Atheist Michael Newdow has been pestering the courts to rule that the phrases “under God” found in the Pledge of Allegiance and “In God We Trust,” our nation’s national motto, are unconstitutional. The usually liberal Federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals surprisingly ruled against Newdow. The Court wrote:
Full Story » It is something of a surprise to me just how many Christians are unfamiliar with Brian McLaren. Although by no means a household name, Brian McLaren is probably one of the top five most influential writers/thinkers within (and to some degree outside of) evangelicalism. While you or your family may not be reading his books or his website, I can almost guarantee that one or more of the leaders at your church are. Initially, McLaren was nearly synonymous with the "emerging" church movement, but lately he has become more independent of this association; not because he has made a deliberate break with them, but mainly because he has outgrown them. And even though he is saying many of the same things as the emerging church, McLaren has a much bigger platform from which to say it.
Full Story » Located in the very heart of modern-day Germany, in the province of Hesse, is a small humble town of only 15,000 inhabitants. In the middle of that town stands an imposing old cathedral built in the 12th-14th centuries of reddish stone. Situated in front of that cathedral is the statue of a man in a monk’s garb on a stump of a freshly felled oak, with a huge Saxon ax in his hand.
Full Story » Located in the very heart of modern-day Germany, in the province of Hesse, is a small humble town of only 15,000 inhabitants. In the middle of that town stands an imposing old cathedral built in the 12th-14th centuries of reddish stone. Situated in front of that cathedral is the statue of a man in a monk’s garb on a stump of a freshly felled oak, with a huge Saxon ax in his hand.
Full Story » Stanley Fish, writing in the New York Times, describes the way various traditions understand the “role of religion and public life.” He begins by pointing out that “Classical Liberalism,” not to be confused with a leftist political philosophy, “is that policy decisions should be made on the basis of secular reasons, reasons that, because they do not reflect the commitments or agendas of any religion, morality or ideology, can be accepted as reasons by all citizens no matter what their individual beliefs and affiliations.” Their reasoning goes like this:
Full Story » For decades now, modern-day prophecy writers have been claiming that the increase and severity of earthquakes are sure indicators that the rapture is near. Carl G. Johnson wrote in 1972 that “the greatest earthquakes that have ever shaken this world have all come since the close of World War I. Several of them shook the whole earth.” How does he know this since the development of modern-day earthquake measuring equipment didn’t get their start until 1880? The Richter Magnitude Scale wasn’t developed until 1935. Were there more severe earthquakes before 1880? The Lisbon earthquake of 1755 is estimated to have been 9.0 on the Richter scale. John Wesley (1703-1791) mentions a great earthquake that hit Sicily in 1692, describing it as
Full Story » The publication of the first volume (927 pages!) of Joseph Morecraft, III’s "Authentic Christianity: A Exposition of the Theology and Ethics of the Westminster Larger Catechism" provides us with a healthy review of classical Reformed covenant theology. As such, it gives us important perspectives and a good occasion to approach covenant theology today.
Full Story » If socialism worked, Greece would have been the richest country in Europe. No other member state of the European Union has such an extensive system of government welfare, pension plans, government aid for needy families, healthcare, government-guaranteed student loans, government labor exchanges, trade unions legislation, etc.
Full Story » Some of the inspiration I get for writing articles comes from emails I receive from supporters and antagonists. I received the following email the other day from a supporter who had a good question about a misunderstood and misapplied Bible passage:
Full Story » Life is full of little surprises. Some are welcome, others not so much. I would like to tell you about one of the welcome variety. It comes as a very pleasant surprise to me personally and to the work and ministry of American Vision in applying God’s ethical standards to every area of life. This appears as the fruit of a modern French reformed scholar named Jean-Marc Berthoud who has devoted his life to resurrecting the thought and writings of a forgotten reformer, Pierre Viret. The results are simply astounding.
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