My post on “Sex at Seminary” has prompted some angry responses. I’m hardly the ideal person to express these things. It will be hard for people not to read the post through the lens of identity politics. I am an evangelical, and a conservative, making some critical comments about a Mainline Protestant seminary where the prevailing culture is further to the Left. I would caution, however, against dismissing a critique because of the identity of the critic. I really did... Read more
A little light weekend fare: This comes from a very interesting site, Thomas the Doubter, and thanks to Erik Hanson for pointing it out. Read more
I was not a geek in high school. I know this because I never had a slushee tossed in my face (which, according to no less an authority than Glee, is the leading indicator of geek status in high school), and I never suffered the distinct indignity of a “wedgie,” and I never went to high school. As a top-ranked gymnast, I worked through our high school’s “independent study” program, which meant that every person in every class I took thought... Read more
Tithing to churches has reached its lowest level in at least 41 years — and of the smaller amount churches are receiving, a smaller proportion of church funds is serving the needy outside the congregation. These are two of the findings from an analysis of church tithing and giving patterns from 1968 to 2009 by Empty Tomb, Inc. The study focused on mainline denominations but also included some evangelical Protestant bodies. Our first inclination might be to blame the decline... Read more
Sometimes those of us who write in defense of the Tea Party or Christian conservatism fear that an actual encounter with Tea Partiers or Christian conservatives will be disillusioning. It’s easy to defend the principles of economic and social conservatism from a distance; but what happens when you actually encounter the people up close? You’re on record claiming that these are salt-of-the-earth people, good rational people (darn it) with a genuine faith and sturdy American values — but what if... Read more
I’ve been embarrassed by my daughter before. Once when we reached her school, I bumped her shoulder as I reached down into the car-seat to pull her out, and after we went inside she reported to her teachers that “Daddy hit me.” That took a little explaining. But it was nothing like this: (From Facebook via Mother, Inc.) Read more
It’s a critically important question for every Christian to consider — and the video below, addressing this question, is called by John Piper “the most remarkable (video) lecture on the reliability of the Gospels I’ve ever heard.” (HT Denny Burk) Curious yet? When young Christians study the Bible in the context of modern biblical scholarship today, they’re confronted very quickly with the question of whether the Gospels accurately and faithfully describe the life, ministry and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth.... Read more
After I had read his book, The Man in the Middle, I had the pleasure of speaking with Tim Goeglein, who from 2001 to 2008 was one of George W. Bush’s longest-serving aides, as Deputy Director of the Office of Public Liaison. I was struck in particular by his testament to the president’s compassion. Although he famously flubbed his lines in speeches, and some of his Bush-isms are now a part of our common tongue (like strategiary and misunderestimated), Bush... Read more
Are we witnessing a new awakening of religious conservatives to the political process? Is that a good thing? Or, rather, what safeguards might we put in place, what lessons might we learn from past failures, in order to make sure that this is a good thing? I’m not eager to write another post that references Robert Jeffress, but the unflappable pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas raised several important issues when he promoted Rick Perry and called Mormonism... Read more
The Democratic Party is a club for pedophiles. I’m sorry. I know that’s a tough thing to hear — and let me assure you, it pains me to say it. But the truth is the truth, and there’s nothing right or noble or loving in bending the truth. To be sure, Democrats are not pedophiles according to the standard definition. But there’s another definition, one that my friends and I use. We call “political pedophiles” anyone who wants to keep... Read more
Philosophical Fragments
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