Thoughts on ethics, society, politics, religion, philosophy, theology, and everything in between
There are many ways in which a person may define their personal identity. In many cultures which stress the importance of the community over the individual, people often define their identity first in terms of the family they belong to or their family relationships. Or they might define identity first in terms of the national … Read more
I once had the following conversation at church. A fellow church member walked up to me and asked, “So, are you still single?” I responded yes. Then he walked away. This conversation exemplifies the attitude of most contemporary American Protestant churches to singleness. Singleness is a problem to be solved. If someone remains single for … Read more
Sexual Ethics Today Why is it wrong to be sexually promiscuous? Typical reasons that modern Christians give are that sexual promiscuity can lead to out-of-wedlock pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, and emotional and relational hurt. While these reasons are valid as far as they go, it is quite significant that Scripture never once mentions the first … Read more
Gluttony When most people hear the word “gluttony,” they define it as overeating. Very often, this is associated in people’s minds with a person’s weight, such that we may assume that people who are overweight are guilty of gluttony, while people who are not overweight are not guilty of it. However, this is an overly … Read more
I would venture to say that greed has become the most socially accepted sin among modern Western Christians. American Christians committed to the Authority of Scripture spend a lot of time pointing out how American culture (and theologically liberal Christians) teaches a radically different sexual ethic than biblical sexual ethics, but spend relatively little time … Read more
Pride and Self-Esteem When I was in grade school, we sang a song in music class with the lyrics, “I am proud of who I am, proud of what I am, proud of where I’m going, proud of what I’m doing. My life is my life; I have the power to be.” The purpose of … Read more
Previously, I made the case that there is no universal morality; there are only a variety of particular moralities. Furthermore, I argued that any claim to objective moral truth must logically be based in some kind of transcendent reality. Here, I will flesh out these ideas a bit further, analyzing how different moralities interact as … Read more
Previously, I have briefly made the case for Christian pacifism. I have also responded to some of the most common theological objections to Christian pacifism. Here, I will examine the logic of Christian just war theory and show why it is deeply problematic. Just War and Christian Love According to Christian just war theory, it … Read more
A year ago, I made the case for Christian pacifism. Here, I revisit this topic, responding to some of the most common theological objections made against Christian pacifism. Old Testament Violence The Objection: In the Old Testament, God not only allowed His people to use violence, but He actually commanded them to use violence on … Read more
Most modern Western people tend to think of ethics in a very individualistic manner. They consider the primary ethical question to be, “What should I do?” The same can be said of most modern Western Christians. They consider the primary ethical question to be, “What does God want me to do?” The Church may be … Read more