The problem with a lot of christian music is that it isn’t very good. and this in many ways is by design. Because of this I generally avoid most contemporary Christian music. That isn’t to say that I don’t listen to music that connects with my faith though. In fact a great deal of the music I listen to deals with spiritual themes. I have decided to craft a list of artists that have a great deal of spiritual themes in their music... Read more

 These quotes by Issac of Syria (perhaps my favorite saint) are things that are very good to keep in mind in places like this where talk about God comes freely and passions are not often tempered by love. I hope you are challenged by them as much as I have been. “God is reality. The person whose mind has become aware of God does not even possess a tongue with which to speak, but God resides in the heart in great serenity.... Read more

This last week me and the other doctoral students on the Crossed Purposes podcast discuss Eden, the Nile River, and C.S. Lewis…as always. We also consider the virtues of the Lord of the Rings, the fact that humanity has fallen, Gattica, and Bioshock. There’s also some debate on how to pronounce The Brothers Karamazov. If you cannot see the audio controls, your browser does not support the audio element Download it here Read more

This last week me and the other doctoral students on the Crossed Purposes podcast discuss the Atonement, Narnia, the Space Trilogy, the Matrix, Lord of the Rings, and Les Miserables There’s a general consensus that theories of the Atonement are like dates to the Prom, the more you have, the better. If you cannot see the audio controls, your browser does not support the audio element Download it here Read more

This last week me and the other doctoral students on the Crossed Purposes podcast discuss Hell. Is it real? Why would it exist? Is Hell forever? We also examine it though the eyes of movies, art, authors and the church fathers. Tell me if you think I know what the Hell I’m talking about in the comments! If you cannot see the audio controls, your browser does not support the audio element Download it here Read more

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This last week me and the other doctoral students on the Crossed Purposes podcast discuss sin in popular culture, bringing in Harry Potter, Star Wars, Star Trek and the Wheel of Time. A fistfight almost breaks out between proponents of East and West, and Martin Luther comes up a lot. I would love to hear your thoughts and other questions in the comments section below. If you cannot see the audio controls, your browser does not support the audio element Download... Read more

  There are few concepts in Christianity as mind-bendingly-difficult to understand as the Trinity. It’s widely considered to be one of the foundational beliefs of the Christian religion but the word “trinity” is never mentioned even once in the Bible. SO WHAT’S THE DEAL? What is it? The Trinity is the doctrine that God in God’s nature is made up of three hypostosis (which is a fancy Greek word which means that what is referred to is a not an attribute, like goodness or purpleness but is the thing... Read more

Order the Book Today!orGet it on Kindle! As Christianity rose to prominence in the Western world, it changed how people viewed themselves, and their place in the universe. This transformation affected everything from how they viewed their bodies, to how they viewed those around them. Christianity even changed how people died. Death was no longer seen as a curse to be avoided but as a moment of consecration that united the dying more fully with God. Bodies were no longer... Read more

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green My rating: 4 of 5 stars I first encountered John Green almost a year ago ago. I had subscribed to his “Crash Courses in World History” series which I had stumbled upon and become very impressed. I really loved the way that he taught history in a way that was fun for all ages and interesting (even for a history nut like myself). John was the kind of guy I wish I... Read more