Still Adventist? Why Retain Denominational Identities

Last updated on: November 10, 2023 at 12:44 pm By Lisa Clark Diller

While as a Christian historian I frequently interact with people who are wrestling with their evangelical identity, I personally grew up in a more sectarian context–the Seventh-day Adventist church. Last week I spent a few days at a church conference exploring the issue of Adventist identity. The theme was “Authentic Adventism” and several of us explored elements that we considered to be core to that identity. But the core concern was articulated by a young university student who asked: “If... Read more

The Reverend Mr. Saunders and the Sufis

Last updated on: November 3, 2023 at 7:33 am By Philip Jenkins

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My current work involves the topic of Lived Religion, which over the past few decades has come to represent a major theme in religious studies scholarship. Briefly, it represents the study of what people actually do in religious matters, independent of official dogmas or institutions. In the words of the French founders of the idea, lived religion, religion vécue, is distinct from “prescribed religion”, religion prescrite. That is today a very familiar idea. But what interests me is how those... Read more

Atrocity and Your Imagination

Last updated on: November 8, 2023 at 12:29 pm By Malcolm Foley

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Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. – Romans 12:21 It is bad enough to be flooded with images of a violent world in which you have little control. We’re currently in such a moment, surrounded by images of brutal war. But atrocity also has a deeper effect on us mentally and spiritually: it stunts our moral imagination. I do not claim to be a foreign relations expert, but one thing that I am pretty confident... Read more

Israel, Palestine, and Medieval Bias in Modern Headlines

Last updated on: November 6, 2023 at 12:22 pm By Lynneth Renberg

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It’s hard to read the news right now. The ongoing reports from Israel and Gaza are heartbreaking, with civilian deaths, suffering, and tragedy in almost unbearable numbers. Adding another layer to the horror is the rise in hate crimes against Jews, Muslims, and Arabs around the world. In the midst of such suffering, grief, and horrific actions, it feels difficult to know what news coverage to trust, particularly when bias and prejudice is clearly so rampant. How can we navigate... Read more

60 Years Since ’63: King Symposium at Stanford University

Last updated on: November 6, 2023 at 6:25 pm By Ansley Quiros

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A couple of weeks ago, I had the great honor of participating in a symposium reflecting on the 60th anniversary of 1963 at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Institute at Stanford University. Over the course of several days, scholars shared their research on King’s legacy and impact, challenging modern mythologies of King and recapturing a radical message as relevant and necessary today as it was 60 years ago. The event kicked off with a keynote address by journalist and King... Read more

Lived Religion and Default Faith

Last updated on: November 2, 2023 at 4:34 pm By Philip Jenkins

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My present work concerns the topic of Lived Religion, which will be the subject of my next few posts. To simplify, this is the study of religion as it is actually practiced by ordinary people, rather than as is laid down by organized institutions, faiths or churches, and that kind of approach has attracted a huge amount of scholarly concern over the past couple of decades. By observing lived practice, as opposed to prescribed institutional forms, the approach offers rich... Read more

Earthquakes, Volcanoes, and the Making of American Religion

Last updated on: October 28, 2023 at 7:52 pm By Philip Jenkins

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In 2021 I published the book Climate, Catastrophe, and Faith: How Changes in Climate Driven Religious Upheaval (Oxford University Press). I argued that throughout history, climate-driven disasters have had dramatic and often destructive effects on human societies worldwide. Those traumas have often manifested in spiritual forms, driving great revivals and apocalyptic movements, and inciting the persecution of minority groups and scapegoats. Most scholars would accept that basic argument about the effects of climate, but here I am going to venture... Read more

How a Painting Illustrates the Nineteenth Century History Wars over American Christian Foundations

Last updated on: October 30, 2023 at 7:13 pm By Philip Jenkins

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I am presently revising my textbook on the History of the United States, for a sixth (!) edition. Through the span of American history, certain themes surface repeatedly, even obsessively, and among those is the nature of the country’s founding: what exactly were the foundations and values on which it was built? Godly and Puritan? Secular and Enlightenment? Slave-holding or free? Of the country’s nature, such historical debates have always resonated in political debate, and they continue to do so.... Read more

Halloween Hauntings

Last updated on: October 30, 2023 at 7:09 pm By Philip Jenkins

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Every Halloween for several years, I have posted something that is oriented to horror, weird fiction, or the supernatural, preferably with some direct relevance to religious history (which is never actually that hard to connect). Here, I offer one historical case study at length, and I think it is a really impressive ghost story. I will also offer links to quite a few very diverse posts I have done here over the past decade. Some of my posts have concerned... Read more

Walking in Darkness: How a Psalm Shaped Horror Fiction

Last updated on: October 30, 2023 at 6:28 am By Philip Jenkins

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This is the first of two Halloween offerings from me this year. Earlier this year I published a book on the reception of Psalm 91 through history: this was my He Will Save You from the Deadly Pestilence: The Many Lives of Psalm 91 (Oxford University Press). Over the past couple of millennia, that psalm has enjoyed a robust career as a protection against demons and evil forces. Depending on the translation, it has multiple references to evil forces, both... Read more