
"history of sippy cups ancient "

So what do you think? Is it worth it to switch blogs? Is it just a stupid idea?