This is quite possibly the most controversial blog I have ever written - even more than the Anything For Love post of 2007.

Dr. George Tiller was the late-term abortion doctor who was gunned down while serving in his Lutheran church this past Sunday. And while i freely acknowledge I do not know this man's heart, and judgment is only for God, I am going to go out on a limb and say that we will see Dr. George Tiller again in heaven.

From the start I should say that I am pro-life - although from posts like mine back in October - it is probably obvious that I am not "super pro-life." I do believe that abortion is wrong, I just fail to see it anymore wrong than anything else and therefore I refuse to make it a wedge issue.

Most of my personal theology stems from the statement: "In the essentials unity, in the non-essentials liberty, and in all things charity."

It is this theological principle that helps me appreciate the theology from Catholics to Baptists and the super-crazy Greek Orthodox. It is why I don't get bogged down in the pros and cons of Calvinist vs. Wesleyan theology. Do I have stark disagreements with all of these, sure. But I realize in the end we all accept that Jesus is God, none of our theology is perfect, and therefore we are all unified in salvation through Christ alone.

But the question that arises is: is abortion a theological essential to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Is it so heinous and irredeemable that an abortion doctor, who on at the surface seems to believe that Jesus was the Son of God and trusts in him for his salvation, cannot be forgiven?

Now I know just becuase you go to church hardly makes you a Christian - especially in Kansas. But this man was an unapologetic abortion doctor. If there is anyone in our society that wouldn't feel the social pressure to go to church, don't you think it would be him? So I am going to proceed with the assumption that he attended and served in church for the right reasons.



He clearly didn't see abortion to be wrong.

Do I disagree with him. Yes.

Is abortion such a cut and dry issue in the Bible that I believe it to be "an essential" of Christian theology. No.

There is a lot of sin in my life that I know about. I am not proud of it, but I humbly admit that I am not perfect. What's more is that there is probably even more sin in my life that I do not know about. I go on doing what I do, thinking I am right and correct, but in actuality I am not. Do I understand myself to be any less forgiven or redeemed because of this known and unknown sin? No.

What does Jesus say really saves us? I know sin in my life continually gets brought to the surface every day I am alive. I see no evidence that Paul or David or Peter or anyone went on to live a sinless life. So if we are saved only by the grace through our faith in Jesus Christ, why would it be hard to believe Dr. George Tiller - while probably erroneous in some of his theology and practice - would be unsaved?

So while I do not know the heart of George Tiller, if I were a betting man, I am going to bet that I'll see him again in heaven.

In 8th grade I took my first trip out of the country. Me and about 40 other middle schoolers took a field trip to France. It was wonderful. Nice. Castles. Lyons. Tours. Versailles. Paris. Even at 14 I was in awe.

I have always loved France, but this week I found myself saying, "I wish I were French."

According to this CBS article, the French are required by law to have at least 5-weeks of vacation and work a maximum 35-hours a week. And in actuality, many French people get 8 weeks of vacation. I have to admit I am a bit jealous.

We don't have a vacation policy here at the Allen Hunt Show. But my vacation schedule seems to be something like this:

• 1 week in May with CJ & Andrea at the Beach
• 1 week in July or September in Indiana with CJ, Andrea, and my family
• 2 weeks in December/January in Indiana with CJ, Andrea, and my family for Christmas

I freely admit that 4 weeks of vacation is pretty fortunate. This of course does not count the weekender trips I take once a month just to get out of Atlanta.

Allen pointed me to another article that states 2/3 of Americans aren't planning on taking a vacation this summer.

This is a huge mistake. Now I know not everyone loves to travel like I do, and in this tough economy, traveling might not be an option anyway.

But I am not talking about travel, I am talking about vacation. Even if you stay at home and do nothing, taking time off work to relax and refocus is of huge importance.

I know I am in a way better mood after coming back from vacation - to which the people I work with are grateful. Even getting away once a month for short trips has been monumentally helpful.

Now before Sean Hannity calls and rips me a new one, yes I know French economy is horrendous and their unemployment is double ours. I am not saying that the US should become France. All I am saying is there has to be a balance between the two. The French could learn something from us, and we could learn something from the French.


P.S. This post is dedicated to Mark Arum for giving my traveling habits so much crap :)

P.P.S. I put up all the pictures from this past vacation to Sunset Key. All the photos can be found at my website, and the "best" photos I also uploaded to Facebook (which you don't need a Facebook account to see the album).

• 2Timothy42.org Photo Album
• Facebook Album (open to the public)