Except for the Bible, I don’t know that I have ever wept in response to a book. But I did yesterday as I finished Wendell Berry’s novel Hannah Coulter. This little book is a rare pleasure not just for its literary quality, but for the vision of life that it casts before the reader. Seeing the world through the eyes of the main character Hannah Coulter has caused me to rethink my own vision of things, and she has done so in ways that evoke the very themes of scripture. Here are some of the things this book helped me to see:
-
-
Who’s Your Daddy? Could Be Ferris Bueller for 2015 Class
The freshmen class entering college this Fall has no remembrance of what life was like before the Internet, what this whole Communist Party fuss was about in Russia, and that Amazon was once just known as a river in South America. Ferris Bueller is old enough to be their dad, and they probably don’t know the name of the bar where everybody knows your name (MSNBC.com). Every August since 1998, Beloit College has compiled the Beloit College Mindset List, “providing a look at the cultural touchstones that shape the lives of students entering college this fall.” The paragraph above describe just a handful of cultural items that have shaped (or…
-
Ding, Dong, Postmodernism Is Dead
I remember reading Stanley Grenz’s Primer on Postmodernism in seminary and being impressed with his clear exposition of the postmodern spirit of the age. I knew that the atmosphere was polluted, and I wanted to know exactly what it was I had been inhaling. Grenz explained—better than anyone I had ever read—the air that I had been choking on.
-
Closed Communion as Mere Christianity
Russell Moore does a great job defending closed communion as a valid expression of “mere Christianity.” Here’s a little bit of it: It seems sectarian to say one can’t come to the table unless one has been baptized by immersion as a believer, unless one realizes that, for Baptist Christians, this is what baptism is. Along with Eastern Orthodox Christians, Baptists affirm that Jesus meant “to immerse” when he commanded us to baptize. Unlike the Orthodox, Catholics, and the magisterial Reformers, Baptists believe a baptism is only valid when conferred on one who is in Christ, and who professes him as Lord. Ironically, it is here, where Baptists stand the…
-
All Evangelicals Are “Dominionists”
Lisa Miller observes in The Washington Post that the Republican primary race has spawned many news stories raising fears about “crazy Christians.” She writes, “Their echo-chamber effect reignites old anxieties among liberals about evangelical Christians. Some on the left seem suspicious that a firm belief in Jesus equals a desire to take over the world… This isn’t a defense of the religious beliefs of Bachmann or Perry, whatever they are. It’s a plea, given the acrimonious tone of our political discourse, for a certain amount of dispassionate care in the coverage of religion. Nearly 80 percent of Americans say they’re Christian. One-third of Americans call themselves ‘evangelical.’ When millions of…
-
Gay Activists Want Marriage Supporters Regarded as Bigots
Maggie Gallagher has a helpful article at The Public Discourse about the aims of the gay rights movement. She warns about the conflict that will come to those stand for traditional marriage: Advocates of gay marriage are not slow to use any lever of power, including government, to impose their new morality on America. The primary goal of the existing gay marriage movement is to use cultural, social, economic, and political power to create a new norm: marriage equality. The governing idea behind “marriage equality” is this: there is no difference between same-sex and opposite-sex unions. If you see a difference, there is something wrong with you. “You’re a hater,…
-
Sermon Notes from a Seven Year Old
Jim Hamilton is my pastor and fellow elder at Kenwood Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky. Jim just shared his 7-year old son’s sermon notes from last week’s sermon, and it is classic. I think he’s about ready to preach. Here’s the photo and transcription below. Read Jim’s post here.
-
Iconic Photo “American Girl in Italy” Turns 60
“American Girl in Italy” is one of the most iconic images ever captured by an American photographer. It was taken by Ruth Orkin in 1951, and today the image turns 60. The photographer died in 1985, but the woman who is the subject of the photograph is still alive. Her name is Ninalee Craig, she is 83 years old, and she now lives in Toronto. I had always thought of the subject of this photo as a woman surrounded by danger and in distress. At least that is the impression that one gets from the distraught look on her face. But it turns-out that my interpretation is incorrect. In a…
-
The Myth of Mutual Submission
Andy Naselli links to Wayne Grudem’s short work on mutual submission. Check it out here.
-
“Gender in the 21st Century” Conference
If you are anywhere near Louisville tomorrow, you should make plans to attend the “Gender in the 21st Century” conference hosted by the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. The conference begins at 9am, August 22 in Heritage Hall on the campus of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. The speakers include Albert Mohler, Ligon Duncan, Jim Hamilton, Russell Moore, and Randy Stinson. Also, I just read that there’s going to be an iPad giveaway to some lucky conference-goer. iPad or no iPad, I hope to see you there.