6/5/12 – I’m not much of a monarchist, but it was hard not to get caught up in Queen Elizabeth’s jubilee celebration. Hearing the gathered crowd sing “God Save The Queen” made me think that (if they missed it last fall) some readers might be curious how my European history students and I judged that … More God Save The Queen
Summer break has finally begun at Bethel University, and while that means that I’ve got all sorts of scholarly projects underway, it also means that I can take time for some decidedly unacademic pursuits. Like, say, listening to some of the hundreds of albums that I accumulated in the years before becoming a parent of … More Albums A to Z: Aftermath
It’s the first full week of June, and that can mean only one thing if you’re a history nerd: time to get working on your summer reading list! I’ll be posting my own suggestions this week or next, but in the interim, here are some histories, biographies, and historical novels suggested by NPR, the L.A. … More It’s Summer Reading List Season!
Yesterday being Holy Trinity Sunday in the liturgical calendar, my mind couldn’t help but take up the question of what it means for Christians to believe in one God who is three persons. Now, I may play one from time to time on this blog, but I’m no theologian. In fact, I’m quite sure I … More I Believe…
Aside from a post occasioned by the convergence of college commencement and a hole in the lectionary for Pentecost and the announcement of the newest issue of Christian History magazine, I was on break from active blogging during the past week. But grading is submitted, summer has officially started, and plenty of other writers were more than … More That Was The Week That Was
6/1/12 – My colleague Chris Armstrong is happy to report that the newest issue of Christian History magazine is available! It sounds fascinating and ambitious, seeking to explain why the claim that America is a “Christian nation” is hugely complicated by the sheer diversity of American Christianities and the competing visions for social change that … More New from Christian History Magazine
As grading continues to preoccupy my time, let the reruns roll on with a post that found me drawing on Frederick Buechner to help students think about the concept of calling. Last night my family hosted the students in Bethel’s capstone course for History majors. They turned in their research papers, shared a meal, tolerated … More Best of The Pietist Schoolman: Gladness, Need, and Calling
From this past April… For those reading my series recapping Bethel’s Pietism colloquium, let me encourage you to look at something Jay Phelan wrote yesterday on his blog, Additional Markings. His post begins: I had reason again this week to be thankful that I am a Pietist. For reasons buried deeply within Vatican paranoia the … More Best of The Pietist Schoolman: Pietism vs. the “Imperial Church”
While I struggle to get spring grades in, I’ll buy back some time by reposting some favorites. Today: my three-part series on my favorite baseball books. Check out the “tag cloud” on the home page of this blog, and you’ll find — amid all the terms related to Christianity, history, and education — one sport. … More Best of The Pietist Schoolman: Play Ball!
Grades are due this Friday, so I’ll be posting some “best of” pieces while I take time away from active blogging. Given that today is Memorial Day in the United States, I thought I’d start by combining my four-part series on World War I memorials into one long post (broken up into pages). In a … More Best of The Pietist Schoolman: Commemorating World War I
The Pietist Schoolman 