Here… • “Here I stand, I can do no other… That’s how Playmobil designed me!” • Remembering a dear friend reminded me why I love the church. • The American freshman of 2014: less religious, more likely to go to grad school, but otherwise a lot like her counterparts of 2004, 1994, 1984, and 1974. • This … More That Was The Week That Was
As you’ve likely heard by now, the South African statesman Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela died earlier today at the age of 95. The reaction has been overwhelming; I’ll just sample a few responses. “Our nation has lost its greatest son,” lamented South African president Jacob Zuma. F.W. de Klerk paid tribute to the man whom was … More RIP Nelson Mandela (1918-2013)
Here… • How an acclaimed history of politically progressive evangelicalism helps bridge the gap between religious and diplomatic history. (That from my trip to Baltimore… Look for the second half of this talk, coming Monday.) • Jared Burkholder on a famous case of martyrdom in North American history. • Celebrating 125 years of mission and … More That Was The Week That Was
Over the weekend the always-interesting blog Disunion (hosted by the New York Times website) posted “The Name of War,” in which Georgetown University history professors Chandra Manning and Andrew Rothman tracked the evolving answer to a seemingly obvious question: What did Americans call the war fought between the Confederacy and Union from 1861 to 1865? … More When Did the Events of 1861-1865 Become “The Civil War”?
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?
Here… • The news of Cedarville University dropping its philosophy major made me curious how many of its fellow members in the evangelical Council for Christian Colleges and Universities actually offered such a field of study. (Bethel does, and has the fourth largest philosophy faculty in the CCCU.) • Part two of my series ruminating … More That Was The Week That Was
My Saturday links post will take a break, since on Monday I’ll be giving a “best of 2012” version of it. Instead, let me know what you think about a couple of film-related questions on my mind the last few days… My wife and I finally had a chance to watch Lincoln earlier in the … More Biopics: The Best, and the Can’t Misses No One’s Made
Here… • Announcing a couple of events coming up at Bethel University: a faculty workshop on Pietism and Christian colleges that I’ll be directing, and a much larger initiative led by my seminary colleague Chris Armstrong, on “work with purpose.” • And another announcement: of a class on the history of the Evangelical Covenant Church … More That Was The Week That Was
Here • I presented a three-part series exploring whether social class (as much as gender and race) is a source of inequality at Christian colleges like my employer. (part 1: some preliminary observations; part 2: mining data on higher education and social mobility; part 3: some stray thoughts on evangelical and Jesuit colleges and universities) … More That Was The Week That Was
A while back I noted on our department blog that Steven Spielberg’s new film, Lincoln, was receiving extraordinarily positive responses from film critics who had seen advance previews of the movie. (And asked if any of our students or alumni would be interested in writing their own reviews — that invitation still stands, if any … More Spielberg the Historian?
