Patheos Featured Writers

Jonathan Fitzgerald
Columnist

Jonathan D. Fitzgerald grew up in the church, and not just figuratively. From Sunday morning to Saturday evening, every day of his childhood and teenage years was filled with the standard variety of evangelical activities—Christian school, youth group, Pioneers Club, Bible studies, lock-ins, outreach events, concerts, and worship services.

And yet, many of his most transformative experiences with Christianity occurred outside of evangelicalism. In the ninth grade he enrolled in an all-male Catholic high school where he added Catholic social teaching to his Christian experience. From there he attended Gordon College, where he had the opportunity to travel abroad, studying in Nairobi, Kenya. After college, Fitzgerald went on to graduate school at the University of Massachusetts in Boston where he eventually earned an M.A. in English. It was there, in the first secular school he had ever attended, that the plethora of values and beliefs he had been collecting over the years coalesced into a hybrid of Christian traditions.

In 2008, Fitzgerald and his wife Stephanie, a painter, moved from Boston to Jersey City, New Jersey, so Stephanie could pursue an art degree in Manhattan. In that time, Fitzgerald joined the staff of Patrolmag.com and added a number of writing credentials to his resume, including The Wall Street JournalChristianity TodayReligion DispatchesThe Huffington PostKilling the Buddha, and The Curator. The journey that began in the classrooms, Sunday schools, and sanctuaries of his youth continues today in reading, writing, and participation in a local episcopal parish.

Works by Jonathan Fitzgerald
The Journey Is Not the Thing
Jonathan Fitzgerald | November 19, 2012
In Matt Litton's new book, Holy Nomad, we learn that there's more to the journey than......
Seven Glorious Days: An Interview with Karl Giberson
Jonathan Fitzgerald | September 17, 2012
As a Christian, a scientist, and a firm believer that evolution doesn't contradict......
Moving Beyond the Culture Wars
Jonathan Fitzgerald | May 23, 2012
A new book, "A Faith of Our Own," may help young evangelicals and post-evangelicals see......
Paul Simon: God's Chronicler
Jonathan Fitzgerald | May 01, 2012
Paul Simon isn't sure about God, and that's what makes him such an excellent "God......
How We've Been Hijacked
Jonathan Fitzgerald | March 25, 2012
Why are evangelicals throwing their support behind Rick Santorum, a Catholic?...
John Piper Strikes Back!
Jonathan Fitzgerald | February 09, 2012
On the similarities between the "Young, Restless, Reformed" movement and The Empire....
No Country for Evangelicals
Jonathan Fitzgerald | January 25, 2012
What does the absence of a strong evangelical contender in the Republican presidential......
Generation "Do"
Jonathan Fitzgerald | January 12, 2012
Millennials are marked by a certain "niceness," but is it all just a marketing scheme?...
New Evangelicals, Old News
Jonathan Fitzgerald | December 15, 2011
The oft-used phrase "new evangelical" is often applied to people who aren't evangelical......
Who Are You Calling Liberal?
Jonathan Fitzgerald | December 07, 2011
A recent debate between Arthur Brooks and Jim Wallis called into question how Christians......
Occupy Pessimism
Jonathan Fitzgerald | November 18, 2011
My generation has every right to be angry, but now it's time to act....
From Halloween to Hallelujah
Jonathan Fitzgerald | October 26, 2011
Many Christians don't celebrate Halloween, but they're missing out on a lot....
Occupy the Internet
Jonathan Fitzgerald | October 12, 2011
The Occupy protesters are using 20th-century methods to fight a 21st-century problem....
Missing the Meaning of Morality
Jonathan Fitzgerald | September 20, 2011
As the church and other institutions fail to offer Millennials a moral framework,......
Raised to Fight
Jonathan Fitzgerald | September 06, 2011
In "Raised Right," Alisa Harris reveals her combative past as a culture warrior -- one......
We Need a Better Story
Jonathan Fitzgerald | August 16, 2011
Popular culture tells us moral stories, if we care to hear them. It's time Washington......
The Norway Killer Is a Christian, but So Am I
Jonathan Fitzgerald | August 02, 2011
Anders Breivik showed the violent side of Christianity. That's all the more reason for......
Michele Bachmann, The Pope, and the Anti-Christ
Jonathan Fitzgerald | July 19, 2011
The Anti-Christ might be easier to spot than you think....
The Politics of "Spiritual But Not Religious"
Jonathan Fitzgerald | July 12, 2011
Why we need to stop acting like we can avoid dealing with religion in public life. ...
In Defense of Bachmann's Base
Jonathan Fitzgerald | June 28, 2011
A recent tirade against Michele Bachmann and her base should drive progressive......
From Evangelical to Progressive
Jonathan Fitzgerald | June 21, 2011
The emergence of the Progressive Christian portal marks an opportunity to come together......
Is It Christian Art, or Good Art?
Jonathan Fitzgerald | June 08, 2011
The trailer for the film adaptation of "Blue Like Jazz" raises the question of whether......
Viewing Women through the Lens of Their Availability
Jonathan Fitzgerald | June 01, 2011
A recent debate between bloggers Tim Challies and Rachel Held Evans highlights the......
I'm Still Progressive, You're Still a Bad Person
Jonathan Fitzgerald | May 24, 2011
Even as a progressive, I cannot accept that humanity is inherently good. Yet this does......
The '60s Made Life Harder, and More Just
Jonathan Fitzgerald | May 10, 2011
The recent controversy between Sojourners and Believe Out Loud proves that progressivism......
It's easy to celebrate something complicated when you can't see all the complexities....
Is the Export of Conservative Christianity Good for the...
Jonathan Fitzgerald | April 26, 2011
Conservative evangelicalism is spreading around the world at a rapid pace, but that......
Evangelicalism Is Dead. Long Live Evangelicalism.
Jonathan Fitzgerald | April 19, 2011
Recent evangelical infighting confirms that our minor differences don't matter in the......
The Young and the Wasted
Jonathan Fitzgerald | April 12, 2011
It's not the liberalism of the modern western university that leads to loss of faith. It......
Leave Your Church
Jonathan Fitzgerald | April 05, 2011
There is tremendous value in experiencing a variety of Christian traditions -- a kind of......
Who Are the Poor?: Tim Keller Talks Justice
Jonathan Fitzgerald | March 29, 2011
The right has stigmatized the phrase "social justice." Tim Keller is taking it back....
Opposing the Use of Force in Libya
Jonathan Fitzgerald | March 23, 2011
Christians are given no leave to choose between the lesser of two evils. They must......
It Happens: God and the Disaster in Japan
Jonathan Fitzgerald | March 16, 2011
Some claim that God uses natural disasters like the tsunami in Japan to punish sinners.......
But We've Always Blamed the Jews!
Jonathan Fitzgerald | March 09, 2011
The pope recently disavowed an outmoded belief. Should evangelicals do likewise when it......
Evangelicals, in a prideful desire to be noticed, are just as quick to comment as the......
Stop Fighting to Save Marriage
Jonathan Fitzgerald | February 23, 2011
Marriage in America is a secular institution; it has taken a shape of its own and has......
Those Three Little Words: "I Don't Know"
Jonathan Fitzgerald | February 16, 2011
Christians can find it hard to confess uncertainty on what the Bible says. On matters......
A Present-Tense Biblical Response to Egypt
Jonathan Fitzgerald | February 09, 2011
Forcing current events in Egypt into an Old Testament framework may actually prevent us......