Thoughts on ethics, society, politics, religion, philosophy, theology, and everything in between
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
Two Contrasts The highly successful television series 24, which aired from 2001 to 2010, follows the exploits of Counter Terrorist Unit agent Jack Bauer, as he repeatedly races against the clock to prevent major terrorist attacks against the United States of America that will occur within the next 24 hours. In addition to killing hundreds … Read more
The Political Nature of the Christian Gospel According to the modern idea of the distinction between religion and politics, religion and politics are two separate realms or spheres of human life. Religion is personal, interior, and otherworldly, while politics is public, corporate, and this-worldly. These two realms may have some kind of mutual influence or … Read more