This week I considered 2020 as the 150th anniversary of the 15th Amendment, reflected on the complicated emotions bound up in Veterans Day, and shared a digital preview of my Lindbergh biography. Elsewhere: • Even though the outcome of the election is clear, Donald Trump probably never will join the great American tradition of politicians delivering … More That Was The Week That Was
My favorite, strangest, most intermittent podcast dropped an episode today. That’s right, for the first time since January, there’s new Nothing Rhymes with Gehrz to enjoy! As Sam Mulberry and I continued my quixotic quest to find a rhyme (in English) for my odd last name, we riffed on six words, most having some kind of COVID … More Nothing Rhymes with Gehrz (COVID Edition)
This week I summarized a new group’s statement of Pietist values, reported on a baseball simulation I’ve been running with my son, and announced the most popular posts of the half-year at The Anxious Bench. Elsewhere: • Like millions of others, we spent the 4th of July weekend watching the filmed version of Hamilton, which … More That Was The Week That Was
“I’m breathing, I’m available Thursday morning at 11:15, I can use Google Search, and I can wear plaid.” That’s how I described my credentials to take part in a live podcast about the history of impeachment, alongside two actual political scientists. My Bethel colleagues Chris Moore and Andy Bramsen had planned a special episode of … More The History of Impeachment
Here… • I know Americans love to rank things, but maybe not preaching, okay? • Another kind of ranking dispute got me thinking about how we decide what makes a college or university Christian. …There and Everywhere • I’ll have more to say about it on Tuesday at the Bench, but if you haven’t seen it … More That Was The Week That Was
Part two of my attempt to curate some of what I read while traveling this month. Yesterday I focused on Christianity; today, articles and blog posts about history and education. • Now that we’re in the year 2017, the floodgates have opened on pieces about the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. Among many others writing … More That Was The Month That Was: History and Education
Earlier this week I started a three-part series at The Anxious Bench on the challenges of writing biographies. I’m writing these posts without any real knowledge of what biographers go through, having never written a book of that sort. But like many historians who have reached mid-career, I’m contemplating such a project, reading more examples of it than usual, and starting … More My New Series on Writing Biography
Well, most of it. I was at the banquet for the Conference on Faith and History biennial meeting in Virginia Beach, VA and missed the first five minutes of Hamilton’s America tonight on PBS. Then after I burst into our hotel room and saw that Katie was watching, I just sat in rapturous joy for a few … More Why Yes, I Did Live-Tweet the Hamilton Documentary
In honor of the Hamilton documentary premiering tonight on PBS… Once more, with feeling: I’m not one for delaying gratification. But I somehow summoned the willpower to avoid buying the chart-topping cast recording of the acclaimed musical Hamilton until last month, when I knew that we would need listening material for our cross-country trip to Virginia. I was not disappointed. … More Best of The Pietist Schoolman: On Hamilton and History
I don’t regret participating in our national angsting over the presidential election, but I can’t say it’s been much fun. So before diving back into that mess, I thought I’d toss off something vastly less serious: a few of the things in life — other than my family — that I’m currently enjoying. Or, a few … More A Few of My Favorite Things, or America’s Already Pretty Great
The Pietist Schoolman 