The quote in the title is from Robert P. Jones, CEO of Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) and the author of White Too Long: The Legacy of White Supremacy in American Christianity. It comes from an interview with Jennifer Rubin […]
Evangelical roundup for October 24, 2022
What is happening in Evangelical land? Baptized into Christian nationalism. I mean literally baptized. U.K. evangelicals weigh-in on the resignation of the Liz Truss. Matthew Milliner reports on a James Davison Hunter lecture: Happy Birthday to the president of the […]
Sunday nights odds and ends
A few things online that caught my attention this week: Religion and authoritarian political figures British Marxist historians Is CRT being taught in schools? “Salvation Antiquarianism“ Gary Dorrien on Rafael Warnock Benjamin Wallace-Wells on Rafael Warnock Conservatives and baseball Du […]
Episode 104: “The Roots of American Public Education”
Are you an educator? An administrator? A school board member? Does your life intersect in some way with a public school? If so, this episode is for you. We talk about the religion and transatlantic roots of American public education […]
“What is the State of the Evangelical Mind on Christian College Campuses?”
In September 2017, the founders of Current (Jay Green, Eric Miller, and yours truly) participated in a conference in Indianapolis on the “State of the Evangelical Mind.” (This was 3-4 years before we launched Current). We spoke at a session devoted to the legacy of […]
What is popular this week at Current?
Here are the most popular features of the week at Current: Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn, “REVIEW: The Need to Be Whole“ Marvin Olasky, “LONG FORM: A Wrinkle in Journalism History“ Mark Schwehn, “Academic Humility“ John Fea, “I Think I Just Committed Treason Greg […]
“On the Evangelical Mind and Consulting the Faithful”
In September 2017, the founders of Current (Jay Green, Eric Miller, and yours truly) participated in a conference in Indianapolis on the “State of the Evangelical Mind.” (This was 3-4 years before we launched Current). We spoke at a session […]
My First Encounter with the Christian Right
I never thought about how my new born-again faith might affect my politics. Then I went to Bible college.
“Anti-Intellectualism and the Integration of Faith and Learning”
In September 2017, the founders of Current (Jay Green, Eric Miller, and yours truly) participated in a conference in Indianapolis on the “State of the Evangelical Mind.” (This was 3-4 years before we launched Current). We spoke at a session […]
Evangelical roundup for October 20, 2022
What is happening in Evangelical land? Lula says he will not persecute Brazilian evangelicals. Are evangelicals the only ones who “gloss over candidates’ sins? Celebrating Rich Mullins: A “state-of-the-art” Billy Graham archive is coming to Charlotte. The label “Christian nationalism” […]
Commonplace Book #223
The intellectuals’ self-image, it will be seen, had come to coincide with the popular stereotype of the intellectual. The popular stereotype, contrary to a widespread impression among intellectuals themselves, was not unfavorable. By the 1960’s it was a well-documented fact […]
The 4 New Jersey regions
Here’s a fun post for our New Jersey readers. Over at New Jersey 101.5, Bill Spadea moves beyond the “North Jersey” vs. “South Jersey” divide by suggesting that there are actually 4 New Jersey regions: North Jersey, Central Jersey, the […]
The battle for our public schools
Hannah Natanson, Clara Ence Morse, Anu Narayanswamy and Christina Brause explore 64 laws passed in the last three academic years that are “reshaping what students can learn and do in school.” Read the piece at The Washington Post. Here are a few of […]
Dispose of “very”
Benjamin Dreyer offers an important writing tip in a recent piece at The New York Times. A taste: …though I would never fault the supreme lyricist Johnny Mercer for the gorgeous “You’re much too much / And just too very very,” I […]
Commonplace Book #222
The most interesting think about the cult of the New Frontier was what it revealed about the changing conception not only of culture but of intellectual life in general. The downgrading of Kennedy’s political skill and the upgrading of his […]
Wehner: Herschel Walker is a “perfect candidate for a fallen party”
Here is Peter Wehner at The Atlantic on the GOP candidate for the U.S. Senate from Georgia: There have been plenty of awful candidates in American political history; what sets Herschel Walker apart is that he’s a wreck in so […]
Doug Mastriano’s Christian nationalism
The guy running for governor of Pennsylvania on the GOP ticket says that he is not a Christian nationalist. But if I were to name one person who best embodies Christian nationalism in American politics right now I would pick […]
How to “defeat fascism” and save democracy
According to writer Anand Giridharadas, we can save democracy by commanding attention, making meaning, meeting people where they are, picking the right fights, helping people find a “home” where they feel safe, and telling better stories. It’s a really helpful […]
Eric Foner on C. Vann Woodward
Over at London Review of Books, Columbia University Eric Foner reviews James Cobb’s new biography of C. Vann Woodward. It is a fascinating review. Here is a taste: As he approached retirement, Woodward entered what one former student called his […]
How can evangelicals help to preserve democracy during this election season?
Current contributing editor Daniel K. Williams offers some helpful advice. Here is a taste of his piece at Christianity Today: Harvard historian James Kloppenberg, author of Toward Democracy, argued that democracy in the US will succeed only if parties on both […]