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ethics

Capitalism exhibits “moral idiocy”

John Fea   |  February 11, 2022

I just learned about Christian cultural critic Rodney Clapp‘s recent book Naming Neoliberalism: Exposing the Spirit of Our Age. (I have never met Clapp, but he was the acquisition editor at Baker Books who offered me a contract for Why...

Did Republicans revise their moral beliefs to support Trump?

John Fea   |  January 31, 2022

Of course they did. But now there is a study. Here is Eric. W. Dolan at PsyPost: New research sheds light on how people resolve inconsistencies between their own moral views and that of their preferred candidate. The findings, published...

Episode 77: The Art of Living

John Fea   |  November 29, 2020

How shall we live? Where do we find the resources for living well? In this episode, historian Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn examines the reappearance of ancient philosophical thought in contemporary American culture. She argues that we need to take back philosophy as...

Syndicate Symposium: “Sins and Virtues in American Public Life”

John Fea   |  September 15, 2020

Over at “Syndicate,” Dartmouth religion professor Jeremy Sabella has put together a symposium on the Seven Deadly Sins (lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, and pride), the Four Cardinal Virtues (prudence, courage, temperance, and justice), and the theological virtues of...

Moral reflection in the doing and teaching of history (part two). Or is *Believe Me* a work of history?

John Fea   |  August 7, 2020

Read part one here. This post is adapted from Why Study History: Reflecting on the Importance of the Past. Here are five suggestions for those who want to pursue Robert Gleason’s idea that the historian should always ask whether or not...

Should We Choose the Economy or the Life of Senior Citizens? Ethicists Respond

John Fea   |  March 24, 2020

I can’t believe we are asking this question right now. It seems like some kind of dystopian movie. Sadly, it is Christians who seem to be taking the lead here.  See our post on R.R. Reno here. By this point...

Gerson: “This is a world where ethical rules count for nothing. A world where character is for chumps.”

John Fea   |  January 21, 2020

Here is the latest from Washington Post columnist Michael Gerson: With the impeachment trial of President Trump beginning in earnest, right-wing populism has come full circle. Trump was elected on the theory that American politics had become corrupt and broken. Now...

Some More Thoughts on the Populist Critique of “Elite Evangelicals”

John Fea   |  January 1, 2020

For most evangelical Christians, the message of the Gospel transcends the identity categories we place on human beings.  All men and women are sinners in need of redemption.  Citizenship in the Kingdom of God, made possible by Jesus’s death and...

Wayne Grudem Lives in a Different Moral Universe Than I Do

John Fea   |  December 30, 2019

In case you missed it, evangelical theologian Wayne Grudem has turned to the politically conservative website Townhall to defend Donald Trump and criticize Mark Galli’s Christianity Today editorial. Grudem begins: Galli gives six reasons why Trump should be removed, either by impeachment...

What Did Theologians and Ethicists Say About Bill Clinton’s Impeachment in 1998?

John Fea   |  December 18, 2019

Today I was talking to a reporter about impeachment and recalled a statement issued in 1998 by prominent American theologians and ethicists.  A really interesting mix of evangelical and non-evangelical moral philosophers signed this statement.  I have copied it below....

Is Paula White Bringing Her “Ponzi Scheme” to the White House?

John Fea   |  November 14, 2019

Many of you recall that court evangelical and prosperity preacher Paula White is now working in the White House.  Learn more here. Former George W. Bush Administration ethics lawyer Richard Painter suggests that White is using her new position in...

Marianne Williamson is Right. We Have a Gun Problem AND a Culture Problem

John Fea   |  September 3, 2019

I am getting tired of the way the gun debate plays out in the wake of mass shootings.  Everyone tries to score political points or use the deaths of innocent lives to advance their own agendas. For example, here is...

“Throwaway Culture”

John Fea   |  May 16, 2019

I am looking forward to getting my hands on a copy of Charles Camosy‘s new book Resisting Throwaway Culture: How a Consistent Life Ethic Can United a Fractured People.    Camosy offers us a small glimpse of his argument in a...

“It seems strange that a university would praise an employee for helping to rig online polls”

John Fea   |  January 30, 2019

Inside Higher Ed is running a follow-up story on the Liberty University Chief Information Officer who accepted a bag of cash from Michael Cohen in exchange for rigging online polls to make Donald Trump look like a successful businessman.  We covered...

Hey Liberty University, This is What Happens When You Get Into Bed with Donald Trump and “All the Best People” Who Work for Him

John Fea   |  January 17, 2019

A top-level administrator at one of the largest universities in the world rigged online polls to promote Donald Trump as a great businessman.  These polls were used to puff Trump in preparation for his presidential run.  Cohen paid John Gauger,...

*The New Republic* Weighs-In on American Missionary John Allen Chau

John Fea   |  November 26, 2018

  Yesterday I posted Kate Carte’s twitter thread on the connections between the missionary killed by an indigenous tribe on North Sentinel Island and the American celebration of Thanksgiving.  Read the post here. Over at The New Republic, Ryu Spaeth provides...

Paige Patterson and Richard Land Will Co-Teach an Ethics Course

John Fea   |  October 9, 2018

Yes, you read the headline correctly. Paige Patterson, who was ousted at Southwestern Theological Seminary for dismissing women’s concerns about domestic abuse and rape  (see our coverage here), is teaching an ethics course at Southern Evangelical Seminary in Charlotte, North...

Scott Pruitt on “Providence” and “Blessings”

John Fea   |  July 5, 2018

Scott Pruitt has resigned as Director of the Environmental Protection Agency.  Trump announced the resignation via Twitter. Here is his letter of resignation: Mr. President, it has been an honor to serve you in the Cabinet as Administrator of the...

Trump Evangelicals Line-Up Behind Scott Pruitt

John Fea   |  April 11, 2018

Scott Pruitt’s ethical problems are abundant.  Here is how Aaron Weaver describes them in his recent piece at Sojourners: A $50-a-night condo deal from a lobbyist pal. More than $100,000 for first class airfare and $40,000 on a soundproof phone booth. A twenty person 24-hour protective...

Randall Balmer on the Christian Right’s Changing Code of Ethics

John Fea   |  February 19, 2018

Randall Balmer, a lifelong observer of American evangelicalism, reflects on the “flexible” values of the Christian Right. Here is a summary of Balmer’s sense of the “new” Christian Right ethical code: “Lying is all right as long as it serves...

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