Harmony and Liberty in the Covenant Church (Phil Anderson)

Having published an essay last Friday by Hauna Ondrey, the current church historian at North Park Seminary, I’m doubly thrilled today to share a piece by her illustrious predecessor, Philip Anderson. Entitled “Harmony and Congregational Liberty in the Tradition of the Evangelical Covenant Church,” it considers “the unintended consequences of establishing” a precedent to declare … More Harmony and Liberty in the Covenant Church (Phil Anderson)

The Path to Renewal: Be a Priest! (John 2:13-22)

Let me suspend my Lenten hiatus just long enough to share the text of the sermon I delivered yesterday at Salem Covenant Church in New Brighton, Minnesota. It was the fourth in a “Path to Renewal” series inspired by The Pietist Option: Hope for the Renewal of Christianity, with my co-author — and Salem’s senior pastor … More The Path to Renewal: Be a Priest! (John 2:13-22)

Glad Hearts: Some of My Favorite Voices from the Covenant Church

As I begin work on a book with one of its pastors about its theological heritage, I’ve been thinking a lot about the Evangelical Covenant Church. So with delegates from its congregations gathering in Phoenix, Arizona for our denomination’s annual meeting, I thought I’d share a few quotations from a few of my favorite Covenanters, clustered around our denomination’s … More Glad Hearts: Some of My Favorite Voices from the Covenant Church

Jay Phelan on Pietism and Evangelical Unity

It sounds like I wasn’t the only Pietist to take issue with David Gushee’s call for an evangelical “divorce,” between its conservative and progressive camps. Here’s North Park Seminary professor Jay Phelan in the current issue of The Covenant Companion: As I read his blog I found myself agreeing with a good deal of Gushee’s analysis—and rejecting … More Jay Phelan on Pietism and Evangelical Unity

The Swedish Pietists: A New Book from Mark Safstrom

I suspect that even before they found this blog or the books I’ve edited, most of my readers were already familiar with the German Pietists who started the movement known as Pietism: Philipp Spener, August Francke, Nicolaus von Zinzendorf, perhaps even Johanna Petersen, Gottfried Arnold, Alexander Mack, and other Radical Pietists. But if we consider why a Pietist ethos is … More The Swedish Pietists: A New Book from Mark Safstrom