Over at The Atlantic, Elizabeth Bruenig reviews Zoë Bernard’s Vanity Fair essay on Silicon Valley tech workers converting to Christianity. A taste of Bruenig’s piece: American Christianity has a tendency to produce forms of belief and practice that are facially […]
Christianity
Interview: Thomas S. Kidd on ‘Christian History: From the Reformation to the Present’
“I wanted to center the book on the history of Christianity as believed and lived by everyday pastors, Christians, and churches.”
The Author’s Corner with Matthew J. Tuininga
Matthew J. Tuininga is Professor of Christian Ethics and the History of Christianity at Calvin Theological Seminary. This interview is based on his new book, The Wars of the Lord: The Puritan Conquest of America’s First People (Oxford University Press, […]
The Author’s Corner with Richard Carwardine
Richard Carwardine is Rhodes Professor of American History Emeritus and Distinguished Fellow at the Rothermere American Institute at the University of Oxford. This interview is based on his new book, Righteous Strife: How Warring Religious Nationalists Forged Lincoln’s Union (Knopf, […]
Christians Reading Classics is coming this fall–and a brief Arena break this week
How might Christians read Greco-Roman literature as Christians?
The Author’s Corner with Tom Smith
Tom Smith is Keasbey Research Fellow in American Studies at Selwyn College, Cambridge. This interview is based on his new book, Word across the Water: American Protestant Missionaries, Pacific Worlds, and the Making of Imperial Histories (Cornell University Press, 2024). […]
David Brooks: Christian
Listen to The New York Times columnists share the story of how he journeyed from agnosticism to Christianity.
Paul Kingsnorth: “Against Christian Civilization”
In October 2024, writer Paul Kingsnorth delivered the 37th Erasmus Lecture to the Christian community associated with First Things magazine. After I read it, I could not help but wonder what the audience in attendance at this lecture thought about […]
“The Surprising Rebirth of Belief in God”
Britain’s Justin Brierley won a 2024 Zenger Prize for his podcast series “The Surprising Rebirth of Belief in God.”
“The New Testament…condemns personal wealth not merely as a moral danger, but as an intrinsic evil”
Here is a taste of David Bentley Hart’s recent piece at Jacobin: Most modern (and especially most American) Christians are quite accustomed, for instance, to thinking of Christianity as a fairly commonsensical creed as regards the practicalities of life. On […]
When two early South Carolinians changed their minds about slavery
The South Carolina State Museum recently acquired the personal Bible of enslaver turned abolitionist William Turpin. Historians David Dangerfield (University of South Carolina-Salkehatchie) and Ramon Jackson (South Carolina State Museum) tell us more at Christianity Today: At first glance, William […]
NT Wright on the difference between “hope” and “optimism”
Back when Barack Obama was running as the candidate of “hope and change” he was really running as the candidate of “optimism.” Here New Testament scholar NT Wright:
Eric Metaxas and John Zmirak on why Mike Pence is not a good Christian
As you might imagine, the reason the former Vice President is not a good Christian is because he chose to certify the 2020 presidential election on January 6, 2021. Watch these guys:
Stanley Hauerwas on the Christian church: “My sense is that God is making us leaner.”
Longtime readers of this blog will know that I am a big fan of John Inazu’s work, especially his book Confident Pluralism: Surviving and Thriving Through Deep Difference. Until I read this interview at Inazu’s Substack, I did not realize […]
The Author’s Corner with Kimberly R. Kellison
Kimberly R. Kellison is Associate Professor of History & Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Baylor University. This interview is based on her new book, Forging a Christian Order: South Carolina Baptists, Race, and Slavery, 1696–1860 […]
Is Nikki Haley a Christian?
If she is not, she certainly wants to appeal to conservatives Christians. We’ve already discussed her decision to have John Hagee pray at her announcement rally. And we included these videos in today’s evangelical roundup. They are part of an […]
Tim Keller hopes for spiritual revival
A lot of conservative evangelicals are calling for spiritual revival these days. Most of these calls are connected directly to a revival of American nationalism as if somehow the purpose of a religious revival is to advance a particular political […]
Simone Weil found Jesus Christ on the factory floor
Over at Commonweal, Costică Brădăţan writes about how a year of factory work in the auto industry led French philosopher Simone Weil to Jesus Christ. Here is a taste: As Weil was processing the significance of her factory experience, she […]
Is National Conservatism Christian?
Over at The Bulwark, historian Joshua Tait writes, “Christianity’s emphasis on forgiveness, suffering, the meek and poor runs totally counter to the tendencies of the New Right and National Conservatism. Here is a taste of his piece: Within National Conservative […]
Song of the day
Context here. (HT: C K)