The real issue is not the way we interpret scripture but whether we believe God is the father of Jesus. If God is not the father, who is? A mere human? A mere human could not bring salvation to me by shedding his blood on a cross, or by any other means. My sins would still be my sins and I would have no hope of eternal life.

Zander! Zander! How you have mellowed! I recall how some years ago you shocked many in the Presbyterian Church with a question about Jesus' anatomy. Now you get top marks for your outstanding Christian charity towards someone who does not even believe you can be a Christian! (i.e. Calvin Brown re: the virgin birth, which I as a good Presbyterian declared must be believed by Christians). Christian charity notwithstanding, I am disappointed. By the way, perhaps Calvin Brown would tell us where in the New Testament Jesus says that to be his disciple we must believe his mother was a virgin.

Metaphors are useful things. They help us get our heads around ideas that otherwise baffle us. Unfortunately, you can get yourself into serious trouble when you mistake metaphor for reality. “Life is a highway,” Tom Cochrane sang. Metaphor or reality? If it's a metaphor, it implies that life resembles a journey with all its accompanying twists and turns, ups and downs. If it's reality, it suggests that all of us ought to become either truckers or bus drivers. I can see Hwy. 401 becoming more crowded even as I write.

Economist magazine in December, 2006, made the case that “paying a guaranteed Fair Trade premium — in effect a subsidy — both prevents” crop diversifi cation and “by raising the average price paid for coffee, encourages more producers to enter the market.” So, it is both bad farming practice and bad economics.

Has Andrew Faiz been watching too many M*A*S*H* reruns lately? The founding minister of Riverside Church in New York was not Charles Emerson Fosdick but Harry Emerson Fosdick, the famous anti-evangelical of the first half of the 20th century. He was a Baptist clergyman who had served a Presbyterian pulpit as stated supply until the Presbytery of New York cancelled this arrangement due to his denial of central Christian teachings. Several wealthy donors (including John D. Rockefeller) then proceeded to build a magnifi cent non-denominational church in which Dr. Fosdick could preach: Riverside Church.

Having attended two of the four previous Fosdick Convocations at the Riverside Church and unable to attend the fifth, held last October, I was delighted to read Andrew Faiz's comprehensive “notes” in the March Record. As in the previous convocations, it was clear the presenters represented different traditions and theological leanings. One of the great strengths of Riverside is that it has always valued diversity and encouraged dialogue. I believe that those qualities give defi nition to the meaning of “progressive.” I would not equate the “progressive church” with the traditional names we assign to churches, ministers or denominations: liberal, conservative, evangelical, charismatic, fundamentalist, etc. Progressive church to me describes a faith journey that involves learning, growing, changing, praising, trusting and risking in the context of Jesus as Lord. Progressive church allows for diversity of points of view regarding biblical interpretation (e.g. virgin birth, samesex relationships). Progressive church encourages wisdom in thought and courage in action.