John Chandler

“If World War II-era warbler Kate Smith sang today, her anthem could be Gods Bless America,” USA Today recently quipped. It’s a remark about America's drift toward “designer faiths,” custom tailored to fit personal preferences. John Chandler Sociologist Robert Bellah…

Let’s begin 2012 with these words from a Virginia Baptist friend and active leader in her church: “Recently, at the conclusion of our worship, I left with an empty feeling. There was nothing wrong with the service at all. It…

You could say that 2011 was the “year from hell.”  I didn’t see it coming. In January, a friend from Australia sent a manuscript of a book on hell and asked if it would fly in the United States. Steve…

“Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house!’ And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you. Remain in the same house, eating…

You might have noticed a higher profile on “organic” food and diet in recent years. If not, go ahead and crawl out from under that Big Mac! Accompanying this trend is the application of nutritional thinking to spiritual life. It’s…

Baptists traditionally affirm the doctrine of the priesthood of every believer. Because we have access to God through Jesus Christ, our high priest, we don’t need any human intermediary between us and heaven. In practical terms, this theological conviction often…

The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers …. (Ephesians 4:11)   The 1980s brought a proliferation of “spiritual gifts inventories.” I first heard this taught by Peter Wagner at…

“I left you behind in Crete for this reason, so that you should put in order what remained to be done, and should appoint elders in every town, as I directed you” (Titus 1:5, NRSV).   It is standard Baptist…

“Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10)   After the  Babylonian Exile, the people of God couldn’t simply re-install a ruling king. Israel was no longer large and in charge, the dominant…