In response to all of the discussion about “to ban or not to ban,” I think I will take the suggestion by Webmonk and others to delete certain comments that I find repetitive, tangential, or obnoxious. I will be constrained by time, how busy I am, and when I get around to reading the comments. But I will try to supervise the discussions a little more. Hopefully, I can avoid banning people, though if I find myself always striking their… Read more
Come, Lord Jesus, be our guest. . .
July 1, 2011 By Gene Veith 85 Comments
Some time ago on this blog, I sort of took issue with the “Common Table Prayer” commonly used by Lutherans, prayed in unison before a meal. Remember that I did not grow up in this tradition, and I considered it more of a rhyming sing-song children’s prayer, favoring instead the prayer in the catechism with its use of the Psalm (“The eyes of all look to you, O Lord. . .”) or a spontaneous personal prayer. How presumptuous I was… Read more
The new rules for evangelism
July 1, 2011 By Gene Veith 36 Comments
Last week we blogged about the conclave of world evangelicals, Roman Catholics, and liberal Protestants that put together a document on the Ethics of Evangelism. Christianity Today has a good analysis, including what the document leaves out and what it says that some might find troubling: “I think the fact that the WEA [World Evangelical Alliance] is engaging with the WCC[World Council of Churches] and the Catholic Church here indicates that they are becoming more willing to embrace interreligious dialogue,” Mannoia… Read more
Reagan veneration in Eastern Europe
July 1, 2011 By Gene Veith 102 Comments
In the context of a rather snarky column on congressional junkets, we learn that the ex-Communist countries of eastern Europe are putting on big celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Ronald Reagan, something we didn’t really do in the United States: Yes, we’re told that the codel [congressional delegation], led by House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), after a stop to mingle with the troops in Germany, was on hand Monday in Krakow, Poland, to kick off… Read more
To ban or not to ban
June 30, 2011 By Gene Veith 378 Comments
That is the question. . . .I think it’s good for people to hear from those who disagree with them. I believe in freedom of expression and freedom of conversation. Contrary to what some of you realize, I have banned people from this blog, those who kept throwing in racist comments or obscene language. Some of you have asked me to ban different commenters for being offensive in various ways. I have sometimes admonished the offenders, but I have resisted… Read more
An evangelical critique of contemporary worship
June 30, 2011 By Gene Veith 104 Comments
D. H. Williams, a theology professor at Baylor, offers a searching critique of contemporary worship as practiced in the typical megachurch, published in Christianity Today, no less. You need to read it all, but here is the opening description of the service: On a recent Sunday, I found myself visiting a Protestant megachurch. Entering the “worship center” was eerily similar to being ushered down the aisle of a movie theater: floor lighting, padded chairs, visual effects shown on two large… Read more
The sociology of the gay marriage debate
June 30, 2011 By Gene Veith 133 Comments
Australian Frank Furedi, a professor of sociology at the University of Kent, looks at the sociology of the gay marriage debate, how the cultural elite are using the issue to achieve moral superiority over the non-elite. From a sociological perspective, the ascendancy of the campaign for gay marriage provides a fascinating story about the dynamics of the cultural conflicts that prevail in Western society. During the past decade the issue of gay marriage has been transformed into a cultural weapon… Read more
The ethics of evangelism
June 29, 2011 By Gene Veith 16 Comments
Representatives of the World Evangelical Alliance (evangelicals), the World Council of Churches (mainline liberal Protestants, plus the Orthodox [why?]), and the Pontifical Council on Inter-religious Dialogue (Roman Catholic) meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, issued a document entitled “Christian Witness in a Multi-Religious World: Recommendations for Conduct.” It affirms the importance of evangelism (a.k.a. “proseletyzing”), but sets forth some ethical guidelines when doing so. You can download the document at the link, but here is a news account summarizing the points: There… Read more
Bachmann or Romney?
June 29, 2011 By Gene Veith 226 Comments
It looks like the GOP presidential nomination may be a contest between Michele Bachmann and Mitt Romney. So far Romney seems to be leading, but Bachmann so far is outdistancing the alternative candidates. On Bachmann’s Lutheranism, which we talked about earlier, she has been a long-time member of the Wisconsin Synod, though when reporters and her opponents in her last Congressional election found out that the Book of Concord calls the Pope the anti-Christ, that was sure to cost her… Read more
Marshall McLuhan’s Christianity
June 29, 2011 By Gene Veith 14 Comments
The late Marshall McLuhan was the pioneering scholar of media and the information environment, recognizing how technology was changing the culture and predicting what is now happening before our eyes. He was controversial and cutting-edged with some hailing him as being a seminal thinker on the level of Darwin, Freud, and Einstein. Did you know he was a conservative Catholic? Jeet Heer tells about how McLuhan came to Catholicism–G. K. Chesterton was a big influence–and how the neo-Thomism of Jacques… Read more
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