Russian cyber-warfare and its efforts to sway Western opinion with propaganda and false news on the internet need to be met head-on. Amy Knight It can be hard to remember that there is a Christian faith beyond the so-called religious right. The Christian faith means something; the gospel is most beautiful story ever told. God became a man. That is the central statement of Christianity theology. But it is not the only statement of Christian theology. The Church has a rich, long intellectual tradition. There is an abundance of philosophical…
Category: Social Issues & Biblical Ethics
Why Jesus looked and acted like me, not you
In the current political climate, there have arisen some discussion of what Jesus would have approved of and even what he looked like. Thinking they are unveiling deep theological insight, they remind us that neither Jesus nor any of the disciples were not white. I have said as much, though not in a political context in my post My King is a brown, Middle Eastern Jew. There is a tendency toward the idea that Jesus looked and acted like me, not you. Cultures across the world have depicted Jesus in…
Why I Would Prefer Prayers To Legislation
There is nothing particularly novel or profound about telling people that prayers do not excuse inaction. In fact, that notion is built into Christian theology. In James 2, he writes that faith not accompanied by action is a dead faith. Yet we hear politically motivated individuals angrily reminding people that two hands at work are more effective than a thousand hands raised in prayer. The driving force behind this is the idea that we need to be more receptive to legislation that restricts access to firearms. After the heart-wrenching church…
My King Is A Brown, Middle Eastern Jew
There was a pretty significant paradigm shift 2000 years ago that forever changed culture, religion and theology. When Jesus came on the scene, he came bearing the message that the kingdom of God had come in himself – which is what he referred to as the gospel. Isaiah anticipated the coming of Christ when he recorded God’s words to his Messiah. “It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will…
Why I Am A Heretic And You Should Be Too
When we talk about heresy, we usually refer to a denial of one of the core Christian claims. But sometimes overzealous Christians will extend the concept a little too far. They will refer to anybody who disagrees with them as a heretic. Any dissidence from their traditional values is thought to be heresy. When I explain why I am a heretic and you should be too, I am using the word in this latter sense. I am certainly not saying that we should deny the trinity or compromise the gospel.…
Why Biblical Sexual Ethics Strains Intimacy Between Church And Culture
Sexual. Many people clicked on this link almost instinctively just because they saw that word in the title. For many (believer or nonbeliever), sexuality is a defining element of life, one of the great pleasures that we have in this short time on earth. As Christians, we believe that sexuality is a great gift properly expressed within the confines of a conjugal bond. Others would object to that caveat. But that is not the only one. The Christian worldview, as defined by the Bible, outlines a few proper and improper…
Things Just Happen – Why I Developed A Cynical Interpretation of The Leftovers
Things just happen. Loved ones die. Spouses have affairs. People lose their homes. Millions of people suddenly disappear into thin air, leaving the rest of the world confused and susceptible to false beliefs, forming cults and living with a constant emotional burden. Alright, that last one might not just happen, but that is a synopsis of The Leftovers. Throughout the series, viewers had a lot of questions. What is all of this building up to? What does it mean? Why did all of this happen? After watching the final episodes…
Where Libertarianism Overlaps With LGBT Activism
There are some political issues that are really definitional to one’s political philosophy. For many right-leaning libertarians (especially Christian libertarians), that definitional issue will be abortion. Some Christians may even favor or be amenable toward big-government solutions, but their passion about pro-life issues will bar them from voting Democrat. LGBT activism is another definitional issue, as many would never be able to align themselves with policies or candidates that do not support the freedom of homosexuals to marry and to govern their lives how they prefer. Within libertarianism (even right-leaning…
Reorienting Yourself After A Tumultuous Election Cycle
According to the latest polls, most Americans are tired of the election process and glad to see the 2016 Presidential Election come to a close. Most showed their disdain in the marked absence at the voting booth, as there was a record low in the voter turnout in the last twenty years. Both of the nominees of the major political parties received remarkably high disapproval ratings. Those who were willing to cast a vote had to plug their nose as they pulled the proverbial lever. Voters of each candidate believed…
How Modern Feminism Conflicts With Transgenderism
Consider those whom you might consider a political or a social ally. In theological discourse, a Calvinist might consider an Arminian an ally if they are debating a unitarian or a Pelagian. The great nation of Israel often thinks of conservative Christians as allies. In political and social issues, though, firm Christians often do not have many allies. They are painted as wacky zealots, on the fringe, causing the downfall of all things. However, amongst liberals, one might expect to find that feminists and transgender advocates are allies. They are…
How Books By Old Men Are More Significant Than The 2016 Election
It is October of an election year. This means that millions of people who are not interested in politics suddenly have a vested interest in the outcome of the next several months. After the election, people will either spend the night celebrating or lower their head in defeat, and then they will move on, as if their favorite team just competed in the Super Bowl. But until that time, people will become defensive, divisive, they will unfriend their longtime Facebook acquaintances after they dared to speak a word of criticism…
How Should Christians React To The Trump Tapes?
Throughout the 2016 presidential election, we have all taken it as a given that Donald Trump makes offensive remarks. One might even argue that has been the thrust of his campaign. It was how he has controlled the media and how he has won over the majority of GOP voters. People are exhausted with the politically correct twaddle that has become so popular. Trump seemingly provides a refreshing alternative. However, in catering to the desire of the politically incorrect masses, one might go too far. If you compromise core values,…
Is The Ability To Vote For A Ruler Truly A Virtue?
As of this writing, it is currently an election year. With an election year comes much rhetoric, including slogans such as, “Don’t waste your vote!” or “Not voting is a vote for (insert the candidate that you do not want).” They will tell us that if you waste your vote, then you have no right to complain about the policies that follow. All of this flows from the fact that one of the central virtues that is ingrained into the American mindset is the ability to vote for candidates who…
Should The Testimony of Practicing Homosexuals Change Our View?
Why do you believe the things that you do? Why do you act in a certain? Why did you marry the person that you did? These are questions with which we are all confronted at some point, and often, we appeal to our own personal narrative. We explain how we have been personally affected. People will often say that they felt a certain way, that they had a certain unquenchable desire that overwhelmed them. Individuals with a proclivity toward homosexuality often appeal to their personal narrative, and it is often…
Why Even Non-Christians Need To Quit Watching Pornography
Pornography addicts will often tell themselves that there is nothing really wrong with the practice. Everybody does it. What are you, some sort of religious fundamentalist? Men watch pornography. We should all get over it. We should stop imposing our morals upon people who just want to have a good time. They are alone, in the privacy of their own homes, peeking into somebody else’s bedroom. If all parties consent, what’s the problem? Well, there are several reasons why even non-Christians need to quit watching pornography. If you are one…
An Atheist E-Mailed Me To Ask About The Christian View of Sex – Here Is My Response
E-Mail From An Atheist: Hi there, I’m curious about something, I wasn’t really looking for Theology but I read some of your recent posts and have a question. I’m an atheist, so this matter is not a moral one for me but about living my life to the fullest, but I would like to hear from someone with an opposing viewpoint. I happen to be both a sex positive, single woman and an infertile one. I believe that sex, and ultimately, orgasm, is the greatest human experience and one I…
5 Reasons Christians Should Not Support Donald Trump
Consider for a moment the sort of person in whom you want to put your trust, who you believe can represent your interests, values, ethics and those of the entire nation. What would that sort of person look like? We obviously cannot expect an ideal candidate, for all of our criteria to be met, but we still need to be wise in discerning what sort of compromises we are willing to make. I believe that with Donald Trump presently the leading as the Republican nominee, we have compromised far too…
The Biblical Case Against Racism
If I wanted to illustrate that the government sometimes dictated laws that were patently immoral, one of the most obvious examples that I could appeal to are those with racist overtones. If a law presupposes that a person with a particular pigmentation is morally inferior to another, then this is an immoral law. The abomination of slavery in the American south would be the obvious instance that one would appeal to. We need not convoke moral monsters such as Adolph Hitler to establish this point. We need only look to…
Was Charlie Pace Right To Think That The Ultimate Purpose Of Mankind Is To Find A Significant Other?
The ABC drama known as Lost was probably one of the best shows on television. It may have faded into the background of our memories in the last few years since it ended, but it still remains a supremely intelligent piece of writing. There is something about the aura of the mysterious metaphysics that Lost portrayed. We loved it because it was mysterious. We thought that we wanted the answers to the metaphysical questions, but any answer would ultimately be unsatisfying. That is what we see in the sixth season…
Does The History Of Slavery Prove That Black People Should Not Be Christians?
People will sometimes suggest that Christianity is a white man’s religion. The only reason that there are Christians who have a darker pigmentation is that the white man manipulated them into believing and promulgating Christian theology. Christianity was taught to slaves in the American south and now it is still promoted despite that it had those roots. Opponents of Christian belief will ask the Christian who happens to have a darker pigmentation why they would be a Christian when Christians historically treated “your people,” so poorly. White Christians have enslaved…