Have churches recovered from COVID? Now that the panic has died down, has attendance and religious commitment come back to pre-pandemic levels? Two studies give a mixed report.
Have churches recovered from COVID? Now that the panic has died down, has attendance and religious commitment come back to pre-pandemic levels? Two studies give a mixed report.
Now that "non-denominational" churches are the largest segment of American protestantism, some say that church denominations are obsolete. But non-denominational churches are so similar with each other in their evangelical theology and their congregational polity that they really constitute a denomination unto themselves.
The Left keeps charging conservatives with rejecting democracy. That's mostly a slander. But now a Christian nationalist is saying that democracy should be scrapped in favor of rule by a "Caesar," whom he defines as “a sort of national god.”
It's time for another post of open topics, in which you bring up your own items for consideration and discussion by your fellow Cranach subscribers.
Why is woke ideology suddenly rampant in corporate boardrooms, the government bureaucracy, and popular culture? A professor argues that what we are seeing is the invasion of academia into the public square.
We have been writing about the End Times and how many Christians misunderstand the concept. But Christians are not the only ones who believe the end of the world is near. Many secularists do too. Half of 16-25 year olds believe humanity is doomed. And even progressives are giving up on progress.
The late pope emeritus Benedict XVI, whose funeral was last week, is getting lots of tributes. One of them stopped me in my tracks: the pontiff's approving words for Martin Luther and the Reformation principle that salvation is by faith alone.
Hermann Sasse, writing about Hitler's Germany, has some powerful words about the spiritual, cultural, and political consequences of lies and building on lies. What he says is stunningly applicable today.
Epiphany commemorates the visit of the Wise Men. The Christian tradition often calls them "kings," incorrectly according to the experts, and depicts them with the shepherds, though these were separate visits. But the "king" imagery connects the event to Isaiah 60, thus giving the meaning of the event: Christ's revelation to the gentiles. And showing two events in one picture follows the conventions of Christian narrative art, from ancient icons through Lucas Cranach.
The new year is a new beginning and traditionally a time to make improving changes in one's life. Hence, New Year's Resolutions. Do you make such resolutions? Any tips for keeping them?
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