The Economy of Desire

September 6, 2013 By Charles Clark

In The Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer admonishes Christians who have bought into the theology of “cheap grace.” Bonhoeffer describes cheap grace as “the grace we bestow upon ourselves. Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession.” In Bonhoeffer’s view, the heresy of cheap grace is founded on a false separation between faith and obedience: “…we must never forget the indissoluble unity of the two, we must place the one proposition that... Read more

Two Sides of Paradise

September 5, 2013 By Jonathan Askonas

If one were to construct a spectrum of contemporary filmmakers, ranging from the minimalist to the fantastic, one would find Baz Luhrmann and Terrence Malick on very opposite ends of the spectrum. Where the former is loud, explosive, and flashy, the other is introspective, discreet, and nuanced to a fault. And yet, the two movies they had in theaters this summer (The Great Gatsby and To the Wonder, respectively) revolve around the same dynamic tension. In some prior reverie, a man and... Read more

What We Are: Mind, Body, and the Dangers of Dualism

September 4, 2013 By Peter Blair

This is the first article from our summer issue. The whole issue will be released gradually over the next several weeks. According to traditional Christian metaphysics, the human has a body and a soul. But these two things aren’t entirely separate substances, as if the soul was “located” in some part of the body and floats away out of the body like ectoplasma when an individual dies. Rather, the soul and the body form a substantial unity: a human being... Read more

Subscription Changes and Second Year Update

August 30, 2013 By Peter Blair

Earlier today we sent this email out to our email list. If you’re interested in joining our email list, simply send us a message at the address listed below. It’s been a little over a year since Fare Forward launched, and the editors are thrilled with the progress the publication has made. We’ve released four strong issues, and our fifth issue debuts next week. We’ve seen steady growth in subscriptions, web traffic, and social media presence, and we’ve established fruitful relationships... Read more

Friendship and Vocation

August 26, 2013 By Sarah Ngu

A few years ago, Gallup asked employees in 152 organizations in 26 countries whether they were likely to have a best friend at work. The question was part of its overall assessment of “employee engagement,” which also asked employees other questions about the company’s mission, its growth and development, employee recognition and praise, whether your supervisor cares about you as a person, and so on. Not too surprisingly, average engagement among employees in Canada and the US are among the... Read more

Miscellany and Divine Transcendence

August 20, 2013 By Michael W. Hannon

In the summer issue of Fare Forward, due out shortly, my essay on “Cancer and Divine Transcendence” will examine some ways Christians have responded to suffering, and argue that our popular conceptions of providence oft go awry when we overlook the real distinction between God the First Cause and his created second causes. Discussing those who mistakenly speak about tragic events as if their badness were merely illusory, I’ll explain, Overlooking divine transcendence and collapsing God down into just another... Read more

Charles Murray, Dorothy Day, and Embedded Journalism

August 16, 2013 By Peter Blair

One of the things we try to do with Fare Forward is find, learn from, and connect people who are doing interesting things with their lives, and who are applying the kind of rigorous thought we explore in our pages to projects and vocations. We hope to progressively feature more conversations with such people on the blog, as well as updates on Fare Forward’s own activities and projects. Anne Snyder is a research and editorial assistant at the New York... Read more

Religion, Intelligence, and Socialization

August 14, 2013 By Jordan Monge

The Independent just reported that “religious people are less intelligent.” Whatever remains of the “new atheist” crowd will argue that this study proves that education causes one to reject religion. Atheism is academic. Being enlightened or “bright” means you reject that dim-witted dogmatism of your fathers. The problem is, of course, that secularism has long been dominant in the academy. Take a group of impressionable young students— selected specifically for their intelligence—who care very dearly about academic approval, and then tell... Read more

Millennial Presumptions

July 31, 2013 By Cole Carnesecca

Rachel Held Evans’ latest post at CNN’s religion blog has stirred up controversy in just the way RHE knows how to do so well. See here and here for some reactions. Part of what’s challenging about her piece (and all her writing, really) is that it contains a lot of truth. In her comments on liturgy, authenticity, and a broader Christian cultural-political mandate, RHE offers or, at least, approaches some important insights. The merits of some of her points have... Read more

What the Church Can Learn from the Reza Aslan Affair

July 29, 2013 By Jordan Monge

Reza Aslan has become famous for what has quickly become dubbed “Fox News’ Worst Interview” about his new book Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth. I agree with Robert Long’s assessment at The American Conservative that the interview is motivated by bulverism, which attempts to show why a man has come to the incorrect position before demonstrating that he is incorrect. Bulverism in general accounts for a significant portion of religious reporting and indeed for any interesting subject that gets pulled into... Read more