"Art gives us access to many different way of engaging and understanding God all at the same time and I think that is really valuable when engaging with a God who is beyond our understanding. "

This was radical stuff in pre-Civil War America. Emerson was essentially turning religion 180 degrees on its axis. Instead of a deity presiding over creation from somewhere up there, divinity was here, there and everywhere.

My friend, Jack Jenkins and seminary student himself, has put together a quick video "Stuff Presbyterian Seminarians Say" to help folks gain a little perspective as they approach ordination exams later this week.

Here is the crux: Moral nature is lost in the way the Church has evolved. It is the past we are to worship, not anything living.