Can a Calvinist Honestly Say “God Loves You” to Everyone? Recently a leading American Calvinist pastor-theologian has asked and answered this all-important question on his blog: Can a Calvinist (and he means himself and those who agree with him) honestly say “God loves you” to everyone and anyone? I have answered this question in Against Calvinism (Zondervan) and here, on my blog, before. But I’ll go at it again—for those who haven’t read what I have said about it before… Read more

Is “Calminianism” Really a Thing?   Recently I received in the mail a pre-publication copy of an article that will appear in the forthcoming Mixed Blessings: The Dictionary of Blended Religion by author Tim Stewart. (When it is published I will announce that here. In the meantime you can follow its progress toward publication at http://www.mixedblessingsdictionary.com .) The article I received is entitled “Calminian” and the first paragraph is as follows: “A Christian who affirms a combination of Calvinist and… Read more

“We Have Met the Enemy and He Is Us” Thoughts about American “Evangelicals” The famous saying “We have met the enemy and he is us” was created by cartoon strip writer Walt Kelly in 1970. (He repeated it in 1971.) Kelly’s cartoon strip in the Sunday “comics” section of newspapers was called “Pogo.” The phrase was a paraphrase of a famous military commander who, during the War of 1812, declared “We have met the enemy and they are ours.” From… Read more

“The Climb” Guest Post by Asahel Adams *This is a sermon heard at a Christian wedding in 2015. The preacher is an elder at an independent Christian church. I thought it was worth sharing with my readers. (Note to would-be commenters: Do not even attempt to expose anything about the author-preacher; he will not be here to respond. I do not know him personally. There were about one thousand people at this wedding ceremony. I asked a friend of the… Read more

What Can Be “The Bible?” A question has come to me and the questioner has asked that I addressed it on my blog. I am happy to try. Here is the question: Can “the Bible” only be a book, a physical object (parchment or pages with words) or can “the Bible” be truly and authentically “there” in some other form? This question has arisen recently especially in conservative Protestant churches (fundamentalist and evangelical especially) as a result of the reality… Read more

Who Is an “Evangelical” and Who Gets to Decide? This question (or two) has been discussed almost to death over my adult lifetime among evangelicals. Many years ago I began to attend a then relatively new “society” of evangelical scholars that met annually. I remember three annual meetings during which panelists and members of the audience talked about who is an evangelical and who gets to decide. No consensus emerged. It was frustrating. In the last moment of the third… Read more

The Prophethood of Every Believer “Prophecy” means many different things to different people. Here I mean by “prophet” someone who speaks God’s truth to God’s people and to people with power. Often this includes making people uncomfortable by pointing out their sins—personal and social. The Bible describes certain people as called by God to be prophets and to prophecy. From the earliest extra-biblical writings we know there were prophets among late first century and early second century Christians especially in… Read more

Billy Graham as “Pope” of Evangelicalism Roger E. Olson   *Note: This essay was presented at a symposium of the Institute for the Studies of Religion at Baylor University on November 7, 2018–the 100th anniversary of Billy Graham’s birth. You may respond, but please do not react. Reactionary (negative, hostile) comments will not be approved and will not appear here in the comments section. (Also, I am not including a picture here because there are few, if any, in the… Read more

Calvinism and Arminianism Compared by Roger E. Olson *Note: The below is not copyrighted material, but I would appreciate it if you pass it on or use it in any form you include my name as its author. This is intended for use in Sunday School classes, church or small group Bible studies, etc. Use it however you wish without altering it. Thank you. What is Calvinism? A) Belief that God foreordains and renders certain everything that happens without any… Read more

Follow Up to My Recent Blog Post about American Men I wish I had seen this mini-documentary about “What’s Killing America’s White Men?” before writing and posting my immediately preceding post about what’s wrong with men in America. I happened across it by accident while looking for something else on Youtube. The mini-documentary was created and broadcast by the BBC (British Broadcasting Company) not very long ago. I have not found the exact date of its creation or broadcast. In… Read more