Muddling Toward Maturity Blog

RONALD REAGAN ON CHRISTIAN FAITH

A friend sent me this short (under 5 minute) compilation of Reagan remarks given in various settings.  His gentleness, humility, and sincerity enobled and edified those who heard him and "had ears to hear."  But he certainly had enemies. . . 

QUICK TAKES

-- Wesley J. Smth - "Mainstreaming Animal Personhood"

 We should be alarmed at the vigor with which animal personhood is being promoted in professional journals in the august fields of law, politics, science, and bioethics. So what, you say? Let radicals bloviate. Animal personhood will never be adopted through democratic means.

That’s almost surely true, and animal rights activists know it. That is why they are seeking to attain their goal by court fiat.  [more...]

--  Gallup's 2015 poll: The most and the least religious States in the U.S.

                  Most religious (in order):  Mississippi,  Alabama, Utah, Louisiana, Tennessee,  Alabama, Georgia, So. Carolina, N. Carolina . . . 

                  Least religious (in order):  New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Massachusetts, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, Rhode Island, New York . . .  [See full list and discussion]

  --  David French - "In Defense of Football" vs. George Will, "Superbowl's 60 Minutes of Damage"

DALLAS WILLARD: NIETZSCHE VS. JESUS (VIDEO)

Dallas Willard, professor of philosophy at the University of Southern California, spoke at Stanford University in 2002 on the topic Nietzsche vs. Jesus.  I found his talk intriguing.   Willard treats Nietzsche respectfully, offering a helpful explanation of Nietzsche's historical context, and the way his perspective on "truth" now predominates in the culture of our day.  Against Nietzsche Willard contrasts Jesus and Christ's way of discovering genuine truth and reality.  The talk is nonpolemical and offers much to ponder.  Go here.

Dallas Willard passed away in 2013 after teaching at USC from 1965 to 2013.  He left  behind an influential body of work.  I have read several of his books and go back from time to time in order to better digest and internalize his thought.  Willard offers fresh vocabulary.  He replaces traditional terminology such as "disciples of Christ" with "apprentices to Christ."   Some of his books include:

     The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God

     The Spirit of the Disciplines: Understanding How God Changes Lives

     Renovation of the Heart: Putting On the Character of  Christ

     Knowing Christ Today: Why We Can Trust Spiritual Knowledge,  

     Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with Christ. 

A book published after his death is  The Allure of Gentleness: Defending the Faith in the Manner of Jesus.

UGANDAN PRESIDENT LEADS NATION IN A PRAYER OF REPENTANCE

I should have noted this event a few days ago.  It's significance is greater than the Western press can grasp. 

While America grows increasingly hostile to faith, Uganda is showing the world what can be accomplished when leaders embrace it. During the 50^th anniversary of his country's independence, President Yoweri Museveni stood before the world and publicly led Uganda in a prayer of personal and national repentance. " I stand here on my own behalf and on behalf of my predecessors to repent. We ask for your forgiveness," he said. "We confess [our] sins, which have greatly hampered our national cohesion and delayed our political, social and economic transformation." After a lengthy confession that included everything from sexual immorality to pride, bitterness and rebellion, Museveni took the very powerful step of dedicating Uganda to God. "We want Uganda to be known as a nation that fears God and as a nation whose foundations are firmly rooted in righteousness and justice to fulfill what the Bible says in Psalm 33:12: Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord. A people you have chosen as your own."

It was an inspirational moment for the nation, which has stood--often alone--for traditional values, abstinence, and families despite tremendous pressure from the West. "The Museveni prayer is a model for all Christian leaders in the world," Rev. Scott Lively believes. Unfortunately, the media is so threatened by religion that it refuses to leave another country alone to pursue its own views on sexuality and faith. Since Museveni's speech, the press has ridiculed Uganda for bending its knee to a higher power--the same higher power that Americans have to thank for our great nation. In times like these, President Musevni's humility should be emulated, not criticized. It is faithfulness like his that will raise Uganda's status as a new power in Africa.

RELIGIOUS COMPOSITION OF EACH STATE IN THE UNITED STATES

Just roll your cursor over each state to find out the religious statistics for that state.  (HT:JS)  http://www.usatoday.com/news/graphics/pew-religion-08/flash.htm

AUDIO FOR THE 2011 GOSPEL COALITION WORKSHOPS

I'm grateful to JustinTaylor for the post and the link:

Training the Next Generation of Pastors and Other Christian Leaders R. Albert Mohler, Jr. Mark Driscoll, David Helm, Don Carson, and Ligon Duncan

The Pastor’s Counseling Ministry David Powlison

The Gospel for Muslims Thabiti Anyabwile

Is Your Church a Safe Place for Sad People? Learning to Walk with Each Other Through Loss Nancy Guthrie

Old Testament Narrative: Letting the Literature Speak Kathleen B. Nielson

Women Teaching Women the Bible: A Suggested Model Jenny Salt

Justification Versus Self-Justification Ray Ortlund Jr.

Preaching a Christ to Whom We Can Come Colin Smith

Orphans and Adoption Russell Moore and Voddie Baucham

Power Through Weakness Tim Savage

Signs of Grace in Inner-City Church Planting Eric Mason

Gospel Faithfulness and Business Leadership in Tumultuous Times Bob Doll

Christianity Explored - A Biblical Strategy for Effective Evangelism in the Local Church Craig Dyer and Alistair Begg

ROUND 2

What Should a Local Church Look Like? Tim Keller, Crawford Loritts, and Mark Dever

Pastoring with Discernment: Applying the Gospel to the Hearts of Those You Serve C. J. Mahaney

Asian American Christian Thought and Theological History: Pastoral Implications for Diversity and Innovation in a Multiracial Church Stephen Um and Julius Kim

An Invitation to Hispanic Pastors and Would-Be Pastors Juan Sanchez

Humble Orthodoxy Josh Harris

Gospel-Centered Pastoral Leadership Sandy Willson

The Feminist Mistake Mary Kassian

Literary Beauty and Gospel Truth: Celebrating the Biblical Union Kathleen B. Nielson

Pure Desire: Gospel-Centered Morality in a Sex-Saturated Society Gary Inrig

Mixing Whites and Colors Without Making Them Run: Building Gospel-Centered, Intentionally Multicultural Churches John Mahaffey

‘They All Look Alike To Me’: The Implications of a Christ-Centered Identity on the Issue of Racial Reconciliation in the Church K. Edward Copeland

Writing Corporate Worship Music Keith and Kristyn Getty

ROUND 3

The Spirit-Filled Missional Ministry of Jesus Mark Driscoll

Trellis and Vine Tony Payne and Colin Marshall

Fostering a Praying Church Scotty Smith

The Genesis of Gender Mary Kassian

When Despair Invades Gospel Work: Learning from Elijah Paige Benton Brown

One-on-One Discipleship: Grass-Roots Church Growth Jenny Salt

Biblical Theology: What It Is and Why It Matters Stephen Um and Richard Lints

Substitutes for the Gospel: A Modest Critique of Modern Evangelicalism Erwin Lutzer

The Mission of the Church Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert

Leading Corporate Worship Music Keith and Kristyn Getty

Seizing Global Gospel Opportunities: Why and How You and Your Church Can Get Involved Michael Oh

Questioning Evangelism Randy Newman

The Heart of the Expositor Kent Hughes

HAROLD CAMPING PREDICTS JUDGEMENT DAY MAY 21, 2011

I put up a blog post before, but today I came across Justin Taylor's valuable post that explains why Harold Camping's views, supposedly based on the Bible, are all wrong.  Taylor writes:

Albert Mohler has some good background on Harold Camping’s latest claims (part of a larger pattern of false teaching), and closes his article with some helpful reminders:

First, Christ specifically admonished his disciples not to claim such knowledge. In Acts 1:7, Jesus said, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.” In Matthew 24:36, Christ taught similarly: “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.”

To state the case plainly, these two verses explicitly forbid Christians to claim the knowledge of such dates and times. Jesus clearly taught that the Father has not revealed such dates and timing, but has reserved that knowledge for himself. It is an act of incredible presumptuousness to claim that a human knows such a date, or has determined God’s timing by any means.

MANY IN THE UK BANKING INDUSTRY MOVING TOWARDS CHRISTIAN FAITH

Alex Preston wrote an interesting article titled,  "UK:  God's bankers: How evangelical Christianity is taking a hold of the City of London's financial institutions"   (HT: VirtueOnline)

Many young workers in the UK banking industry are moving towards Christian faith and thereby a grounding in ethics.   They feel it necessary to keep their developing faith hidden from colleagues.  At the same time they are making new acquaintances among like-minded people.   Read the whole thing...

DAVID BROOKS OFFERS AN INTERESTING REVIEW OF THE BROADWAY MUSICAL "THE BOOK OF MORMON"

In the course of his opinion piece, "Creed or Chaos," Brooks offers thoughtful observations on the kind of religion preferred by educated Americans versus the kind that alters behavior and provides an independent map of reality. I'm impressed that he quotes Dorothy L. Sayers.  He obviously is acquainted with orthodox evangelical theology.  Come to think of it, I recall Brooks wrote a piece on John Stott a few years ago, both fair and informative.  He concludes his current essay saying:

I was once in an AIDS-ravaged village in southern Africa. The vague humanism of the outside do-gooders didn’t do much to get people to alter their risky behavior. The blunt theological talk of the church ladies — right and wrong, salvation and damnation — seemed to have a better effect.

HT: Justin Taylor

END OF THE WORLD SET FOR MAY 21st

Here's the UK Daily Mail headline:  

'Awesome, it's the end of the world': Doomsday campers travel the country preaching the Apocalypse...on May 21

Those who believe in Jesus will be carried into heaven, while the rest of humanity will endure 153 days of 'death and horror' before the world ends on October 21.

You'll want to check the photos, the "Biblical reasoning" (cough!), and the video.  The Daily Mail has complete coverage. 

Me:  I don't believe this apocalyptic judgement/rapture date for a minute.   Christ will indeed return, but not on the basis of an arcane "Bible code" allegedly penetrated by Harold Camping or anyone else.  

BARNA REPORT: DO AMERICANS CHANGE FAITHS?

Excerpts:  (HT: VirtueOnline)

The most common type of spiritual shift was from those who were Christian, Protestant or Catholic in childhood to those who currently report being atheist, agnostic or some other faith. In total, this group represents about one out of every eight adults (12%), a category that might be described as ex-Christians.

Converts to Christianity (those converting from another faith or from non-belief as a child to the Christian faith as an adult) represent 3% of the population. About twice as many (7%) moved from Protestant to Catholic or from Catholic to Protestant. Another 2% of adults were no longer the same as their childhood faith but did not fit into any of these three categories. . . .

Most of the people who have made these changes did so as a teenager or young adult. The study discovered that the median age at the time they changed faiths or significantly altered their faith perspective was 22.

One-third of those who experienced a significant faith shift did so during their twenties and another one-third did so before age 20. In total, two-thirds of people who had a major faith change experienced that outcome before the age of 30 (68%). In fact, among respondents over 40, only 5% of them reported making a major shift in their religious affiliation after the age of 40.  [more . ..]

C.S. LEWIS - "MERE CHRISTIANITY" and THE SIGNIFICANCE OF "DESIRE"

I am facilitating a Sunday morning discussion class on C.S. Lewis's "Mere Christianity."  In the process I came across a wonderful 60 minute audio introductory lecture to "Mere Christianity" by Boston College philosophy professor Peter Kreeft. 

Also, I was pleased to discover a helpful outline/summary of the book here.

One of my favorite chapters in Mere Christianity is Lewis's chapter on "Hope."  Here he touches on the theme that lies at the center of his life:  human desire and longing as a pointer to God and heaven.  We  experience it as "joy".  This feeling of longing and desire is what the Germans call "sehnzucht," which Louis Marcos explains as:

 a German word that means "longing" or "yearning."  Lewis often used it to signify moments in his life when he felt an intense, overwhelming desire for an indefinable, numinous "something" that was just beyond his grasp.  For Lewis, the reality of these moments of longing (he more often calls them simply, "joy") and the stubborn fact that he could find no object for them, either within himself or the natural world, proved to him that their source must be supernatural (a "proof" of the existence of God and heaven that is  generally referred to as the "argument by desire").  - From Louis Markos, Course Guidebook to "The Life and Writings of C.S. Lewis," published by The Teaching Company.

Perhaps Lewis's premier discussion of longing and desire may be found in his masterful sermon preached at Oxford University, "The Weight of Glory", which some regard as the best sermon of the 20th century.

Boston College philosopher Peter Kreeft dissects the subject in his internet article, "The Argument from Desire." He offers a longer discussion in his contribution to G.K. Chesterton and C.S. Lewis: The Riddle of Joy, (a wonderful book for anyone interested in GKC or CSL).  Check also his audio lecture here.

Finally, I will simply add that I thoroughly enjoyed and profited from a book I read shortly after it was published in 1974, Bright Shadow of Reality: C.S. Lewis and the Feeling Intellect by Corbin Scott Carnell.  It is still in print, though with a revised subtitle: "Spiritual Longing in C.S. Lewis."  Highly recommended.

PAKISTANI PRESIDENT ZARDARI SACRIFICES GOATS TO "WARD OFF EVIL"

So much for the growth of secularism at the highest levels of government.  President Zardari's animal sacrifices tell a different story.

Zardari is the husband of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto who was assassinated in late 2007.   (HT: Jonah Goldberg)

WASHINGTON POST INTERVIEWS THEOLOGIAN J. I. PACKER

In a wide-ranging interview, Packer (author of Knowing God and numerous other books) was asked about the variety of spiritualities abroad today.  His response:

"There's a great divide between all the spiritualities of the world and Christian   because Christian spirituality is at every point a  relation to the triune God of the Bible. Secular spirituality isn't focused on God, if God even comes into it, but on me and my fulfillment. My self-discovery. My inner peace. The more you look at that gap, the wider it gets. It's the difference between self-centeredness and God-centeredness. It's unhelpful, actually, that both sorts of concern are called spirituality."

Read the whole interview.

GALLUP: 78% OF AMERICANS IDENTIFY THEMSELVES AS CHRISTIANS

Gallup reports:

PRINCETON, NJ -- This Christmas season, 78% of Americans identify with some form of Christian religion, a proportion that has been declining in recent decades. The major reason for this decline has been an increase in the percentage of Americans claiming no religious identity, now at 13% of all adults.

Below are two charts.

G

Gallup polled another question also:

Me: Check the Gallup website for interpretive comments on these polls and two others:  on church membership and on whether or not religion is out of date.  I found interesting Gallup's concluding comments:

Although a little more than one out of five Americans do not identify with a Christian faith, the Christmas season has ramifications for a broader segment of society. A Gallup survey conducted last year showed that 93% of all American adults said they celebrated Christmas.

SECULAR LIBERALISM AS RELIGION

Dr. Al Mohler writes of liberals who are religiously committed to secular liberalism.  Mohler draws on an article by Howard P. Kains, Liberalism as Religion. 

. . . Kainz offers a crucial insight here, suggesting that one of the most important factors in the nation's cultural divide is that persons on both sides are deeply committed to their own creeds and worldviews--even if on one side those creeds are secular. . .

Kainz concedes that some will resist his designation of secularism as a religion. "Religion in the most common and usual sense connotes dedication to a supreme being or beings," he acknowledges. Nevertheless, "especially in the last few centuries, 'religion' has taken on the additional connotations of dedication to abstract principles or ideals rather than a personal being," he insists. Kainz dates the rise of this secular religion to the French Enlightenment and its idolatrous worship of Reason.

Looking back over the last century, Kainz argues that Marxism and ideological Liberalism have functioned as religious systems for millions of individuals. Looking specifically at Marxism, Kainz argues that the

ON RELIGIONS POSING AS "NON-RELIGIONS" - YOGA, FOR EXAMPLE

Tim publishes a lot of good stuff on his blog, Random Observations, and (to my loss, sad to say) it's been a long time since I've dropped by.  His is a thoughtful, independent, creative mind.  A few days ago he posted wise observations on an important, but rarely discussed subject.  He titles his post "Front Door" versus "Back Door" Religions: Yoga, Meditation & Buddhism."

Below is a snippet to wet your appetite:  (Note: When you go to read the whole post, be sure to read the comments, because Tim interacts powerfully with an interlocutor, adding a lot of material.)

. . . Another litmus test I'd suggest is to consider whether a religion is primarily marketed as a "front door" religion, or as a "back door" religion. In other words, does it admit it is a religion, and is it honest about it's own nature, or does it often pretend to be something it isn't? Will they tell you, up front, the beliefs or outlook their adherents tend to adopt? Or are they uncomfortable admitting such, hiding those pesky details until later? . . .

. . .  Many who sign up for "yoga" classes in health clubs, strip malls (or even public schools, apparently) will be told explicitly that it is not a religion. Yet many yoga teachers are pushing a religious worldview, and will continually introduce more elements as the teaching progresses. But that's not the only, or even most important aspect of indoctrination at work.

Contrary to those who insist yoga is not religious, the word "yoga" is derived from a Sanskrit word meaning "to yoke" or "control", and refers, in India, to a method or technique for

W. BRADFORD WILCOX - "MORE GOVERNMENT, LESS GOD; WHAT THE OBAMA REVOLUTION MEANS FOR RELIGION IN AMERICA"

Here's a synopsis of what Wilcox's article is about:  

While many social conservatives have focused attention on Obama’s liberal social commitments, few have considered what effects an expanded welfare state will have on religious belief—or how these religious effects will in turn impact civic virtue, personal responsibility, altruism, or solidarity. If the European experience with the welfare state and religion is any indication, the Obama revolution could well lead the United States down the secular path already trod by Europe.

Also, consider this excerpt:

A recent study of 33 countries around the world by Anthony Gill and Erik Lundsgaarde, political scientists at the University of Washington, indicates that there is an inverse relationship between state welfare spending and religiosity. Specifically, they found that countries with larger welfare states had markedly lower levels of religious attendance, had higher rates of citizens indicating no religious affiliation whatsoever, and their people took less comfort in religion in general. In their words, “Countries with higher levels of per capita welfare have a proclivity for less religious participation and tend to have higher percentages of non-religious individuals.”

Evolution and Religion

The Pew Research Center has done some interesting surveys regarding views of evolution from different religious perspective:

Read more here.   (HT: BetweenTwoWorlds)

JOURNALISTS DO A POOR JOB COVERING STORIES WITH A RELIGIOUS COMPONENT

Such is the lament of Paul Marshall, Lela Gilbert, and Roberta Green Ahmanson in their book Blind Spot: When Journalists Don't Get Religion.  Vincent Caroll discusses the issue in his excellent Wall Street Journal article.   Recommended reading.

IS THERE A BIOLOGICAL BASIS FOR RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE? (ANDREW NEWBERG)

Michael Gerson brings us up to speed on research experiments. 

. . . It is typical work for Andrew Newberg of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine -- perhaps the nation's leading expert on the biological basis for religious experience. More exotic subjects of his brain scans have been nuns at prayer, Buddhist monks during meditation, Pentecostals speaking in tongues and entranced Brazilian mystics who write out messages from the other side.

These subjects have little in common theologically. But the activity of the brain during intense religious experiences is often (though not always) similar. The frontal lobes are activated, indicating attention and focus. The thalamus shuts down normal sensory input. And the parietal lobes -- which ground us in time and space -- are less active. In this state, people describe a sense of timelessness, a suspension of self, a feeling of bliss and oneness with the universe.

Keep reading... 

DEMS AND MEDIA ELITES WHO DERIDE PALIN'S RELIGION EMPLOY A POOR STRATEGY

So says Michael Gerson in an interesting and insightful column.   (HT: The Corner)

Embedded in his article are some interesting lines:

Reporters press Palin's former pastor to reveal if she has ever spoken in tongues, the way it was once asked if candidates had ever used drugs.

And how about this telling quote?:

It was the sociologist Peter Berger who observed, "Puerto Ricans, Jews and Episcopalians each form around 2 percent of the American population.  Guess which group does not think of itself as a minority."

That's quite humorous. . . and true.  Secularists and "sophisticates" reveal their insularity at every turn.  As Gerson says,

The media treatment of Pentecostalism (Palin's main religious background) and Bible church evangelicalism (her current affiliation) has had the quality of a National Geographic special on a newly discovered Amazon tribe. 

"RAPTURE READY" EXPLORES THE EXOTIC (AND OFTEN WEIRD) CHRISTIAN POP SUBCULTURE

Kristen Scharold offers a "First Things" review of Rapture Ready! Adventures in the Parallel Universe of Christian Pop Culture by Daniel Radosh. 

In his recently published book, Rapture Ready! Adventures in the Parallel Universe of Christian Pop Culture, Radosh bravely ventures into Christian music festivals, Holy Land theme park, Christian comedy clubs, and even Christian pro-wrestling matches to dig out the hairy secrets buried in the kitschy recesses of pop evangelicalism. And he lives to tell about it. And tell about it he does, spilling the embarrassing facts of this $7 billion industry.  (more. . .)

DOES BARACK OBAMA HAVE A "CONVENTIONAL CHRISTIAN FAITH" AS HE CLAIMS?

In 2004 Barack Obama sat down with Chicago Sun-Times religion reporter (now columnist) Cathleen Falsani for a one hour interview on Obama's spirituality.  She subsequently wrote up the interview for the Sun Times.  Now she has published the complete transcript of that interview on her blog. Anyone interested in knowing the extent and depth (or shallowness) of Barack Obama's religious convictions would do well to read the unedited interview.  (HT: Mark Hemingway at The Corner)  Update: Drawing on that transcript, Cal Thomas wrote a column: Barack Obama is Not a Christian.

A theologian Barack Obama is not.  A well-instructed, informed Christian?  I can't imagine anyone thinking so. He has chosen to affiliate with what he calls the "Christian tradition" but if you read the interview, you will see how slim and shallow and wanting in substance is his grasp of the Faith.  It explains how he could make the outlandish statement he made back in March that the Sermon on the Mount justified his support for legal recognition of same-sex unions.  I wonder what Bible passage he employs to justify his role as the King [my designation] of abortion supporters?

Today Stanley Kurtz examined Obama's faith for what it says about his leftist politics. Kurtz highlights a 1995 background piece from the Chicago Reader, "What Makes Obama Run?"  Wow. Read Kurtz's piece and you get a glimpse, more than that -- a revelation-- of the real Obama and his energizing vision. Kurtz writes near the end of his piece:

So it would appear that Obama’s own writings solve the mystery of why he stayed at Trinity for 20 years. Obama’s long-held and decidedly audacious hope has been to spread Wright’s radical spirit by linking it to a viable, left-leaning political program, with Obama himself at the center. The revolutionizing power of a politically awakened black church is not some side issue, or merely a personal matter, but has been the signature theme of Obama’s grand political strategy.

Lucky for Obama, this political background is unfamiliar to most Americans. There are others who share Obama’s approach, however. Take a look at this piece by Manhattan Institute scholar Steven Malanga on “The Rise of the Religious Left,” and you will see exactly where Obama is coming from. . .

Michael Gerson on Roman Catholicism's Importance to the Modern World

Michael Gerson writes wisely about what he calls "The Indispensable Church."  After acknowledging embarrassing historical improprieties associated with the Vatican, he says the Catholic Church remains an indispensable institution for several reasons (my underlining):

First, despite charges of dogmatism, the church is the main defender of reason in the modern world. It teaches the possibility that moral truth can be known through reflection and argument. It criticizes what Pope Benedict XVI has called the "dictatorship of relativism" -- a belief "that does not recognize anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal one's own ego and one's own desires." "Being an adult," says Benedict, "means having a faith which does not follow the waves of today's fashions or the latest novelties."

Secularism has traditionally taught that human beings will eventually outgrow religious

SPIRITUAL, BUT NOT RELIGIOUS?

William Lane Craig expresses his pleasant surprise when he encountered a female religious studies professor with a politically incorrect view on "spiritual, but not religious":

She said that when her students tell her that they're very spiritual but not religious, her response is "Hogwash! That's just a mask for a self-centered, consumer-oriented attitude toward religion. Religions come with a tradition, a moral value system, and so on. It's religion we need, not some vague, self-serving spirituality." Wow! Talk about politically incorrect!

Me: Excellently said!

MIKHAIL GORBACHEV ADMITS HE IS A CHRISTIAN; VISITS THE TOMB OF ST. FRANCIS IN ITALY

Update 3/26/08 - Gorbachev dispels "closet Christian" rumors; says he is an atheist

**
Peter Robinson reports, citing today's London Telegraph news article:

Whenever Ronald Reagan would mention his suspicion that Mikhail Gorbachev was a secret believer, everyone on the White House staff would scoff, thinking the president naive. When I had the opportunity to speak to Gorbachev a couple of years ago, however, I found myself concluding that Reagan had been onto something after all. Why, I asked, had Gorbachev refrained from putting down the revolution of 1989, just as Khrushchev had put down the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and Brezhnev had put down the Prague Spring of 1968? "Because of something I shared with Ronald Reagan," Gorbachev replied. "Christian morality."

Now the last leader of the Soviet Union has spent half an hour on his knees at the tomb of St. Francis.  From the London Telegraph:

Mikhail Gorbachev...has acknowledged his Christian faith for the first time, paying a surprise visit to pray at the tomb of St Francis of Assisi.

Accompanied by his daughter Irina, Mr Gorbachev spent half an hour on his knees in silent prayer at the tomb.His arrival in Assisi was

RESOURCES ON NON-CHRISTIAN RELIGIONS

Andrew Jackson of Smart Christian has prepared useful bibliographies and resources on the following topics:

Religions
Christian "Cults"
Buddhism
Bahai
Hinduism
Sikhism
Judaism
Christian Science
Church of Scientology
Mormonism
New Age

PAUL MARSHALL- THE MIXING OF RELIGION AND POLITICS IS HERE TO STAY

Paul Marshall:

The problem with our contemporary talk of faith and politics is not that it exists but that it is so often so very shallow. We live in an increasingly religious world in which faith and belief affect every dimension of our existence, so our politicians better talk about it.  . . .

I have enormous respect for anything Paul Marshall writes. Yesterday he published an article in the Washington Post titled "Religion and Politics Do Mix." In it he pays special attention to the relationship of religion (and freedom of religion) to economic growth and development, a relationship too seldom discussed.

Will Colson's New Book "The Faith" Be His Best?

Chuck Colson has written a new book, The Faith.  The book's subtitle is "What Christians Believe, Why They Believe It, and Why It Matters."  The first chapter is available on the internet and is excellent.  Colson himself reads from the text here. I will be ordering a copy of this book. (Colson is offering it for only $13 postage paid; the same price as Amazon). Christian leaders enthusiastically endorse the book including the following:

J.I.Packer:

œColson and Fickett are in cracking form as they hit the high spots of Christian belief, behavior, and blessedness against the black background of our runaway decadence. Thank God for such men and for such a book.

J. P. Moreland:

œHis best book yet. It is just the right length and strikes a great balance of being engaging and accessible yet thoughtful and informative.

Analyzing How Religion in the News Gets Reported: GetReligion.org is indispensable

Religion is in the news Big Time these days - Shootings at YWAM and New Life Church in Colorado, Romney & Mormonism & Huckabee, Happy Holidays vs. Merry Christmas, etc. etc.  I am indebted to a friend for reminding me that the place to go to sort out coverage of religion in the news is GetReligion.org   It's a terrific site where experienced journalists analyze how religion stories are being covered.  Example (from GetReligion writer Terry Mattingly):

When it comes to covering the Youth With A Mission shootings, journalists in the mainstream media are still searching for a template to use.

What’s a template? It’s a pattern, an intellectual road map, a set of guiding principles for coverage based on years of experience and previous coverage (especially the coverage in major newsrooms that set the standards for other journalists across the nation).

For example: Let’s say that a heavily armed conservative Christian guns down some worshippers in a congregation affiliated with the pro-gay Metropolitan Community Church after days or weeks of spewing violent, anti-gay language on the Internet. This fits the “hate crime” template.

A white racist blows up a predominantly African-American church. This fits the racism and “hate crime” template.

A Christian attacks a local mosque. Hate crime. A Muslim attacks a local synagogue. This act is transfered over to a more complex template linked to terrorism. It is not simply a hate crime.

If ex-gay activists disrupted a same-sex union in an Episcopal parish, that would be a hate crime. If gay-rights activists disrupt a Mass in a Catholic parish, that fits into a civil-rights protest template. It is not a hate crime.

In the case of the late Matthew Murray, journalists are trying to figure out the nature of the “health issues” and/or convictions that kept driving him out of conservative Christian organizations. The current Associated Press report — click here for a version via Newsweek — is a good way to sample what is going on.   (more . . .)

This has become a "must read" website for me.

William Lane Craig - Tolerance and Certainty in Religion: Are They Mutually Exclusive?

William Lane Craig reports on recent activities in San Diego:

I presented a well-attended lecture on the question “Is Uncertainty a Sound Foundation for Religious Tolerance?”  My target here was certain philosophers who claim that religious tolerance should be based on two factors:  (1) our grasp of moral principles which state that persecution of other religions is wrong and  (2) uncertainty that one’s own religion is true. 

Such philosophers want to foster as much uncertainty about religious beliefs as they can and as much certainty about moral beliefs as they can as a way of increasing tolerance.  I pointed out that this strategy backfires in a number of ways.  In the first place, with respect to a religion like Christianity, which commands us to love our neighbor and even our enemy, it’s not uncertainty but certainty of that religion’s truth that will increase religious toleration. Fostering uncertainty about such a religion will actually decrease people’s motivation to be tolerant.

In fact, for any religion which sees morality as based in God, undermining people’s belief in God will undermine their confidence in the very moral principles which state that persecution is wrong!

In the second place, for people in many of the world religions, like Hinduism or Buddhism,

Why a Candidate's Religious Beliefs Matter

Andy McCarthy explains why we shouldn't shy away from scrutinizing a politician's religious beliefs.  He's taken a politically incorrect position.  I think McCarthy is right.  Following are some excerpts.

If a Muslim were running for high office, even if (however unlikely this seems) he never mentioned his religion or gave public indications of how he understood its doctrines, I would want to know his interpretation of jihad, and his views about such things as whether his first allegiance was to the Muslim umma or the U.S., whether sharia should be the law of the land, the authority of the governed to depart from Islamic doctrine, whether the Qur'an reflects the immutable word of God, whether Mohammed is the ideal role model, whether all people are equal regardless

Nourishing and Enlightening Lectures Available as mp3 Downloads at the Center for Christian Study at UVa

For years I have highly respected the Center for Christian Study at the University of Virginia.  Today I visited their website and took note of many mp3 lectures the Center has made available to internet surfers.  Here is a sample of what I found:

Body and Soul: A Theology of Embodiment lecture given by Dr. Drew Trotter

The Cross in the Circle: A Survey of Celtic Christianity by Gordon Lindsey (a series)

When Oprah Talks, People Listen: Contemporary Cultural Authority and Christian Proclamation by Ken Myers

Dennis Prager Defends Ann Coulter Against Charges of Anti-Semitism

Prager writes:

There is nothing in what Ann Coulter said to a Jewish interviewer on CNBC that indicates she hates Jews or wishes them ill, or does damage to the Jewish people or the Jewish state. And if none of those criteria is present, how can someone be labeled anti-Semitic?

What damage has she ever done to Jews? What is wrong with a person believing that it would be better if another person adopted their faith? Is there one leftist who doesn't believe that a conservative would be better -- "perfected," if you will -- by embracing leftist beliefs and values? Why is it laudable for a left-winger to hope that conservatives convert to liberalism, but dangerous and hate-filled when a Christian hopes that Jews or anyone else will go to heaven (that is, after all,

Webcast Memorial Service for Dr. D. James Kennedy (1930-2007)

Updated 9/17/07 - Excerpt from Dr. Dobson's sermon printed below

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Dr. James Dobson preached the sermon at Dr .D. James Kennedy's funeral.  Dr. Kennedy passed away on September 5, 2007.  A complete webcast of the inspiring 2 hour service may be found here.  A generation of Christian leaders is passing.

WorldNetDaily has posted a partial transcript of Dr. James Dobson's sermon titled "Who Will Answer the Call?"

The passing of Dr. D. James Kennedy, which we mourn today, poses serious concerns about the future of the conservative Christian movement. Its senior leadership is undergoing a dramatic and inevitable change at this time. Many patriarchs of the church are coming to the end of their journeys, and are leaving this earth one by one. In the past few years, we've lost Dr. Bill Bright, Dr. Adrian Rogers, Dr. Jerry Falwell, Dr. Ted Engstrom, Mrs. Ruth Bell Graham, and now, Dr. Kennedy.

So many other leaders who have been used mightily by the Lord in the past 40 or 50 years are about to hand the

The Nicene Creed as Mormons Would Amend It

I thought the following a unique and helpful post. It is excerpted from "Grace" at This Side of Glory blog.  She introduces the Nicene Creed and then red-pencils it in a way the LDS (Mormon) church would change it. 

The Nicene Creed is the most widely accepted and used brief statements of the Christian Faith. In liturgical churches, it is said every Sunday as part of the Liturgy. It is Common Ground to East Orthodox, Roman Catholics, Anglicans, Lutherans, Calvinists, and many other Christian groups. Many groups that do not have a tradition of using it in their services nevertheless are committed to the doctrines it teaches.

Grace continues:

"I’ve  marked up the Creed as a Mormon would have to in order to fit their beliefs (as near as I can figure out — see my remarks at the end), and I’ve got footnotes in case you think I’m making this up. I tried to use Mormon sources whenever possible.

There are some other notes of interest that follow the footnotes . . .
*****

We believe in one God, the main God of a number of Gods(1), who acquired His place as Supreme Being over a long period of time by living a righteous life(2), the FatherMaker one of the Makers (3) of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible (and Who is married, by the way) (4); Almighty,

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, one of the spirit children of God (Lucifer being another), (5) the Only-begotten, Begotten of the Father before all worlds, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, Begotten, not made; of one essence with the Father (6) by whom all things were made: Who won God’s favor by agreeing with God’s plan of salvation when Lucifer disagreed,(7) and who was called Jehovah in the Old Testament(8).

Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, of a physical relationship between God the Father and Mary,and was made man, and was married at the wedding in Cana (10);
(9)

And was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered and was buried;

And the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures;

And ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of the Father in the celestial kingdom, the highest of the three kingdoms of heaven;(11) And He and Joseph Smith (12) shall come again with glory to judge the quick and the dead, Whose kingdom shall have no end.

And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, and Giver of Life, Who proceedeth from the Father, Who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, Who spake by the Prophets;

And we believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. in the Mormon Church, which restores Christianity to the form it had in the time of the apostles.(13)

We acknowledge one Baptism – for both living and dead – (14) for the remission of sins as long as that baptism is conducted by the Mormon Church (15)

We look for the Resurrection of the dead which will be presided over by Joseph Smith,(16)

And the Life of the world to come. And Joseph Smith. (17) Amen.

****

Footnotes:

1 - “In the beginning, the head of the Gods called a council of the Gods; and they came together and concocted

Pope Benedict's New Document on the Eucharist

Click here.

Jungle Tribe Apologizes to Missionaries for Past Acts of Cannibalism

As Mark Tooley says:

Apologizing for the sins, real and contrived, of Western Civilization, is suffocatingly trendy among the West’s cultural elites. It fits their ideological assumption that the West and its religion have ceaselessly victimized benign indigenous cultures around the world.

But this fad was tossed topsy turvey, recently, when Papua New Guinea tribesmen apologized for their ancestors having cannibalized Methodist missionaries 129 years ago. Thousands of villagers attended the apology ceremony in East New Britain province and listened to words of praise for the English missionary who had brought the Gospel to their region.    - Read the whole article

10,000 Chinese Each Day are Becoming Christians

 Update 8/27/07:  Chuck Colson's adds his thoughts with additional links. 

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Michelle Malkin offers a really thrilling post (at least to some of us) about the growth of Christianity in China.  She headlines her  post "10,000 Christians a day" and writes:

Via Weasel Zippers, here’s an interesting piece of the rapid pace of conversions to Christianity in China and here’s commentary at Asia Times:

Ten thousand Chinese become Christians each day, according to a stunning report by the National Catholic Reporter’s veteran correspondent John Allen, and 200 million Chinese may comprise the world’s largest concentration of Christians by mid-century, and

Muslim-Christian Interfaith Dialog in Dubai

The topic:  "Who is Jesus in the Light of the Holy Bible and the Holy Quran? sponsored by the Muslim Student Association MSA and the Christian Fellowship Club CFC at the University of Wollongong in Dubai.  Speakers include Thabiti M. Anyabwile, senior pastor of First Baptist Church, Grand Cayman Islands.  It runs almost two and a half hours.  Very interesting.

What's The Problem With The Catholic Priesthood?: Is it Pedophilia or Predatory Homosexuality?

Gary DeMar see a massive cover-up in the Catholic church. 

Cardinal Roger Mahony has announced that the Church will pay out $660 million to more than 500 victims of sexual abuse by priests. It’s the Catholic Church’s failure to act swiftly and decisively on the matter that has disillusioned and enraged church members and victims. . .  But there remains a more sinister cover-up.

. . .  There has been a redirection of focus from a discussion of homosexuality to pedophilia, a nearly universally despised predatory behavior. The charge of pedophilia is being used as a smoke screen by homosexuals to fly under the sexual radar. While the general public excoriates the pedophiles among us, the homosexuals go merrily along debauching young men in the name of sexual tolerance.

. . . The homosexual lobby is so powerful and intimidating that almost no one wants to suffer from its unbridled wrath. So for cover, the priests are charged with pedophilia in order to hide the fact that homosexuality is the real culprit.  [more]

Top 100 Christian Blogs According to Joe Carter at "Evangelical Outpost"

Update Note: See also the post, "100 Christian Books that Changed the Century"

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- Joe Carter says:       (HT: Hugh Hewitt)

This is not a list of the "best Christian blogs" (whatever that might mean) but rather the top 100 blogs that I have found to be the most convicting, enlightening, frustrating, illuminating, maddening, stimulating, right-on and/or wrongheaded by Christians expressing a Christian worldview.

The selection process is, by necessity, intensely personal and unapologetically subjective. There are a number of Christian blogs that are written by brilliant thinkers and stylists yet, for one reason or another, have not captured my imagination in the way that the following blogs have done. The list is also reflective of my rather narrow field of interests and associations. By and large, the bloggers that are included are from the conservative wing of evangelicalism and Catholicism. There is also a peculiar range of focus. Philosophical blogs are overrepresented, for example, while "This is where I’m at right now"-style introspectionists are all but excluded.

.  .  .  For now, I've listed the top 20 that have had the most influence on me over the past year and listed the others in alphabetical order.

1. Between Two Worlds
2. JollyBlogger
3. The Scriptorium
4. Challies.com
5. WORLD mag blogsa

"Global South" Christians Impacting Denmark

Chuck Colson reports:

A recent Washington Post story described the impact that Christians from Africa, Asia, and Latin America are having on the Danes. Immigrants have started more than 150 churches in Denmark. These churches not only minister to foreign-born residents, but increasingly to native Danes as well.

Karsten Nissen, a Lutheran bishop, called the immigrant Christian churches “a gift to our Danish Lutheran Church” that helps Danes understand how Christians are supposed to live.

According to Bess Semer-Pederson, who runs Alpha Denmark, a course that teaches the basics of Christianity, Denmark “[needs] these immigrant churches, because they are bringing a message that we have forgotten.”  (more)

Dennis Prager: "Why Are Anti-Religious Books Bestsellers?"

The ever-thoughtful Dennis Prager offers answers and a warning.  I recommend clicking through to read the entire article.   Here are a few excerpts:

In just the last few months, three books attacking belief in God and making a case for atheism have been national best sellers: The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins; God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything by Christopher Hitchens; and Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris. A fourth book, Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon by Daniel C. Dennett also sold very well.

In my opinion -- and I dialogued with three of the four authors on my radio show (Dawkins has refused to come on) -- the arguments put forth

Africa Embraces Prosperity Pentecostalism

Click here for a fascinating, and balanced, Christianity Today magazine report.

Philip Jenkins Predicts a Christian Comeback in Europe; Richard John Neuhaus Remains Unpersuaded

Philip Jenkins says:

Alarmist pundits prophesy that a secular Europe risks being overcome by its fast-growing Muslim population. Yet for all we hear about Islam, Europe remains a stronger Christian fortress than people realize.

He points out that "new religious currents have become a potent force."

Examples include movements such as the Focolare, the Emmanuel Community, and the Neocatechumenate Way, all of which are committed to a re-evangelization of Europe. These movements use charismatic styles of worship and devotion that would seem more at home in an American Pentecostal church, but at the same time they are thoroughly Catholic. Though most of these movements originated in Spain and Italy, they have subsequently spread throughout Europe and across the Catholic world. Their influence over the younger clergy and lay leaders who will shape the church in the next generation is surprisingly strong.

Jenkins identifies various Protestant movements, and then invites us to pay attention to the "hugely energetic immigrant congregations."

On a typical Sunday, half of all churchgoers in London are African or Afro-Caribbean. Of Britain’s 10 largest megachurches, four are pastored by Africans. Paris has 250 ethnic Protestant churches, most of them black African. Similar trends are found in Germany. Booming Christian churches in Africa and Asia now focus much of their evangelical attention on Europe. Nigerian and Congolese ministers have been especially successful, but none more so than the Ukraine-based ministry of Nigerian evangelist Sunday Adelaja. He has opened more than 300 churches in 30 countries in the last 12 years and now claims 30,000 (mainly white) followers.

I don't have space to record all that Jenkins says, but he concludes this way:

Europe may be confronting the dilemmas of a truly multifaith society, but with Christianity poised for a comeback, it is hardly on the verge of becoming an Islamic colony.

All this is in line with his book  God’s Continent: Christianity, Islam, and Europe’s Religious Crisis (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007).  Interestingly, Richard John Neuhaus offered a major review in the May 2007 First Things issue.  He has serious reservations about Jenkins' thesis and in his article explains why he remains expectant that Europe will eventually go Muslim.

Jonah Goldberg Posts on Secular (Political) Religions, Drawing on Eric Voegelin and Christopher Dawson

Jonah Goldberg of National Review writes:

This [secular religion] is a subject of enormous interest to me. While working on the book, I became entirely convinced by Eric Voegelin's understanding of fascism as a political religion. But you'll have to wait for that. In the mean time, I've written a couple pieces for the magazine (see here  and here, neither on NRO for reasons that baffle me) in which I discuss liberalism as a political religion. A relevant quote from one of them:

But there was a considerable downside to the displacement of the Almighty by the trinity of the slide rule, the microchip, and the test tube. Eric Voegelin was among the most alarmed critics of the rising progressive tide. According to Voegelin, you cannot eliminate the religious instinct. "When God is invisible behind the world, the contents of the world will become new gods; when the symbols of transcendent religiosity are banned, new symbols develop from the inner-worldly language of science to take their place." Translation: When you rely on science and technology to do God's job, it won't be long before you worship science as a god. Marxism, the apotheosis of progressivism, purged the divine and replaced it with materialism. For the Marxist, proclaimed Voegelin, "Christ the Redeemer is replaced by the steam engine as the promise of the realm to come." For many people today, the steam engine has been replaced by the embryonic stem cell as the promise of the realm to come.

Update: Interesting email, from a reader:   

Jonah,   

Historian Christopher Dawson made a career of writing about “displacement of the Almighty”:   

“Every living creature must possess some spiritual dynamic, which provides the energy necessary for that sustained social effort which is civilization.  Normally this dynamic is supplied by a religion, but in exceptional circumstances the religious impulse may disguise itself under philosophical or political forms” (Dawson, Progress and Religion (London:  Sheed and Ward, Ltd., 1929; reprint, 1945), vii). 

The three main political substitutes for religion in the modern age, according to Dawson in 1934, are:  Democracy, Socialism, and Nationalism.  Each are based on fundamental factors: 

“Democracy bases its appeal on the sacredness of the People – the consecration of Folk; socialism on the sacredness of Labor – the consecration of Work; and nationalism on the sacredness of the Fatherland – the consecration of Place.  These concepts still arouse transcendent religious values or sanctions.  It is religious emotion divorced from religious belief” (Dawson, “Prevision in Religion” [1934], in The Dynamics of World History, ed. John J. Mulloy (London:  Sheed and Ward, 1958; reprint, Wilmington, Delaware:  ISI Books, 2002), 103).

Michael Crichton on "Environmentalism as Religion"

Click here.

Hitchens vs. Hitchens: Atheist vs. Theist

Christopher Hitchens, the commentator, journalist, and most recently author of a book on atheism (God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything) has a brother, Peter Hitchens, also a journalist and author, and member of the Church of England.  In a recent article, Peter writes:

Am I my brother’s reviewer? A word of explanation is needed here. Some of you may know that I have a brother, Christopher, who disagrees with me about almost everything.

Some of those who read his books and articles also know that I exist, though they often dislike me if so. But in general we inhabit separate worlds – in more ways than one.

He is of the Left, lives in the United States and recently became an American citizen. I am of the Right and, after some years in Russia and America, live in the heart of England. Occasionally we clash in public.

  Peter Hitchens describes their upbringing and then says,

Christopher is an atheist. I am a believer. He once said in public: "The real difference between Peter and myself is the belief in the supernatural.  I’m a materialist and he attributes his presence here to a divine plan. I can’t stand anyone who believes in God, who invokes the divinity or who is a person of faith."

I don’t feel the same way. I like atheists and enjoy their company, because they agree with me that religion is important.

Of Christopher's book, Peter says:

I liked and enjoyed this book, and recommend it to anybody who is interested in the subject. Like everything Christopher writes, it is often elegant, frequently witty and never stupid or boring.

I also think it is wrong, mostly in the way that it blames faith for so many bad things and gives it no credit for any of the good it may have done.

I think it misunderstands religious people and their aims and desires. And I think it asserts a number of things as true and obvious that are nothing of the sort.

Concerning Christopher's atheism, Peter sees various problems.  For example,

Where is his [Christopher's] certain knowledge of what is right and wrong supposed to have come from?   

How can the idea of a conscience have any meaning in a world of random chance, where in the end we