Recently a follower on one of my social media sites asked me for some reading material on the 18th-century understanding of virtue. I have tried over the years to inform many of my fellow evangelicals that when the founders talked […]
Way of Improvement
A video message from the Executive Editor (me!) of Current
As always, thanks for your support:
Saturday Night Live on George Washington’s dream for America
SNL at its best:
Bart Barber, the president of the Southern Baptist Convention, admits that his approval of the Kentucky sexual abuse amicus brief was a “mistake”
We covered this story yesterday. It doesn’t look for the Southern Baptist Convention, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, or SBTS president Albert Mohler. Here is Barber’s statement: Last week a reporter published a story about an amicus curia brief that the […]
The Author’s Corner with Fergus Bordewich
Fergus Bordewich is an independent historian and writer. This interview is based on his new book, Klan War: Ulysses S. Grant and the Battle to Save Reconstruction (Knopf, 2023). JF: What led you to write Klan War? FB: Many of my […]
Episode 121: “Reagan’s Evangelical Vision for America”
How did Ronald Reagan use the media to shape his evangelical vision for America, a vision rooted in political freedom, economic freedom, and religious freedom that is still with us today and continues to define the discourse of both of […]
Evangelical roundup for October 30, 2023
What is happening in Evangelical land? Evangelicals in Argentina are pushing to get national recognition for Reformation Day–October 31. Always good to see reporting by Messiah University graduate Morgan Lee! Sadly, this doesn’t surprise me: white evangelicals are more likely […]
Sunday night odds and ends
A few things online that caught my attention this week: Wilfred McClay on the “burden of the humanities“ Speaker of the House Mike Johnson’s ancestor took the Ironclad Oath in 1864. Natalie Zemon Davis, RIP Greg Lukianoff vs. cancel culture. […]
Rick Warren on the SBC’s Executive Committee & Albert Mohler’s seminary: “They have no intention of helping victims of the sexual abuse they covered up.”
Here is Jeremy Gray at Alabama.Com: The Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee filed a friend-of-the-court brief with the Kentucky State Supreme Court arguing an expanded child abuse law should not allow claims to be brought against “non-perpetrators” such as religious organizations, the Louisville […]
What is going on at the University of North Carolina?
Here is Brianna Atkinson at WUNC-North Carolina Public Radio: “The UNC System Board of Governors allocated $3.7 billion of operating expenses from the state budget. The two-year funding plan includes money for new university programs, rural healthcare partnerships and faculty […]
What MAGA culture looks like in 8,000 responses to a David French tweet about leaving the platform
Last week we saw how the MAGA evangelical wing responded to a Russell Moore tweet thanking Joe Biden for his support of Israel. Today it is New York Times columnist, evangelical conservative, and dogged anti-Trumper David French‘s turn to take […]
Song of the Day
Mike Pence suspends his presidential campaign
Here is CNN: Former Vice President Mike Pence has suspended his campaign for president amid lagging poll numbers and financial challenges, vowing to help elect “principled Republican leaders” moving forward. “After much prayer and deliberation, I have decided to suspend my campaign […]
Edward Garrison Draper is admitted to the Maryland bar
His admission came 166 years after he first applied to the bar and was denied. Here is Sydney Trent at The Washington Post: Edward Garrison Draper was more prepared to be a lawyer than most White attorneys in the mid-19th […]
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has a podcast. Some thoughts on the first episode:
As Calder McHugh writes at Politico: “Whether you’re looking to understand Mike Johnson the man or Mike Johnson the politician, you don’t have to dig deep. It’s already all there on tape. All you have to do is listen.” You […]
Melting Robert E. Lee
The Lee statue at the center of the 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia was just melted. Here is Teo Armus and Hadley Green at The Washington Post: It was a choice to melt down Robert E. Lee. […]
What is popular this week at Current?
Here are the most popular features of the week at Current: Here are the most popular posts of the last week at The Way of Improvement Leads Home blog: Here are the most popular posts of the last week at The Arena blog:
New York Times: “Trumpism is running the House”
It’s official. With the election of Mike Johnson to Speaker of the House the Trump wing of the Republican Party–and especially its Christian Right faction–is now running the House of Representatives. As I wrote yesterday: Johnson was elected to the […]
What the Christian Right is saying about Mike Johnson
We covered a lot of the responses at today’s evangelical roundup. Here’s more: David Barton and his Wallbuilders gang are over the moon. Johnson has a long history with Wallbuilders. Tim Barton says that Wallbuilders have been praying for a […]
Evangelical roundup for October 26, 2023
What is happening in Evangelical land? The New Apostolic Reformation and poor people. It looks like The New Republic is discovering the charismatic wing of evangelical Christianity. As caucus season nears, evangelicals in Iowa are keeping an eye on Israel. […]