This guy Driscoll should really be more sex positive. Let's see he's channeled his energy into submission, discipline and makes sure to make fun of "queer"-style conceptions of Jesus (I guess queer means taking care of the poor/indigent and encouraging peace/tolerance) and doesn't pass up chances to call homosex sinful.

It's got Haggard written all over it.

it's disappointing to me that this church grew IN SEATTLE. i moved here partially because it was such an an unchurched city (plus no humidity). maybe the unchurched are easier pickins.

Christianity: Because math and science are hard.

@2 - I moved because their are practically no mosquitos, and absolutely no chiggers. Bugs are one of the many reasons the midwest is intolerable.

The pastor poster doesn't need to put forward his/her name. A feud between churches is fun if you like dog fights but he or she sounds like a reasonable person and probably doesn't want his/her congregation to have to get involved.

I like to imagine that most of the Mars Hill people are also recent immigrants to Seattle*, who missed the mega-churches and extreme Christianity of whatever part of flyover country they grew up in.

So, basically, I blame newcomers. :P

*I have no actual evidence for this. It just makes me feel better.

Can we PLEASE have a campaign which requires all people of good conscience to always say "Mars Hill Redneck Church?" Their philosophy is pure backward-ass country-fuck. They need to be constantly ridiculed and reminded that they are not urban or cool in any way.

It's clearly a weakness for Christian in the 21st century that it has to tip-toe around the issue of being too dogmatic. The very fact that the pastor in this post admits that they run the risk of becoming the Taliban really tips their hand.

The great unwashed Christian masses know at least enough about how much is too much before they become disillusioned ("turned off to Jesus" as he puts it) with the institution. Which means that people DO have a sense of when the sermon (and the sermonizer) are full of bullshit.

I saw, let Mars Hill get more dogmatic and more fundamentalist. They will preach themselves out of a job.

I think churches like Mars Hill appeal to the same sort of people that buy into things like real estate marketing. Keep in mind that while we have a town full of big thinkers, a lot of them think big only in the area that they have training in: basic software coding, aerospace engineering, etc. A church that makes them feel "hip" and "relevant", while still telling them how to think, and reinforces their worldview, is very attractive to those sorts.