Are So-Called “Non-denominational Churches” Really “Non-denoms?”There it was again. The same has happened to me numerous times over the past several years. Someone told me about a great new church in an affluent suburb of a major American metropolis. It is attracting thousands to its services and programs. And among its attractions is that it is “non-denominational.”This time I said what I thought: “I’ll bet it’s not really ‘non-denominational;’ at least not in the way you think. Let … [Read more...]
What I Would Believe Were I a Metaphysical Naturalist
June 25, 2017 by Leave a Comment
What I Would Believe Were I a Metaphysical NaturalistFirst, let me say that, whatever others may think of me, I believe I have the capacity to think rationally. I do not claim that reason governs everything I believe and do, but I do claim that I have been trained in rationality and have the knowledge of the laws of reason and evidence necessary to think and behave rationally. I have taken courses in philosophy (including on the graduate level at a major national research university) and … [Read more...]
The Reason for Christian Higher Education (and Pressures to Abandon It)
June 20, 2017 by Leave a Comment
The Reason for Christian Higher Education (and Pressures to Abandon It)One purpose of this blog is to support what I call the “biblical-Christian plausibility structure.” I believe it is the primary reason for being of Christian higher education. (Yes, one could say it is the reason for being of all Christian education, but for my purposes it suffices to designate “higher” education.)I have been deeply embedded in Christian higher education in America for more than forty years with on … [Read more...]
Is There a New Form of Lynching in America?
June 18, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Is There a New Form of Lynching in America?Once again a police officer has been acquitted of all criminal charges in the shooting death of an innocent and unarmed black American citizen. This shooting occurred only blocks from where I lived for fifteen years; I can picture in my mind’s eye the scene, the city block, where it happened. (It is an almost all-white neighborhood where black people are rarely seen.) I drove through it hundreds of times. By all accounts the black man was at the … [Read more...]
Stranger Things? Does God Still Speak?
June 15, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Stranger Things: Does God Still Speak to Us with a “Still Small Voice?”Anyone who has read my books, articles or blog posts more than “just a little” knows that I am a strong believer in the supernatural. My most recent book Essentials of Christian Thought: Seeing Reality through the Biblical Story (Zondervan) attempts to rehabilitate the word “supernatural.” Like so many good words that are part of the Christian “language of Zion” it has been stretched to the breaking point and misused s … [Read more...]
How Should a Christian Church Celebrate America? Advice…
June 12, 2017 by Leave a Comment
How Should a Christian Church Celebrate America? Advice…Just a few blocks from my house stands a very large and active mainline Protestant church. (I’ll leave the denomination unnamed.) Throughout the year it sponsors and hosts numerous special events including seasonal worship services attended by hundreds if not thousands. Its Vacation Bible School yard signs are all over the neighborhood and I see them throughout the city. This is one of the most active and attractive churches in this … [Read more...]
Is God Our Father?
June 9, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Is God Our Father?This year (2017), in the U.S., Sunday, June 18 is designated as “Father’s Day.” (Mother’s Day was May 14th.) As I have said here before, in contemporary American society, fatherhood is an ambiguous concept and many people have ambivalent feelings toward fathers—their own and others.A few years ago I happened to be watching a morning talk show on a major American television network. It was Mother’s Day and the talking heads were discussing a “report” about the value o … [Read more...]
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