Thoughts on ethics, society, politics, religion, philosophy, theology, and everything in between
Jed 
In contemporary political debates, a phrase that frequently appears is the “separation of church and state.” Most often, people appeal to this phrase in an attempt to argue against certain religiously-grounded beliefs from having an influence on government policy. Since this has significant implications for some of the most important and controversial political issues of … Read more
Natural Law Christians know what the will of God is. They know what is morally right and wrong. They know this because God has revealed this to His covenant people in His word, the Scriptures, and ultimately in His Word, Jesus Christ. But what about those who do not know God in this way? Is … Read more
In the first three parts of this series, I presented a Christian theological framework for making sense of the problem of evil. First, God did not create evil; evil exists as a result of the free human choice to rebel against God at the Fall. Second, on the cross, God Himself was willing to humble … Read more
In the first part of this series, I addressed the question of how evil could come to exist at all within the creation of a good, omnipotent God, pointing to the Christian doctrine of the Fall as an answer. In the second part of this series, I addressed the question of how we can believe … Read more
Does God love us? Does God care about us? Where is God? Has He abandoned us? Why doesn’t He do something to help us? These are questions that believers in God who experience deep suffering have been asking for centuries. For example, the biblical book of Psalms contains many psalms written by ancient Israelites that … Read more
The Problem According to monotheism, God is both omnipotent (having unlimited power) and perfectly good. But when we look around at the world we live in, we can see much evil. This creates a problem regarding the reasonableness of monotheism, a problem typically referred to as “the problem of evil.” The problem of evil can … Read more
Plagues. Hurricanes. Earthquakes. Tsunamis. Volcanic Eruptions. These events can kill thousands, bring suffering to many times more, and seriously disrupt the normal course of life and society. They cause us to pause and to ask the question: why do these things happen? Natural Disasters and Evil For the atheist, the answer is obvious: these events … Read more
America and Religious Pluralism The United States of America prides itself on being a religiously pluralistic society, both culturally and politically. Unlike many societies, there is no established state religion, and the U.S. Constitution legally guarantees people freedom of religion. This is supposed to guarantee a culture of religious pluralism, in which people adhering to … Read more
Harris, Sam. Letter to a Christian Nation. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006. I originally wrote this commentary for a friend who told me that this book had inspired him to leave Christianity. The fact that someone could, over a decade after it was written, point to this book as a primary factor in their … Read more
Most modern Christians read the New Testament with a filter that says, “New Testament ethics is only about personal morality, so of course the New Testament ethic of love says nothing against state-sponsored violence; of course the New Testament ethic of love does not forbid us to hate and kill the enemies of our nation.” … Read more