(We bloggers have been enjoined to post this summer on travels that we have taken to Europe. The reflection below was derived from a trip to Italy [Rome, Florence, and Oriveto] and Istanbul, Turkey.) In the late 900s, the Byzantine Emperor Basil (“the Bulgar Slayer”) led an army from Constantinople against the Bulgars who had invaded his territories in Greece. Defeated at first, he raised new armies and kept returning to the fray. The turning point finally came in 1014... Read more
In my previous posts, I have discussed the 1668 novel The Adventures of Simplicius Simplicissimus – hereafter, just Simplicissimus – by Johann von Grimmelshausen. The book is a treasure trove for all sorts of ideas and themes about the seventeenth century, and much of it can be applied to understanding early modern Europe, between about 1500 and 1750. Some of the political material is striking, and one example in particular is really intriguing. In a lengthy section, Simplicissimus captures divine... Read more
by Hannah Butler and Kristin Du Mez Scan the headlines, and it seems that everywhere you look, evangelicals are in the news. From Paige Patterson to the “court evangelicals” to Trump’s most dependable voting bloc, evangelicals have been the topic du jour at least since the 2016 election. At the same time, there are few words as contested as the term “evangelical.” How does one define “evangelical”? Can the essence of evangelicalism be expressed through the four “distinctives” first suggested... Read more
For years, I attended complementarian churches. For years, I stayed silent in those churches–outwardly supporting the complementarian structures while inwardly moving away from complementarian teachings. When we finally decided that enough was enough (in our final complementarian church), my husband, a pastor on staff, tried to address the gender hierarchy and authoritarian structure with the elders. He was promptly fired….. Thankfully I have gained some perspective since that happened. I have realized that by staying silent for so long, I... Read more
A week after Philip Roth died, Chris considers his novel, The Plot Against America, in which Charles Lindbergh is president of an isolationist America coming under the spell of fascism and anti-Semitism. Read more
I have been posting about the book The Adventures of Simplicius Simplicissimus, published in 1668 by Johann von Grimmelshausen. Grimmelshausen describes the atrocious conditions prevailing across Central Europe during the Thirty Years War (1618-48), which was notionally a death struggle between Protestant and Catholic states and their armed forces. But what did that religious quality mean in action? What kind of holy war was this? Simplicius Simplicissimus paints a truly grim picture of that and other “wars of faith.” It... Read more
I recently blogged about the Thirty Years War, which erupted in May 1618 – four hundred years ago this month. Although this sprawling religious war was critical for the subsequent history of Europe and the West, and for Christendom itself, it remains little known in the English-speaking world. The same comment applies to much of the literature and culture stemming from that conflict, including what may well be the greatest classic European novel that remains unfamiliar even to most educated... Read more
The assassinations of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Kennedy will always remain linked, and not just because they both occurred in the span of two months some fifty years ago this spring. The murders are the fulcrums of Frye Gaillard’s moving new portrait of the 1960s, A Hard Rain. A journalist by training and background, Gaillard has authored a score of books about the history and culture of the American South, most prominently Cradle of Freedom. He is a... Read more
“I shall not die of a cold, my son. I shall die having lived.” Read more
Chris considers the religious history of Sherlock Holmes on the birthday of his creator. Read more
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