On Sunday, I had the opportunity to preach our Outreach Sunday and invite people to step into the long stream of women and men who owned a living faith, put their faith to work, and showed their faith by their deeds—serving the poor, the sick, orphans, widows, refugees, immigrants, etc. I always want to say … Continue reading Cutting Room Floor: Christian Hubris in Charity
culture
My Christian Brothers and Sisters
This is a political post, but I am not attempting to persuade anyone to vote for the right candidate. I'm calling Christians to remember they belong to each other despite their disparate views on an election. Regrettably, I did not go to a Guardians playoff game this year, but I did two years ago, and … Continue reading My Christian Brothers and Sisters
Humanity, Law Enforcement, and the Crisis of Church Scandal
Two streams of thought have merged and crashed into my struggle with the crisis of church scandals. And yes, crisis is the correct word, not hyperbole. Ten years ago, I wrote one of my favorite papers of my academic career. The paper was on John Williamson Nevin, an obscure theologian from the 19th century. Nevin … Continue reading Humanity, Law Enforcement, and the Crisis of Church Scandal
Lynched, by Angela D. Sims
This post is not a review or a critique, just a few insights gleaned from Sims' incredibly important project (published 2016). Over the course of 18 months (July 2009 - February 2011), Sims traveled around the country collecting oral histories from people in locales as varied as New Jersey and Louisiana, Texas and Nebraska. She … Continue reading Lynched, by Angela D. Sims
How to Use a Christian Worldview
Over the last year I've been in countless conversations about politics, covid, race, theology, the environment, etc. In many of these conversations, my dialogue partner makes mention of a Christian worldview. A Christian worldview is a distinct way of viewing the world, of viewing life. I am convinced that in most of my conversations with … Continue reading How to Use a Christian Worldview
God Entranced 