Deep State, Deep Market, Shallow Jesus, Shallow Church

 SEPTEMBER 18, 2020 BY PAUL LOUIS METZGER Different attempts have been made to define and reflect upon “deep state”. Here are a few titles: “What Is the Deep State?”; “The Deep State Is Real?”; “Deconstructing the Deep State”; “President Trump’s Allies Keep Talking About the ‘Deep State.’ What’s That?”; and “Here’s the Memo that Blew Up the NSC.” Here’s how Merriam-Webster […]

Luther and Africa

 SEPTEMBER 3, 2020 BY GENE VEITH The Christian History site, sponsored by Christianity Today, has posted a fascinating article about the influence of Ethiopia on Luther and the Reformation. Wheaton theology professor Jennifer Powell McNutt, in her article An Unsung Inspiration for the Protestant Reformation: the Ethiopian Church, recounts how the Reformation–far from being an exercise in individualism–saw itself in […]

Evangelicals Who Don’t Believe in Christ?

SEPTEMBER 17, 2020 BY GENE VEITH A majority of Americans, 52%, agree with the statement, “Jesus was a great teacher, but he was not God.”   That’s not surprising.  But what is surprising is that nearly one-in-three (30%) of evangelical Christians also agree in rejecting the deity of Christ. That is one of the findings of the State of Theology study sponsored by […]

The Futility of Coercing or Punishing Belief

SEPTEMBER 10, 2020 BY GENE VEITH Historically, religions have sometimes used force to compel people to accept their teachings and to punish those who did not.  This has been an issue with Catholicism, with its heretic-burnings and inquisitions, and has sometimes happened in Protestant communities.  Luther, though, opposed coercion and punishment in matters of faith.  Today, […]

Recovering the Atonement

SEPTEMBER 4, 2020 BY GENE VEITH According to a new study, over half of Americans (52%) who describe themselves as “Christians”–including 41% of evangelicals–believe that salvation comes from doing good works, rather than from faith in the saving work of Christ. And no wonder.  The doctrine of the atonement–that on the cross Christ bore our sins and […]

Florida Christians Claim ‘Biblically Wrong’ Face Mask Mandate Interferes With Prayer

 AUGUST 4, 2020 BY MICHAEL STONE Because The Bible: Florida Christians are fighting a local face mask mandate, holding rallies and launching lawsuits while claiming that the mandate is “Biblically wrong” and “interferes with the ability to pray.” The Bradenton Herald reports: A Palmetto pastor and a state politician have sued Manatee County government over its mandatory […]

Is Your Prolife Stance Really Pro-Life?

 JULY 4, 2020 BY KARL J. FOREHAND One reality of our political climate in the United States is that it divides us up into identifiable camps.  While it doesn’t make for productive discussions, it does allow me to generalize without being too far off base.   So, please understand that this is only my opinion and it […]

Protestantism without the Christianity

JULY 7, 2020 BY GENE VEITH Here is another word for you:  Post-Protestant.  The term refers to the Protestant mindset that continues, even though the Protestant religious beliefs that formed that mindset have faded away. In the course of an article on the current unrest in America, Mark Tooley–a conservative Methodist who has long battled the […]