There are some”heroes” of the Christian faith whose life-stories inspire and inform me. They include William Wilberforce, William Carey, and (just to avoid all my heroes having the same first name) St. Patrick. Now, let’s remember: “Saint” wasn’t his first…
When boundaries don’t behave
By Corey Fields I have a childhood memory of driving with my family across state lines and, in bewilderment, asking my mother where the line was. That may have been my first introduction to the arbitrary and human-made nature of…
Reconsidering John 3:16 (A progressive Baptist’s interpretation)
In The Lord of the Rings there was one ring to rule them all. In the Bible if there is one verse to rule them, all it is John 3:16. If one learned just one Bible verse in Sunday school or…
Baptists, Presbyterians make room for Anglicans at Calvinist confab
By Bob Allen Calvinist-inclined Baptists and Presbyterians attending this year’s upcoming national conference of the Gospel Coalition are adding a place at the table for a new constituency: conservative Anglicans who have broken with the Episcopal Church. Joining mainstays like…
Exodus, exile and truly human resurrection: Living beyond tribalism and individualism
The beauty of the Bible has as much to do with what it tells us about human nature as it does to do with what it tells us about God. Indeed, the story of salvation only makes sense when we…
In memory of Marcus Borg
The New York Times to Borg as “a leading evangelist of what is often called progressive Christianity.” His interpretation of the Christian faith convinced many people to remain a Christian. Similarly, the author of an in The Christian Century avers…
Getting the enemy all wrong
Last week the White House took action against the various violent attacks happening all over the world in recent months by hosting a Summit on Countering Violent Extremism. While it is perhaps laudable that this White House stands opposed to…
SBC leader: Baptists, don’t let your babies grow up to be Catholics
By Bob Allen A recent Wall Street Journal story profiling twin brothers who followed separate spiritual paths — one to become an Anglican bishop, the other a Catholic priest — represents failure by the Southern Baptist church in which they were raised,…
We still can’t handle the truth: ‘American Sniper’ and the religion of empire
Chris Kyle is widely regarded as a war hero in Stephenville, the Texas town where Eddie Ray Routh was recently convicted of murdering the most celebrated veteran of the Iraq war. Several jurors had recently seen American Sniper, a Clint…