Thoughts on ethics, society, politics, religion, philosophy, theology, and everything in between
The Gospel and Nonviolence “When people with power see things happen of which they disapprove, they drop bombs and send in tanks. When people without power see things of which they disapprove, they smash store windows, blow themselves up in crowded places, and fly planes into buildings. The fact that both methods have proved remarkably … Read more
The past 2,000 years of Church history have been a long and winding road. The early Church tried to do its best to live out the radically countercultural reality of Jesus’s Kingdom in the midst of a hostile culture. But beginning in the fourth century, there was a dramatic transition to Christendom, in which Christianity … Read more
The End of Christendom For many centuries, from the late Roman Empire, through the Middle Ages, and into the Modern period, the political, social, and ecclesial status quo in Western civilization was that of Christendom. All of society was (supposedly) Christian. “Christian” governments used coercion and violence to force everyone to be part of the … Read more
A Great Apostasy? There is a popular belief among many Christians that in the early fourth century, with the conversion of the Roman Emperor Constantine to Christianity, the church suddenly committed a “Great Apostasy” by turning away from the Way of Jesus, making a grab for worldly political power, and embracing “Constantinianism.” Usually this is … Read more
The Importance of Church History There are two reasons it is important to know about Church history. The first reason is so that the Church today can look to the authority of Church tradition to guide us. Even if we are Protestants who believe in “sola scriptura,” we must recognize that the Bible itself is … Read more
Theological Ethics “A properly Christian ethic cannot hold to the notion of a general ethics and remain Christian. To advocate this is to demand that Christians who are subject to the Word of God share that allegiance with something which is autonomous from God’s Word. For Christians to resort to an autonomous general ethics, as … Read more
Doctrine and Ethics Which is more important: right belief or right action? We have all heard this question asked countless times. Usually, this question is asked by people who then confidently answer that right action is obviously more important; therefore, right belief, right theology, does not matter. After all, people can have true beliefs while … Read more
Is Evangelism Good? Evangelism has come to be frowned upon in many modern Western Christian circles of late. Some see it as intolerant to try to make others adopt one’s own religion. Since Christianity is a “Western religion,” trying to make the whole world adopt Christianity seems to many to be a form of oppressive … Read more
Only about half of American Christians attend church every Sunday. About a third attend church irregularly (some as little as a few times a year). And about 15% of American Christians attend church seldom or never.[1]Statistics from the Pew Research Center, https://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/attendance-at-religious-services/ Apparently, many American Christians think that going to church is an optional part … Read more
Why Fast? Fasting is the deliberate abstaining from food, or at least certain types of food, for a fixed period of time. By extension, any deliberate abstaining from a particular created good (entertainment, luxury, comfort) for a fixed period of time can be considered “fasting.” Many modern Western Christians do not engage in fasting to … Read more