The God of Jordan Peterson

January 16, 2023 By Matthew Graham

Jordan Peterson is one of the most well-known academics in the world today. He rose to prominence after publicly opposing a bill in Canada that required citizens to use the desired pronouns of the transgender community. Political conservatives and moderate liberals have come to see Peterson as a valuable ally in the ongoing culture war. Christians have expressed their desire to see Peterson convert to Christianity. Muslims have done the same. But when asked about the existence of God, Peterson... Read more

Do Protestants Have Religious Authority?

December 15, 2022 By Matthew Graham

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Who gets to say that their interpretation of Scripture is right? How do we determine which doctrinal claims are true and which ones are false? These questions could be asked by anyone inside or outside of the church. The questions would come with different presuppositions depending on who is asking. In this article, I want to look at how a Roman Catholic would ask these questions. In Protestant circles, we appeal to the Scriptures alone as our final authority on... Read more

Protestants Are Not Little Popes

October 29, 2022 By Matthew Graham

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If you have had lengthy conversations with your Roman Catholic friends, chances are you have run across the claim: “Protestants are little popes”. In my experience, this claim has something to do with Protestants having their own private interpretations. When Protestants interpret the Bible themselves, rather than submitting to the church’s teaching authority, they become their own teaching authority. Thus Protestants illicitly take for themselves the authority that rightly belongs to the teaching authority of the Roman Catholic church. In... Read more

Can We Solve The Problem Of Evil?

October 13, 2022 By Matthew Graham

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If God loves us, why does He let us suffer? This age-old question is still one of the more difficult questions facing Christian theists. My role as a parent makes the intuitive appeal of the question more impactful. My love for my children is what motivates me to protect them. I do what I can to shield them from the multeity of evils that await them. By comparison, God’s apparent indifference to suffering in our world makes it hard to... Read more

Why We Need Metaphysics

September 20, 2022 By Matthew Graham

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One of the main ingredients of any religion is a belief in some sort of god. There are atheistic religions, but in general, religions maintain that there is some sort of superior being. It’s very common for people to believe in a god that we cannot see. In many cases, god lives in some unseen realm. Some will say, “Well I just believe in some kind of higher power” and in that case perhaps the discipline of metaphysics may not... Read more

My Year of Depression

September 12, 2022 By Matthew Graham

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In 1999 I was sitting in my undergraduate social and political philosophy class waiting for our professor to arrive. Several minutes before class started, a fellow student turned to me to tell me that she was depressed and had often thought of killing herself. I could see on her face that she was hurting and that her telling me this was a vulnerable moment for her. It would be great to be able to say that I talked her through... Read more

Christian Nationalism vs Christian Political Engagement

September 5, 2022 By Matthew Graham

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Should Christians be involved in politics? For most thoughtful people, this is a silly question. Citizens of this country have the right to participate in the political process. Being a Christian does not negate that right. All you need to do to see the absurdity of saying something like “Christians shouldn’t be involved in politics” is change the group you are talking about. You wouldn’t think of saying, “Atheists, Jews, Muslims, Latinos, etc. shouldn’t be involved in politics.” Thus, we... Read more

A Conservative Case for Diversity

August 28, 2022 By Matthew Graham

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Conservatives have a public relations problem. Whether you think it is justified or not, the notion that we don’t appreciate diversity has been foisted upon us. It’s common for the political left to think of conservatives as uncultured and tribal. The portrait painted by those who don’t like conservatives looks like a bunch of overweight white guys in jeans and rebel flag t-shirts. At best, they are well-intentioned fools who just happen to be stuck in the past. At worst,... Read more

Interrupting People Is Super Not Cool

August 23, 2022 By Matthew Graham

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Ever run into someone who interrupts you, like a lot? You listen to them for 5 to 10 minutes, then you get a chance to contribute to the conversation, and halfway through your first sentence, they cut you off. Most of us know at least one person like this. I’ve known people who will cut you off and elevate their voice over you if you try to finish your sentence. If you are like me, you generally avoid interacting with... Read more

Emotion and Spiritual Formation

August 17, 2022 By Matthew Graham

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I would not consider myself to be a particularly emotive person. If you were to ask my friends and family, they would likely agree with this assessment. Having said that, I do think the topic of emotions is extremely fascinating. What are emotions? How do they affect our decision-making? Are certain emotive states good or bad? What role do emotions play in the formation of our moral judgments? What role should emotions play in our spiritual formation? In this article,... Read more