Every time our country or the world faces a major crisis, people ask, “Is this the end of the world?” And every time a crisis occurs, Christians begin to open their Bibles to that strange and mysterious book in the…
What does Revelation say to the American church today? Beware the temptation of beastly power
John the Revelator warns about the dangers of joining church and state. He thunders: “Beware the sea beast; it has seven heads and 12 horns, and his number is 666. Beware the land beast; it has two horns and is…
Why American democracy is threatened in Ukraine
American democracy is endangered in the most unlikely of places: Ukraine. Events swirling around the Russian invasion of Ukraine have implications for our own freedom. I have no interest in conjuring the apocalyptic visions of rapture believers, but I do…
What’s wrong with ‘Left Behind’?
One of the biggest lies perpetuated in modern American Christianity is about the end times. Just by paying attention to popular culture and conversation, you would assume that the “Left Behind” theology is the most accepted — and maybe the…
A message to white Christian America: Remember the church at Sardis
I recently finished reading White Too Long: The Legacy of White Supremacy in American Christianity, by Robert P. Jones, the CEO of Public Religion Research Institute. In that book, Jones comments about recent (2018 and 2019) public opinion survey responses from white…
Why are Christians so susceptible to conspiracy?
The internet age has rapidly intensified the ability for conspiracy theories to spread across large populations of people, but why are Christians so susceptible to conspiratorial thought? Increasingly these grand narratives regarding the alleged machinations of nefarious figures are making…
Christians should study Revelation (but not for the reason you may think)
Perhaps you’re like me and remember going to Bible studies ever since you were a teenager. Often on the docket were Paul’s letters, the Gospels, maybe a prophet here and there, but most everyone stayed away from Revelation. When preachers…
Reading Apocalypse in an Age of Revelation: the uncovering of white Christian nationalism
Despite their disturbing, even demonic, histories, both white supremacy and nationalism are back. Now they are fused with Christian zeal, a mixture that has only ever been – and will only ever be – toxic.
An apocalypse of our own
I’ve been reading the Book of Revelation a lot lately. The Apocalypse of John has never done much for me, truthfully. But these days, I’m wondering if we’re in need of an apocalypse of our own. You may have to…