2012-04-27T23:09:19-05:00

Last updated on: April 27, 2012 at 11:09 pm   By

Thanks to the faithful visitor to my blog who alerted me to the fact that I am mentioned in this Sunday’s (April 29, 2012) New York Times (Book Reviews) in an article entitled “Breaking Faith”–a review by Randall Balmer. Balmer uses me as one of five people who provide “evidence of the vitality of Christian thinking.” I really don’t think I deserve that, but I’ll gladly accept it (especially if it helps sell my books! 🙂 I have known Randall... Read more

2012-04-27T12:34:59-05:00

Last updated on: April 27, 2012 at 12:34 pm   By

Please excuse this test post. I’m trying to find the right font. The one I see when I create my post isn’t what shows up when the post appears on my blog. I’ll keep working on it. Read more

2012-04-25T12:44:44-05:00

Last updated on: April 25, 2012 at 12:44 pm   By

Emerging Churches and the Jesus People Movement Compared Earlier I blogged about similarities I see between the Young, Restless, Reformed movement and the Bill Gothard Basic Youth Conflicts Seminars movement of the 1970s and 1980s. Now I would like to discuss similarities and differences between two mostly youth-oriented Christian movements separated by about forty years—the contemporary Emerging (or Emergent) Churches Movement (ECM) and the much earlier Jesus People Movement (JPM). Recently I’ve been reading Tony Jones’s new book The Church... Read more

2012-04-22T12:43:09-05:00

Last updated on: April 22, 2012 at 12:43 pm   By

What follows is a guest post by Austin Fischer, Teaching Pastor at Vista Community Church, Belton, Texas. Austin is a seminary graduate with strong interest in theology. As always with guest posts, I have to say that “The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Roger Olson.” However, I wouldn’t put this here if I didn’t agree with its basic message. These are Austin’s words, so I am going to let him respond to comments about this message.... Read more

2017-12-02T18:59:38-05:00

Last updated on: December 2, 2017 at 6:59 pm   By

What Distinguishes “Evangelical” from “Fundamentalist?” Is it possible to be truly, authentically evangelical without being fundamentalist? That’s what I really meant to ask in books like Reformed and Always Reforming, How to Be Evangelical without Being Conservative, and Questions to All Your Answers (and in many of my articles about “postconservative evangelicalism.” The problem is that, over the last few decades, fewer and fewer people call themselves “fundamentalists.” I think that probably began when the media started using the label... Read more

2012-04-17T14:35:51-05:00

Last updated on: April 17, 2012 at 2:35 pm   By

For some reason WordPress has changed my font size and being the complete non-techie that I am, i don’t know how to change it back! I hope this won’t prevent you from reading if that is your intention. I’ll try to get it back to normal size font as soon as possible. (Patheos.com has been making some fairly dramatic changes to the format, so I assume that’s what caused this little problem.) “Theodicy”–The attempt to justify the ways of God... Read more

2012-04-15T12:33:12-05:00

Last updated on: April 15, 2012 at 12:33 pm   By

Part 8 of Response to The Gospel as Center; Chapter 8: “Christ’s Redemption” by Sandy Wilson   Sandy Wilson is pastor of an Evangelical Presbyterian church. That’s a distinct denomination: The Evangelical Presbyterian Church. I’ve been told it is somewhat less conservative than the PCA but more conservative than the PCUSA. Again, I approached this chapter assuming it would emphasize penal substitution as part and parcel of the gospel and probably also promote belief in limited atonement. I was right... Read more

2012-04-12T12:26:39-05:00

Last updated on: April 12, 2012 at 12:26 pm   By

And Now…It’s Time’s Turn: April 16 (2012) Cover Story about Heaven It seems the major weekly news magazines are competing for readers by having more frequent covers stories about religion. A few days ago I blogged about Newsweek’s cover story about embracing Jesus and abandoning the church. The current issue of Time has a cover story entitled (on the cover) “Rethinking Heaven.” The actual title of the story (inside) is “Heaven Can’t Wait: Why Rethinking the Hereafter Could Make the... Read more

2012-04-10T12:50:17-05:00

Last updated on: April 10, 2012 at 12:50 pm   By

Part 7 of Response to The Gospel as Center. Chapter 7: “What Is the Gospel” by Bryan Chapell Bryan Chapell is president of Covenant Theological Seminary and is Reformed Presbyterian. I approached this chapter expecting to find somewhere in it a ringing affirmation of monergism as part and parcel of the gospel. I was not disappointed, but I was wrong. This is a marvelous chapter with which many good Arminians can agree whole heartedly. I suspect that would come as... Read more

2012-04-08T17:12:27-05:00

Last updated on: April 8, 2012 at 5:12 pm   By

“Truly he is risen!”  “He…sure is!” An Easter Meditation On Easter Sunday morning I took my “Church Fathers and Reformers” class to the Orthodox cathedral. The priest knew we were coming and invited my class and me to come forward first for the antidoron bread at the end of the liturgy. We sat together in the middle of the sanctuary through the long service, trying our best, and with the kind help of members, to follow along with the liturgy... Read more

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