The Worst Idea Ever: The “Catastrophe of…” Yes, I left the title incomplete because I wanted to “hook” you into reading this. I consider what I have to say here absolutely essential—for anyone who wants to understand a very basic philosophy that underlies and influences everything I say there. That people do not know this philosophy, misunderstanding and miscommunication are almost inevitable. I find myself often sitting back bemused by many of the responses I read here because, I realize,... Read more

Can You Be a Baptist and Hindu (or Buddhist)? Now, before someone jumps to the wrong conclusion…I am NOT saying that Kamala Harris (Joe Biden’s chosen running mate) claims to be both Baptist and Hindu. However, I have heard people SAY that she is both Baptist and Hindu—as if that were possible (and some have said it as if it were good!). Kamala Harris, very possibly America’s next Vice President and possibly America’s next president, was raised by a Baptist... Read more

Why I Have a Problem with the Phrase “Practical Theology” Most seminaries in America have a department or unit of the curriculum (and professors who teach those courses) called “practical theology.” There are Christian scholars who specializes in “practical theology”—who write books that fit into that category and who speak and inform professors, students, pastors and lay people about this subject or some part of it. What does “practical theology” usually include? Usually it includes such subjects as congregational leadership,... Read more

Our Feet Are Set on Slippery Places: Reflections on the Political Divide in America What more is there to say about this subject? Numerous commentators have weighed in on it. And yet, we don’t seem to be making any progress toward greater civility. The divide is growing wider and deeper and people on both sides of it are demonizing people on the other side. It is worse than any time that I can remember (which goes back to the 1960s).... Read more

Second (or Third) Thoughts about Situation Ethics (Part 2) Before reading this be sure to read Part 1. (Any response to this Part 2 that indicates you have not read Part 1 will not be approved.) So was Joseph Fletcher’s “situation ethics” a “new morality?” He even he admitted that most of what he was saying was not new; he mentioned frequently as precursors of his situational approach to Christian ethics: Saint Augustine, Emil Brunner, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Augustine famously... Read more

Second (or Third) Thoughts about Situation Ethics (Part One) I recently completed a second or third reading of the famous or infamous 1960s book Situation Ethics: The New Morality by American Protestant theologian and ethicist Joseph Fletcher (1905-1991). It was first published in 1966 and was widely lumped together with other radical theological proposals published around the same time such as Honest to God by John A. T. Robinson, The Gospel of Christian Atheism by Thomas Altizer, and The Secular... Read more

Why an Income Tax Is the Only Fair Tax *I write here as a Christian ethicist, but I think what I argue does not depend on Christianity* When I was a kid growing up in the capital city of a state in the Upper Midwest of the U.S. my parents had to pay a “personal property tax” every year. I don’t recall whether it was imposed by the city, the county or the state or some combination (as with most... Read more

A Really Good Reformed Systematic Theology I’m sure many people will think it ironic that I, Roger Olson, an outspoken Arminian, recommend the same systematic theology/dogmatics as does Michael Horton! The relatively new, one volume systematic theology/dogmatics is Christian Dogmatics: An Introduction by two Dutch theologians: Cornelis van der Kooi and Gijsbert van den Brink (Eerdmans, 2017). Thanks to the publisher who sent me the 806 page (including bibliographies) volume free! At first I set it aside thinking: How can... Read more

Something Interesting…about Many Comments Here…and a Question… Some of my recent blog essays (“musings”) here have been about history. For example, I wrote about how Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany and what role Christians played in that. I also wrote about the beginning obvious signs of totalitarianism in certain South American countries. These are events everyone should know about. Many do not know about them. My point was simply that those who fail to learn history are doomed... Read more

How Would It Begin? The Early Signs of Totalitarianism One day some nonviolent protesters against police brutality are walking together down a city center street near their encampment. They have not broken any federal laws but are suspected of being anarchists. The state, county and local police have not issued warrants for their arrest or for the arrest of their comrades. They authorities have chosen to let them camp out downtown and exercise their right to free speech. A few... Read more