University of Connecticut’s Manisha Sinha explains: Midterm elections are usually not history-making stuff. Few have been memorable. But in the 2022 midterms, as in the 1866 elections, the fate of American democracy hangs in the balance. If there is a moment […]
Way of Improvement
Students at the University of Florida protest Ben Sasse’s visit
Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse is the sole finalist for the presidency of the University of Florida. Sasse has been a vocal critic of Trump and Trumpism. Court evangelical pastor Robert Jeffress once called him a “disgrace to the Republican Party, […]
Did George H.W. Bush take presidential documents to a bowling alley and Chinese restaurant?
Here’s the former president: And here’s the National Archives: The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), in accordance with the Presidential Records Act, assumed physical and legal custody of the Presidential records from the administrations of Barack Obama, George W. […]
Current‘s 2022 Best of the Net Nominations
Please join us in congratulating our nominees for this year’s Best of the Net, an annual awards- based anthology for “communities of online literary magazines, journals, and individuals that do the work of creating our digital literary landscape.” These are: […]
More on Christian socialism
Last weekend we dropped Episode 103 of The Way of Improvement Leads Home Podcast with historian Vaneesa Cook, author of Spiritual Socialists: Religion and the American Left. I hope you enjoy this episode. If you are interested in learning more […]
Pennsylvania Republicans for Josh Shapiro
GOP gubernatorial candidate Douglas Mastriano is just too extreme for many Pennsylvania Republicans. Many of them are supporting Democrat Josh Shapiro for governor. Here is the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: With billboards across Pennsylvania, a big-spending national committee that is connected to […]
The Author’s Corner with Alan J. M. Noonan
Alan J. M. Noonan is an independent historian. This interview is based on his new book, Mining Irish-American Lives: Western Communities from 1849-1920 (University Press of Colorado, 2022). JF: What led you to write Mining Irish-American Lives? AN: I have […]
Southern Baptists respond to the 60 Minutes Bart Barber interview
On Sunday night Anderson Cooper interviewed Southern Baptist Convention president Bart Barber. Barber talks about the denomination’s sexual abuse scandal, his belief that Joe Biden is the legitimate president, the reasons why he did not vote for Trump in 2016 […]
Evangelical roundup for October 10, 2022
What is happing in Evangelical land? Anderson Cooper talks with Bret Barber, president of the Southern Baptist Convention. French evangelicals and abuse victims. When an American evangelical helped a family observe Sukkot. Russell Moore on Loretta Lynn. Justin Giboney drops […]
Sunday night odds and ends
A few things online that caught my attention this week: Leon Wieseltier on preserving the earth and the republic Barack Obama’s unpublished book David Bentley Hart How do you “teach for equity” when the subject is organic chemistry? (Or most […]
Episode 103: Spiritual Socialists
Does the American Left have religion problem? What can progressives learn from people like Dorothy Day, Ignazio Silone, Henry Wallace, Staughton Lynd, and Cornel West? Many of these thinkers and activists offered a powerful vision for a moral and just […]
Slavery was the cause of the American Civil War
Most historians agree with the title of this post. So do many Americans. But there are others who still claim that the Civil War was about something other than slavery. Watch: Yesterday I showed this video to my Civil War […]
Kevin Kruse returns to Twitter
Get up to speed here and here. The Princeton historian is back after Cornell and Princeton cleared him of plagiarism charges. I will let him explain:
What is popular this week at Current?
Here are the most popular features of the week at Current: Marvin Olasky, “A Wrinkle in Journalism History“ David Hollinger, “The Evangelical-Mainline Divide: Two Questions“ Peter Hill, “Fear and Loathing at Independence Hall“ Frederic Durbin, “Connections Through Street Poetry“ Christopher Shannon, […]
The Author’s Corner with Megan Bever
Megan Bever is Associate Professor of History and Chair of the Social Sciences Department at Missouri Southern State University. This interview is based on her new book, At War with King Alcohol: Debating Drinking and Masculinity in the Civil War […]
My nephew can play hockey!
A little personal/family news. Watch: Go Nick! We are all proud of you!
Report: Ben Sasse will resign his Senate seat to become president of the University of Florida
Here is CNN: Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska, a prominent voice in the Republican Party who voted to convict former President Donald Trump in his second impeachment trial, plans to resign from the Senate by the end of the year […]
Evangelical roundup for October 6, 2022
What is going on in Evangelical land: Arab evangelicals in the Middle East. Are evangelical Herschel Walker voters Christians? The World Evangelical Alliance meets in Jordan. Phil Vischer vs. The Babylon Bee: Costi Hinn vs. the theobros. What is a […]
A University of New Brunswick graduate student responds to the Doug Mastriano Ph.D controversy
Earlier today we called your attention to a Canadian Broadcasting Company story on Doug Mastriano’s Ph.D dissertation at the University of New Brunswick. In that post I noted that current University of New Brunswick students were concerned about the reputation […]
One of Doug Mastriano’s dissertation committee members speaks out about his “dishonest” and “sloppy” work
Here is the latest on Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano’s “academic” career: One of the members of his dissertation committee called his work, “dishonest, sloppy, tinged with religious zealotry, and indifferent to facts that contradicted his claims.” The committee member […]