What Hath Christianity To Do with Politics?: (Pt:1: The Bible and Politics) In a nation divided socially, culturally, and politically, there is a necessity to reflect upon the proper relationship between Christianity and politics. As Richard John Neuhaus often remarked, politics is a function of culture at large, and culture is always underlain by religion [ Read More ]
America has always been more religiously devout than other Western democracies. But now, like them, it has begun to secularize rapidly. And, as religion has declined, political ideology has intensified, society has fragmented, and cultural common ground has disintegrated. As a result, politics is increasingly divisive and existentially fraught. For over three decades, debates about [ Read More ]
The only organ to which secular progressive political activists make little appeal these days—one could consider it America’s only understimulated organ—is the cerebrum. The brain. But when progressives do appeal to voters’ rationality, they wisely do so more primarily through story than through argument. Yet, unfortunately, the progressive story is a “story” not only in [ Read More ]
In this episode of the Tyrannus Hall videocast, Bill Dejong interviews me about the life and relevance of Dutch theologian and politician Abraham Kuyper. As with all revered leaders, Kuyper was a flawed man, but a great leader nonetheless, a Christian statesman from whom we American Christians can learn. To watch the video, click here.
In the last century, our social order has been radically desacralized. Theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer described this as a “world come of age,” in which Westerners attempt to manage life without God. Sociologist Philip Rieff deemed this a third era in world history, an age in which social order has been severed from sacred order and in which the West’s [ Read More ]
In this interview for “The Dual Citizen” podcast, Anna Claire Noblitt and I discuss the responsibilities and privileges of living in a twenty-first century democratic republic. The conversation is wide-ranging, covering a number of issues at the intersection of Christianity, politics, and public life. Listen to the 27-minute interview by clicking here.
What a happy, life-altering, exhausting, and intimidating thing it is to be a parent of small children. I am the father of three children under the age of 12. There have been moments of undeniable joy, such as watching my oldest daughter take her first steps. There have been many opportunities for laughter, such as [ Read More ]
Friends, I participated in a ZOOM conference this week, in which I spoke for 45 minutes on the topic of “Politics and Christian Witness in a Secular Age.” Following the talk, I fielded questions for another 45 minutes. If you’re interested, the talk has been posted at my new YouTube channel. To access the video, [ Read More ]
These days, many Americans reject strong forms of religion. Christianity, in particular, is often embraced only in weak forms or as a mere tool for social and cultural transformation; the more muscular and biblical forms of Christianity are often ignored or rejected. Additionally, individuals are more attentive to images than to words and are addicted [ Read More ]
In any sphere of culture, leaders are trying to sell themselves and their views. In fact, the very reason these leaders often rise to the top is their ability to persuade people of the rightness of their views and decisions. Yet, often they are so charismatic, so persuasive, that we are easily duped by poor [ Read More ]