The COVID-19 epidemic has forced churches to worship online. It’s possible to hear a sermon or pray online, but how about receiving the sacraments? Can a pastor consecrate elements that the worshippers have at home? Here are reasons why that should not be done. Communion has to do with “body” and “presence,” both of Christ and the Church. Read more
May 21, 2020
Avoiding Health Care
May 21, 2020 By Gene Veith
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In the early days of the COVID-19 epidemic, officials, worried about an overwhelmed health care system, urged the public to stay away from health care facilities unless absolutely necessary. Now emergency room visits are down as much as 50%. Fewer people are seeking treatment for heart disease, strokes, and cancer. Some physicians worry that more people may be dying from staying away from medical care than are dying from the virus. Read more
May 20, 2020
Bourgeois Leftists
May 20, 2020 By Gene Veith
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Today’s leftists tend to be from the affluent middle class, while the rightists tend to be from the working class. This violates conventional wisdom, political stereotypes, and socialist ideology. Nathan Pinkoski argues that today’s leftists have adopted what classic socialism denounced as “bourgeois” values. Namely, the ideals of individual autonomy and self-creation. This sets them against the working class they used to champion. Read more
May 19, 2020
The Origins of Social Distancing
May 19, 2020 By Gene Veith
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Why haven’t governments required social distancing, stay at home orders, and economic lockdowns in other epidemics? It turns out, these tactics were developed in 2006 by a scientist who got the idea from his 14-year-old daughter. Read more
May 18, 2020
Animals in the Afterlife
May 18, 2020 By Gene Veith
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Will there be animals–particularly, our pets–in Heaven, or, to be more exact, in the Resurrection and New Creation? Most arguments on the topic are something like, “in Heaven we’ll be happy, and how can I be happy without my pet?” But Mark Driscoll actually digs into the Bible and cites evidence that animals–indeed, our pets–may be part of the afterlife. Read more
May 15, 2020
Weird Christianity
May 15, 2020 By Gene Veith
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Some Christians, particularly younger adults, are reacting against secularism and contemporary Christianity by embracing “anti-modern” Christianity, with its sacramentalism, liturgies, and ancient theologies. They prize Christianity in all its “weirdness”–that is, its mind-blowing supernaturalism–and call themselves “weird Christians.” Read more
May 14, 2020
The Intrinsic Limits of Science
May 14, 2020 By Gene Veith
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Modernists assumed that science will answer all questions, even as it “disenchants” the physical world. But science has come so far that it keeps disclosing new mysteries. Some people’s faith in science has been shaken by the coronavirus, but they need to realize that science has specific limits. Read more
May 13, 2020
Give Us All $2000 per Month, Pay 80% of Our Salary, or Pay our Housing?
May 13, 2020 By Gene Veith
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Ideas for the next round of coronavirus bailouts include paying virtually every American $2,000 per month; paying 80% of company payrolls; and paying everybody’s mortgages or rent for a year. Read more
May 12, 2020
Singing Is Unlikely to Spread COVID-19
May 12, 2020 By Gene Veith
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Does singing in church risk spreading the coronavirus by projecting respiratory particles in the air? Two German scientists have found that singing only sets air in motion for half a meter, making it highly unlikely that it could infect people practicing social distancing. Read more
May 11, 2020
Back to Church, Finally!
May 11, 2020 By Gene Veith
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Our state, Oklahoma, is “opening up” from the coronavirus shutdown so we were able to go to church for the first time in seven weeks. Despite the social distancing protocols, it was wonderful. Relaxing the restrictions is controversial, but we may have to learn to live–or die–with the virus. Read more
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