I just wrote a piece for the Gospel Coalition entitled “Darkening of the Light: Hawthorne and the Post-Puritan Conscience.” Some who enjoy probing the intersection of literature and theology may find it of interest. I personally love it, and don’t see enough folks doing it or even thinking it’s a valuable enterprise. It most certainly is. Some of the most astute theologians are and were writers, figures who might recoil at the designation but who nonetheless deserve the title. A... Read more
Noteworthy piece from Karen Swallow Prior at The Atlantic on the costs of delaying marriage and the case for entering into it while young. Here’s a swatch: Interestingly, in a 2009 report, sociologist Mark Regnerus found that much of the pressure to delay marriage comes from parents who encourage their children to finish their education before marrying. One student told him that her parents “want my full attention on grades and school.” But such advice reflects an outdated reality, one in which a... Read more
I came across a terrific piece by Brian Howard of the Sojourn Network a bit ago. It’s entitled “You Have to Stop Working Sometimes,” and it’s well worth your time. This is especially true if you fit the model of the type A, driven, aggressive kind of person, regardless of what kind of field you’re in. Sometimes the biggest workaholics are in full-time ministry. Shouldn’t be true, but it is. We need this stuff, people. We need it societally, we... Read more
“I just want our kids training like a pack of wild dogs,” Roose said last month while wearing a “Wild Dog” T-shirt and camouflage cargo shorts. This, my friends, is why I think the basketball team of Virginia Commonwealth Union might go far (again) in the NCAA tournament. They train like “wild dogs,” and then they full-court press according to coach Shaka Smart’s “Havoc” defense. Here’s what they did this past offseason to get ready, according to the Wall Street... Read more
Andrew Ferguson of the Weekly Standard is a great writer of profiles. He just published a delightful–and delightfully long–piece entitled “The Heretic” on Thomas Nagel, the philosopher who has dared to challenge the naturalistic orthodoxy of the American academy. Here’s a section: Thomas Nagel may be the most famous philosopher in the United States—a bit like being the best power forward in the Lullaby League, but still. His paper “What Is It Like to Be a Bat?” was recognized as a classic... Read more
The New York Times just published a piece about the various young leaders of the pro-marriage effort in the nation’s capital. It’s an exciting story, and it features two good friends of mine, Andrew Walker and Eric Teetsel. The story, entitled “Young Opponents of Sam-Sex Marriage Undaunted” by Samantha Parker, also references Ryan Anderson, who I just last week noted has established himself as the leader par excellence of the natural-law wing of the pro-marriage coalition. You will want to read... Read more
One of the most common ideas on offer in the cultural discussion of homosexuality is this: “humanity.” As in something like, “Senator Rob Portman now affirms same-sex marriage because he has seen the humanity of his son.” The implication of this statement, at least by some, is that considering homosexuality a sin per Romans 1 and Leviticus 19 (among other biblical texts) is inhumane. If you hold that position, you are seeing a homosexual person as an abstraction, not a... Read more
So the new thing today is to publicly support same-sex marriage. Hillary Clinton just did; Rob Bell just did. Here’s what Bell was quoted as saying in the Huffington Post: In response to a question regarding same-sex marriage, Bell said, “I am for marriage. I am for fidelity. I am for love, whether it’s a man and woman, a woman and a woman, a man and a man. I think the ship has sailed and I think the church needs... Read more
Eric Metaxas has been in the news of late. He was at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota for a talk and Q&A with John Piper and Jason Meyer (video above). Earlier today, he gave a notable speech on religious freedom at CPAC, the conservative shindig. Here’s a swatch from the broader talk: In my book Amazing Grace I tell the story of William Wilberforce. It’s the story of what happens when a man drags religion into the public square... Read more
Denny Burk just offered a discomfiting commentary on the recent remarks at CPAC by GOP presidential frontrunner Marco Rubio regarding marriage. Here’s what Denny, my eagle-eyed colleague, had this to say: I like Marco Rubio. I really do. But did you see his remarks at CPAC today? If not, you can watch above. There was a brief moment that may have gone unnoticed by many viewers and by those in attendance. It was a subtle turn of phrase that I... Read more
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