At last week’s annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, messengers from SBC churches around the country voted on and approved a resolution concerning the recent change in membership policy by the Boy Scouts of America, which says that “no youth may…
What’s Cyrus have to do with Advent?
As the semester comes to a close for me, I am able to do a bit of reflecting on the work I’ve done and what I’ve read. One line from Xenophon’s Cyropaedia in particular stood out to me: For I…
Salvation by works?
Salvation by works. That’s a phrase that is anathema to baptists the world round. Instead, the rallying cry is sola fide, by faith alone. But what if that wasn’t the message of Jesus? We are, I presume, all familiar with…
“Biblical” monetary policy
In my New Testament class we are in the midst of going through the gospels. As a result, I assign my students the task of reading each gospel in its entirety in one sitting before we begin covering it in…
Guilty of guilting
Over the years I’ve learned that guilt can be an effective tool. I’ve been on both ends of it too; being guilted into certain things and guilting others. Sadly, most of my experiences with guilt were in the context of…
Romney’s faith takes center stage
If you’ve followed the election coverage much over the past year you may have realized how absent Mitt Romney’s faith was from the national conversation. This marked a big shift from his 2008 bid when his Republican opponents attacked him…
Romney’s faith on display at RNC
By Thomas Whitley If you’ve followed the election coverage much over the past year, you may have realized how absent Mitt Romney’s faith was from the national conversation. This marked a big shift from his 2008 bid when his Republican…
How to read the New Testament
I have recently put the finishing touches on my syllabus, lectures, discussions, and assignments for my introduction to the New Testament class I will be teaching this semester. Classes start for me this week and I will be beginning a…
The surprising religious makeup of the 2012 presidential race
For the first time in our country’s history the Republican party is set to nominate a presidential ticket that does not include a Protestant. Mitt Romney is a Mormon and his newly announced running mate Paul Ryan is a Catholic. This is…
What churches can learn from the Olympics
As the Olympics got underway, the whole world seemed abuzz with excitement. Much of that excitement, though, quickly turned to complaints on the internet. Almost immediately the hashtag #NBCFail had cropped up on Twitter and became a trending topic. The source of…
Experience and Expertise Matter
Over the weekend, Cathryn Sloane wrote a post on why every social media manager should be under 25. Seriously, that was the title of her post and it didn’t get better from there. Here’s a little excerpt: You might argue…