About the authors

Captain Thin is the internet penname and blog title of Mathew Block, editor of The Canadian Lutheran magazine and communications manager for Lutheran Church-Canada. He’s a fan of dogma, and believes truly fruitful ecumenical dialogue occurs only when we recognize (and do not ignore) theological differences between Christians. Consequently, he likes to argue – though he hopes he is a little more irenic in his language-choice than Martin Luther was. He’s comfortable with any number of labels (rightly understood), including Lutheran, Protestant, Confessional, Evangelical, and Catholic. Oh, and Christian. Mathew’s tastes are eclectic, and he’s as happy reading a classic (literary or theological) with a glass of wine as he is sitting down to peanut-butter toast and an Archie Comic. Also, he talks too much.

Chinglican at Table is a confirmed lay person in the Anglican Communion who feels uncomfortable referring to himself as Anglican because his Chinese ethnicity makes him feel like subscribing to something so complicit with empire betrays the post-colonial cause. He’d rather think of himself “at table,” stubbornly acknowledging communion with all of his brothers and sisters in Christ in defiance of the various schismatic divisions erected to discourage that practice. While engaging in table fellowship, he loves noodles (pho, Northern Chinese soup noodles, wonton noodles, ramen), coffee (black), and tea of all sorts, and–best of all for his beloved sweetheart–he enjoys doing the dishes because a) St. Bonaventure was also doing the dishes when he received his cardinal hat and b) water mixed with detergent suds is beyond therapeutic: it is sacramental.

Churl is a known bibliophile and dabbles from time to time in paremiology.  He grew up in an evangelical church, did some time in a charismatic church, and is now generally “high,” in the ecclesial sense.  He is far more interested in an orthodox ecumenism among the communion of saints (living and dead) than in promoting ecclesial division in a late capitalist culture where dissolution and detachment are normative.  With Captain Thin, he agrees that such ecumenism does not mean flattening Christianity into a bland and generic thing with no savor of theological debate; however, he also realizes with Tolkien that, when one is faced with Sauron, the elves and the dwarves might have to learn to get along with each other.  He differs from Chinglican and Captain Thin in that he has no sense of humour.  None whatsoever. Except maybe the melancholic humour…