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Why Story Structure Matters, Even If You Don’t Want It To, by Christopher Riley

Monday, April 30, 2012

Without a sound structure a two-hour film collapses under its own weight. Here’s why. by Christopher Riley Beginning screenwriters hate structure: Structure chafes. Structure kills creativity. Structure is for paint-by-the-numbers hacks, mindless, slavish screenwriting hordes laboring in the sweatshops of Snyder, Aristotle, and McKee. Structure is a four-letter word. Count ‘em. Str-uc-tu-re. Four toxic letters that spell [...]

Toward a Deep Blue Ocean: Forging a Robust Spiritual Development Stage-Theory

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Extending the Kingdom of God Among Urban Secularists and Beyond To be delivered this morning at the Society of Vineyard Scholars meeting in Minneapolis, MN (PREPUBLICATION DRAFT) By Gary David Stratton, PhD, Bethel University/Basileia Hollywood (See also, Blue Ocean Conversation with Dave Schmelzer, & 2011 Blue Ocean Summit Report, by Dave Schmelzer) The great New England divine [...]

Dean Batali, ‘That 70s Show’ Writer and Producer, Shares His Greatest Cultural Influencers

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

One of today’s most articulate voices for faithful engagement in culture, Dean Batali, is best known for his work on That ‘70s Show, where he served as a writer for seven years and as an executive producer for the show’s final season.

Can Anything Good Come from Hollywood? Acton Institute Interview with Gary David Stratton

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

How shalom, common good and prosperity can come from an unlikely place. by Jon Hirst from The Acton Institute Today we share an interview with Dr. Gary David Stratton, PhD, Chairman of the Christian Ministries Department at Bethel University, Senior Editor at TwoHandedWarriors.com, a pastor at Basileia Hollywood, and Director of the Hollywood Bezalel Initiative. You can follow Gary [...]

Mumford & Sons “Sigh No More”: A Missional Worship Album? by Bryan Belknap

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Sigh No More may be the first truly missional worship album of the 21st century… and it won’t be the last. By Bryan Belknap I stood in a parking lot with thousands of Los Angelenos enjoying the headlining act of the Railroad Revival Tour – Mumford & Sons. I know the packed crowd was loving the show [...]

Story Failure: Why We ‘Lose it’ in High Stress Environments, Like Hollywood

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

The stories we develop to survive life’s most painful experiences are usually the same stories that fail us in high stress environments (Follow Up to Spiritually Thriving in a High Stress Environment, Like Hollywood!) “People who are caught up in the pursuit of excellence are particularly vulnerable to stress-related disorders.” - Psychologist Archibald D. Hart Like [...]

Seven Reasons Why Young Adults Quit Church, by Christian Piatt

Monday, April 2, 2012

Part 4 in series How Millennials Who Gave Up on Church are Redefining Faith and Re-engaging Community. by Christian Piatt From time to time I revisit the question: why are young adults walking away from religion? Although the answer(s) vary from person to person, there are some general trends that I think apply in most cases. [...]

Prodigals, Nomads and Exiles: Five Myths about Why Millennials are Leaving the Church, by David Kinnaman

Monday, April 2, 2012

Part 3 in series A Place of Our Own: How Millennials Who Have Given Up on “Church” are Redefining Faith and Re-engaging Community. by David Kinnaman The Barna Group team spent much of the last five years exploring the lives of young people who drop out of church. The research provides many insights into the spiritual journeys of [...]

Series Intro: How Millennials Who Gave Up on Church are Redefining Faith and Re-engaging Community

Sunday, April 1, 2012

What looks like the death of religion in America, may in fact be the birth pangs of one of the greatest spiritual awakenings in history. by Gary David Stratton, PhD For nearly 400 years American churches have counted on Easter Sunday as the day of their largest attendance. But if you’re watching carefully, attendance at [...]

The Greco-Roman Liberal Arts: When Education Meant Friendship and Heart

Friday, March 23, 2012

Whereas Plato and Aristotle called their students friends, today’s students are often little more than numbers. The liberal arts vision of generating a steady stream of truth-seeking leaders to flood our culture with virtue has clearly fallen on hard times.