Here… • A short week back from vacation began with the news of the passing of the leading historian of the Baptist General Conference (now Converge Worldwide)… • …then ended with the case of the South Carolina high school student who defied a school district policy and inserted the Lord’s Prayer into his commencement address. … More That Was The Week That Was
Asking that God’s kingdom come and His will be done is a supremely political act, a revolutionary declaration of independence from the powers of this world. But for that reason (among others), the Lord’s Prayer is not a weapon to be wielded in the culture wars. To wit, the case of high school student Roy … More The Lord’s Prayer and the Culture Wars
This isn’t really how I’d like to come back to blogging after some time off, but… I’m sad to pass on the news that Virgil Olson, an important figure in the history of Bethel University (seminary professor, 1951-1968; college dean, 1968-1974) and the leading historian of its sponsoring denomination, Converge Worldwide (Baptist General Conference), died … More RIP Virgil Olson
I’ll be going back on break tomorrow, while we spend a week with my parents in Virginia. But first, let me briefly return to a series I started earlier this month: blogging through some of the excellent questions I was asked via Skype by Mr. Ferda’s 8th grade history class in Kalispell, Montana. The first … More Good Questions: How Do You Become a Historian?
I originally composed a draft of this devotion for the final meeting of Bethel’s Christianity and Western Culture course last Friday, but what I shared as a benediction to a group of first-year students — from a text I first prayed over students ten years ago, at the end of my first semester at Bethel, … More A Benediction for the Class of 2013
Some of what’s been happening around the blogosphere while I’ve been taking a break: • With his new book, Jamie Smith continues to develop his argument (from Desiring the Kingdom) that “Human beings are at their core defined by what they worship rather than primarily by what they think, know, or believe. That is bound … More That Was The Week That Was
5/21/13 – Let me interrupt my blogging break for a moment to engage in some wanton self-promotion… Tomorrow afternoon, my colleague Sam Mulberry and I will be hosting West by Midwest, what we hope will become an annual event at Bethel dedicated to sharing innovative teaching ideas. We’ll preview our new online version of Bethel’s … More West by Midwest 2013
To save me from myself, I’m going to announce a one- or two-week hiatus from blogging. I have about six hundred pages of papers to grade, final exams to write (and grade), a summer online course to create, etc., etc. Put it all together and… Well, it’s hard to view my writing a single word … More Taking a Break
Here… • I shared answers to the first two of many good questions that I was asked via Skype by an 8th grade history class in Kalispell, Montana: Did my history teachers make me want to be a historian?; and Who’s my favorite historical figure? • Paying tribute to Dallas Willard, who died of cancer … More That Was The Week That Was
Of the eighteen questions drafted by the Montana 8th grade history class that I Skyped with last week, this was the one I dreaded most. Naturally, it came up pretty quickly… Who is your favorite historical figure? Now, I’ve been to graduate school, so I’ve learned a thing or two about how to avoid answering … More Good Questions: Who Is Your Favorite Historical Figure?
The Pietist Schoolman 