When somebody claims to be just like Dietrich Bonhoeffer, that's usually a big clue that they're nothing like Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Also: A premillennial dispensationalist "Bible prophecy scholar" explains how Psalm 83 disproves the nuclear deal with Iran; the deadliest enemy force; the undifferentiated "we" strikes again; and an excuse to revisit Brian Ritchie's bass solo on "Please Do Not Go." Read more
It really took a lot of work to imagine that a law mandating and subsidizing health insurance wouldn't increase the number of people who have health insurance. Plus: Batgirl, Philomena Cunk, Rick Santorum, subsidizing sprawl, and why pop songs should be about more than one thing. Read more
I'm sure that some people will perceive my focus on these passages as an "attack" on the Bible. But I'm not attacking it, I'm just quoting it -- accurately. Those who wish to "defend" the Bible from being quoted accurately need to recognize that it cannot be the Bible itself that they're defending. Read more
"Ehud came to him, while he was sitting alone in his cool roof-chamber, and said, 'I have a message from God for you.' So he rose from his seat. Then Ehud reached with his left hand, took the sword from his right thigh, and thrust it into Eglon’s belly; the hilt also went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not draw the sword out of his belly; and the dirt came out." Read more
Got distracted. Talk amongst yourselves. (Shouldn’t Matt’s hair be a bit redder?) Read more
Here is a young man without faith, without hope. He is convinced the world is meaningless -- there is no God, death is absolute, life is absurd and love is a delusion. Then the fateful day arrives. In the twinkling of an eye, his teammates and opponents vanish. He is confronted with stark, incontrovertible proof of the existence of God. Life, he realizes, does have meaning -- there is a basis for faith, hope and love. And so he kills himself. Read more
OK, allow me to geek out for a bit here, because the new "Daredevil" series debuts tomorrow on Netflix. I'm a big fan of Daredevil, so I'm really looking forward to this. But I'm also worried about it -- because I'm a big fan of Daredevil. Read more
"There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love." Read more
Unregulated corporate lawyer-bots block libertarian political announcement. Pseudo-historian David Barton did not write the song "Palisade Park." Guns are not always a proxy for racism, only most of the time. And will streaming TV mean the end of Christmas episodes? Read more
Fred Kaplan on the outline of the deal with Iran. Mary Hunt on the Vatican Council on Women. Helaine Olen on the amnesia of the poor scolds. Marika Rose on the meaning of "Christianity." And Ed Kilgore reminds us that "We've Used 'Religious Liberty' for Discrimination Before." Read more
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