One of the more memorable evenings of my Harvard years came when I received a rather panicked call from an administrator for the Committee on the Study of Religion. “Would you be able to pick up a speaker from the airport?” she asked. Of course, I said. Who’s the speaker? “A guy named Alvin Plantinga.” They needed someone to pick him up, and I was the first evangelical doctoral student who came to mind. I had read several of his... Read more
Demonstrating the kind of lovingkindness that has made Westboro Baptist Church so famous around the country and indeed around the world, Timothy Phelps (the fifth son of the ‘Reverend’ Fred Phelps) jumped into a recent conversation here at Patheos to assert that his nieces Megan and Grace, who famously left Westboro Baptist “Church” recently, did not actually leave the church because of legitimate doubts about the church’s teachings but simply because they wanted to enjoy a little fornication every now... Read more
Mark Oppenheimer’s recent cover article on faith and football for Sports Illustrated is a sterling example of agenda journalism. Whether or not the author had an agenda when he accepted the assignment, he clearly had one by the time he started writing: not representing in a deep and nuanced way the faith lives of football players but assembling a thin, one-sided argument that football corrodes the souls of athletes and fans alike. Now, there’s nothing wrong with having a thesis, but it... Read more
The moral status of homosexuality and the legal advancement of same-sex marriage remain among the preeminent moral and theological issues confronting the church. I’ve published many pieces representing a diversity of opinion — including my own thoughts (see here and here, for instance), which do not neatly fall into the expected categories. I appreciate the way in which this blog has become a place for serious conversation about these issues. Many will know already that more information emerged this week... Read more
Editor’s Note: From John Mark Reynolds, Provost of Houston Baptist University: Complain about Beyoncé at the Super Bowl and you’re a prude: after all, Beyoncé in her underwear is just like Elvis grinding his clothed hips. Point out that education is making little use of technological tools, dressing up mid-twentieth-century techniques in shiny applications, and you’re a crank: the iPad is just a shiny typewriter. We love Jane Austen, but if Jane Austen were to see us she might think modernity... Read more
As Paul Bedard reports, new information emerges about the man who entered the DC offices of the Family Research Council and opened fire — a man who would have taken many more lives if the guard had not heroically stopped him: Floyd Lee Corkins II pleaded guilty to three charges including a charge of committing an act of terrorism related to the August 15, 2012 injuring of FRC’s guard. He told the FBI that he wanted to kill anti-gay targets and went... Read more
Dr James Dobson has been one of the most recognized and influential evangelical Christian American leaders for over three decades. With a doctorate in child development from USC, he developed extremely popular parenting books and videos, and founded Focus on the Family in 1977. Through his organizational leadership, through his writings and radio broadcasts, and through his political influence and counsel to American Presidents, Dr. Dobson has served as a strong and consistent voice on behalf of the unborn, children, marriage, and... Read more
Recently I mentioned that I was sincerely questioning whether religious conservatives should still favor laws and constitutional amendments against same-sex marriage. My reasons were partly practical, partly strategic, and partly theological. Let me try to reframe the argument: 1. It was once the case that there prevailed in the United States an overwhelming cultural consensus on the meaning of marriage. The United States inherited its cultural consensus on the meaning of marriage from the Judeo-Christian tradition. While some of the... Read more
Several recent posts (here and here) on the topic of homosexuality and traditional Christian marriage evoked the usual hate mail, and some of it was worth reading. One comment, from a gentleman calling himself Joe Chip, illustrated why this conversation is so treacherous. Although it began with the usual ridiculousness (“Timothy Dalrymple is so wrong on every count it makes ones [sic] head spin”), it assumed ill motives on my part but turned in a more illuminating direction: Timothy goes... Read more
Editor’s Note: The following is a guest post from Scotty Curlee, a competitive cyclist who competed against many of Lance Armstrong’s teammates, some of whom are now under the cloud of scandal along with their fallen leader. See the end for more biographical information and for a link to Scotty’s new film. * How Lance Armstrong Can Still Win the Race By Scotty Curlee Terry Armstrong was a Christian, and he came from a family who had a tendency to tell... Read more
Philosophical Fragments
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