Category Archives: Commentary

The Original Coming Evangelical Collapse Posts

UPDATE: I’ve been linked at Out of Ur, GetReligion and all over today. I want to say two things to all of them: 1) The CSM piece was on the commentary page. It is commentary, not news or research. 2) I did not say that evangelicalism is dying. I said it is going to declineContinue reading “The Original Coming Evangelical Collapse Posts”

The ARIS Study: Christianity On The Decline In America

UPDATE: Welcome to all of you stopping by from the Drudge Report and Real Clear Politics. Glad to have you. The American Religious Identification Survey published its results this week, and if you go to the USA Today graphic and punch in Catholics, Other Christians and Non-Religious, you will get the picture. (Touchstone Magazine hasContinue reading “The ARIS Study: Christianity On The Decline In America”

New Toys, Same Problem: Evangelicals, Evangelism and the New “Altar Call”

Becoming a disciple of Jesus just got a lot easier, thanks to your cell phone. I’m on the record about the public invitation or “altar call,” as revivalists like to call here. (Here, here, and here.) I don’t like it. Why? Read the posts, but for now, let’s look at one reason: You walk theContinue reading “New Toys, Same Problem: Evangelicals, Evangelism and the New “Altar Call””

Riffs: 03:07:09: David Head (and Paul) on the Gospel

It seems to me that evangelicals need to say one thing, do one thing and be one thing. But what? In lieu of an answer like, “the Gospel,” another option is to try to say many things, do many things and be many things, all from a standard that varies from group to group, evenContinue reading “Riffs: 03:07:09: David Head (and Paul) on the Gospel”

Riffs:03:05:09: Baptists- The New Methodists? (According to Dr. Chuck Kelley)

Dr. Chuck Kelley at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary spoke this week on the problems with Southern Baptist Evangelism and our churches in general. It’s a heartfelt, quite moving and well-thought out talk; a mixture of our revivalistic side and the scholarly, historical side. You can and should listen here. The message starts after theContinue reading “Riffs:03:05:09: Baptists- The New Methodists? (According to Dr. Chuck Kelley)”

Review: 10 Things I Hate About Christianity by Jason Berggren (and Some Thoughts On Post-Evangelical Voices in Christian Publishing)

A lot of people write me every year and they say “Why don’t you write a book?” Honestly, no one would like to be a published author more than me. I am eaten up with envy toward friends like Jared Wilson, Trevin Wax and Travis Prinzi who have turned their studying/writing/preaching/blogging into books. Bill KinnonContinue reading “Review: 10 Things I Hate About Christianity by Jason Berggren (and Some Thoughts On Post-Evangelical Voices in Christian Publishing)”

Appalachian Solutions: What the Government Can Do.

I’m not an economist, I don’t want to argue politics, and I probably had no business posting this. It’s the lack of TV. I have to make up my own punditry. ABC’s 20/20 did a special on Appalachia this month, which caught my interest for three reasons: 1) They called me and asked me forContinue reading “Appalachian Solutions: What the Government Can Do.”

Fifteen Random Thoughts About the Economic Crisis

Rather random. Incomplete. Just things I keep thinking. 1. I’m convinced that some of the news media (***cough*** Fox ***cough***) are using the financial situation to create a “panic” audience. That is, they are putting on every extreme, doomsday voice they can, they are ignoring larger context, they are keeping their audiences convinced this isContinue reading “Fifteen Random Thoughts About the Economic Crisis”

“I Forgive Myself:” The Hardest Word?

One of the things I really don’t like about run-of-the-mill evangelical spirituality is the assumption that we’re all basically clones of each other. Cheerful clones. Mentally healthy clones. Good family clones. Conservative political clones. Happy at church clones. Like the same music clones. Clones who cope well. Clones who think alike. Clones who can takeContinue reading ““I Forgive Myself:” The Hardest Word?”