Sailing the Last Voyage with Newton and Pascal
Historical amnesia is a common American malady. One of those aspects of American life that is oft forgotten is that of the "acceptable religion," the idea that certain religions are more socially acceptable (and thus more amenable to their adherents moving up) than others. In the past, this was mostly an intramural contest within Christianity …
Continue reading "The “Acceptable Religion” Concept Makes a Comeback"
I recently reviewed Latta Griswold's The Middle Way, this is another quote from that, in his advice on sermons: The most ineffective, and ultimately the most objectionable of all preachers, is the scold. There is a vast difference between rebuking evil and exposing to a congregation the sins to which they are prone, and scolding. …
If there's one term that gets misused in Anglican-Episcopal circles more than any other, it's the via media, the middle way, which Anglicanism is supposed to embody. Probably it's original intent was best expressed by the men who "translated" the King James Bible. In their dedication to their "dread sovereign," they said the following: So …
Continue reading "Book Review: Latta Griswold’s The Middle Way"
I've spent the past several weeks going on about social and political things, but this week I'd like to discuss a pet peeve of mine in the glorious church Church of God I'm a part of: the issue of honorary doctorates, and the calling of their recipients "Doctor."Â Fortunately our Presiding Bishop, the Most Rev. …
Continue reading "About Those Honorary Doctorates in the Church of God…"
In an excellent piece on the divide between the Remain-supporting clergy and the Leave-leaning laity of the Church of England, Giles Fraser makes this observation: The job of the church is not to be a faintly Left-wing lobbying group for a slightly more redistributive tax policy or a more European focused Brexit deal. The job …
Continue reading "A Pesky Detail the “Religious Left” Overlooks on the Mission of the Church"
In the run-up to Advent, the eminent Episcopal theologian Fleming Rutledge has posted an interesting piece entitled "Jesus’ Parable of the Money in Trust." It's an interesting and informative piece, informative not only in its Biblical exegesis but also (doubtless unintentionally) about the Episcopal Church itself, and the changes wrought from the days when multi-generational …
Continue reading "My Response to Fleming Rutledge (@flemingrut) on Stewardship"
Elizabeth Kolbert at the New Yorker has written an interesting article about philanthropy, "then and now." "Then" was during the Gilded Age at the end of the Nineteenth century and the beginning of the Twentieth. "Now" is the age of the Silicon Valley magnates. In both cases, the recipients of the wealth are a) burdened …
Continue reading "The Solution Jesus Offered for the Wealthy Wasn’t Philanthropy"
That was certainly the case with Peter Ball, whom John Major appointed to the see of Gloucester, much to then Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey's horror: LORD CAREY has expressed his horror that the former Prime Minister John Major was persuaded by a senior aide to choose Peter Ball over another candidate for the see …
Continue reading "You Can’t Always Get What You Want When You’re the State Church"
Recently Duane Alexander Miller, a long-time friend of this blog, wrote Two Stories of Everything: The Competing Metanarratives of Islam and Christianity. My review of this excellent book is here at Global MIssology.
They're certainly obsessed with it: I intrude mention of the Episcopal Church here because of my presence at the late convention — where what could have been taken for the third, perhaps second, cousin of old-fashioned anti-Semitism prowled like a ramping and roaring lion, snarling at Israel, clapping its paws for the Palestinians. Resolution after …
Continue reading "The Simple Solution for the Episcopalians’ BDS Problem"
Positive Infinity 