I had the privilege of attending a conference in Rome on the Council of Nicaea about a month ago. Throughout the various plenaries, panels, and discussions, different historical and theological aspects of the council were explored in rigorous and exciting ways—it was a joy to be a part of! It was not until the final event of the conference that I felt we had truly gotten to the heart of Nicaea, though. The final event was a social, in which... Read more
Last Thursday morning, May 8, 2025, as I finished up a morning Zoom call with a Mexican theologian to discuss the theological implications of my Juan Diego manuscript, I looked at the time and nearly panicked. Had I missed it? Hastily searching online for a live feed from the Vatican, I ended up with French audio. Moments later, white smoke began billowing from the Sistine Chapel chimney: the evening vote in Rome had resulted in a new Supreme Pontiff for... Read more
There are years when everything seems to happen at once, years that shape conditions for decades to come. 1915 is one such, 1968 another – and as I have learned through writing a good many books, 1893 is another, and above all in matters of religion and spirituality. Now, I know what you are probably thinking here. 1893 is already very famous in such matters, as the time of the very influential World’s Parliament of Religions, held in Chicago, and... Read more
“Above all, she is the girl who ‘feels’ things”—Joan Didion about Joan Baez (Didion, 48) It was one of the first times I arrived on campus, a late August or early September day in Pasadena. I was wearing a shirt that had a picture of a tank followed by the words ” A Lot”. My wife tells me all the time how much she hates these type of adolescent shirts that someone my age should probably stop wearing. She often... Read more
“[T]here is no image of an American Indian intellectual” wrote the Lakota literary theorist Elizabeth Cook Lynn in 1996. She continues, “It is as though the American Indian has no intellectual voice with which to enter into America’s important dialogues… It is as though the American Indian does not exist except in faux history or corrupt myth.” This has been true also in literary circles. While studying for my comprehensive exams, I struggled to write here regularly, including missing my... Read more
So they elected a new pope. As a member of a Protestant denomination, I have been oriented all my life to view the doings of the Roman Catholic church with suspicion. With our awareness of our Reformation roots always mind, Seventh-day Adventists remain watchful any attempts of Catholicism to expand its influence, align with political power, or seduce Protestants away from their commitments. Why should I pay attention to the leadership changes within this suspect organization for any reason except... Read more
Last time, I wrote about Prince Demetrius Gallitzin, a Catholic priest of Russian origin, who evangelized the western frontiers of Pennsylvania in the early nineteenth century. As I suggested, he might soon become a saint of the Catholic church, and it would be wonderful if that aroused so much interest as to provoke new waves of shrines and pilgrimage trails. Photograph is my own work This actually got me thinking about the sacred landscapes around us, including many places that... Read more
With the recent passing of Pope Francis, there has been a lot of discussion about the pope’s legacy. Described by NPR as “one of the most popular popes in decades” as well as “a controversial figure,” Pope Francis was willing to wade into controversial topics and deliver messages that pushed against political figures and topics. Posts from my Anxious Bench colleagues Philip Jenkins (After Francis: What’s Next in the Vatican, Who Will Be The Next Pope?, and Popes, Prophecies, and... Read more
I agreed to interview Aimee Byrd about her new book, Saving Face: Finding Myself, God, and One Another Outside a Defaced Church (Zondervan Reflective, 2025) with the caveat that my training is as a historian, not as a clergyperson or counselor. I offer that same caveat here. And that’s because little about Byrd’s book is historical, outside of references to her own personal experiences. That’s not to say it’s not academic—some of it is, with references to C.S. Lewis, Richard... Read more
Prince Gallitzin State Park is a beautiful site in west-central Pennsylvania, best known for a popular lake. The Russian or otherwise Slavic name is intriguing. Plenty of Slavic migrants came to western Pennsylvania through the years, but very few of them, surely, were princes. In fact, the story of this particular prince throws a great deal of light on the early religious history of the frontier, and specifically of the Catholic church. Prince Gallitzin himself might actually be a saint... Read more
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