It wasn’t a post that many people read, but back when I used to write more about such things, I admitted having grown up with almost no exposure to popular music, even that of my hometown: Growing up, I listened to almost no pop music. (I went to a birthday party in 3rd grade and my friends … More On Prince, Evangelicalism, and Being an Outsider
A list, but it can’t be click-baity with this kind of bait, right? So this past Tuesday my friend Sam Mulberry and I got to co-host a special presentation in the Bethel University Library: a walk down memory lane for GES130 Christianity and Western Culture, a staple of Bethel’s gen ed curriculum for three decades now. While it was … More 6 Reasons to Watch a 40-Minute Tribute to a 30-Year Old Western Civ Course
It’s one of the four instincts that we think defines the Pietist ethos: to trust that Christians are better together than apart. Around Bethel, it shows up as an “irenic [or peaceable] spirit” that leads us to avoid needless controversy and try to reach decisions by consensus; in the Evangelical Covenant Church, it results in our affirmation of having the … More Thursday’s Podcast: A Peaceable Spirit
I don’t normally use this blog as a platform for my favorite charitable causes, but today I want to make an exception to that rule and encourage readers to join me in supporting Minnehaha Academy, a Christian preK-12 school in Minneapolis. Unlike many of my colleagues on the school’s board of trustees, I’m not a Minnehaha alum or parent; I … More How You Can Join Me in Supporting Minnehaha Academy
Here… • No, the liberal arts are not synonymous with “top liberal arts colleges.” • What is it that Christian historians do? I tried to boil it down to a few fundamental principles. • If you’d be interested in hearing Efrem Smith, Michelle Clifton-Soderstrom, Christian Collins Winn, and others talk about Pietism, save the date of December … More That Was The Week That Was
If any one of Philipp Spener’s six “pious wishes” is most central, or does the most to set Pietism apart from other Christian traditions that place a high value on Scripture and a “common priesthood,” it’s probably this one: …the people must have it impressed upon them and must accustom themselves to believing that it is by no … More Thursday’s Podcast: Christianity as Life
Today I’m happy to announce an event that will be of interest to many who read this blog, listen to its podcast (new episode coming later today!), or might be anticipating our forthcoming book on Pietism: The 2016 Bethel Colloquium on Pietism Studies Tuesday, December 13, 2016, 9:00am-3:30pm Bethel University – St. Paul, MN I’ll be … More Save the Date: The 2016 Bethel Colloquium on Pietism Studies
For a couple weeks now, I’ve been meaning to circle back to a post by Muhlenberg College president John Williams that John Fea shared at his blog. I still haven’t had time to write up a full response, but I thought I’d go ahead and share what Williams wrote — and why it simultaneously encourages and … More The Liberal Arts Are Not Synonymous with Elite Private Colleges
Today I thought I’d borrow a trick from philosopher Jamie Smith, one of my “indispensable Christian academics” on Twitter. In his books he not only acknowledges family, friends, and editors, but musicians whose recordings have been in the background of his writing. We are what we love (as Smith’s newest book reminds us), so while I don’t know what difference … More The Recent Soundtrack of This Blog: Jason Isbell
Over the last three weeks, I’ve spent a lot of time talking with undergraduates about what it is that Christian historians do — and how, if at all, it’s different from what non-Christian historians do. • To help my Intro to History students prepare to write a preliminary statement of what they think it means to “think … More Back to Basics: What It Is Christian Historians Do
The Pietist Schoolman 