On the Death of James Dobson (1936-2025)

A friend recently wrote to me asking if I had heard about the death of James Dobson. I told him I heard it break over the news while I was at work, and I trembled. I was reminded of the same thing happening to me back in 2007 when Jerry Falwell died. Once again, I thought of Matthew 7 and 2 Timothy 3 - and the theme of deceiving and being deceived.

Two Tales of Theological Confusion

There is a great deal of confusion out there. This hardly needs to be said but I was reminded again of it on a recent Sunday when talking to a very zealous and proud CREC member who launched into a criticism of Sacralism. He's really opposed to the idea of the Church being intertwined with the government.

Alberta's Chronicle of Evangelical Demise

I heard Tim Alberta interviewed on Fresh Air back in November of 2023. His interview grabbed my attention as I remain eager to hear Evangelical voices critical of what's been happening to the Church in the Trump era.

And so out of curiosity I picked up his book - The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory: American Evangelicals in An Age of Extremism and was immediately 'pulled in' as they say. It was really a very interesting read and his compilation of reporting narratives and interviews was compelling. During the early stages of the book I became convinced that I would want everyone I knew to read it. But then at some point the book shifted and began to lose its way, leaving me with very mixed feelings.

Trumpism and the Infiltration of the Church

I'm hardly the first to muse on the irony of how the Right expressed constant concern over Obama and how the Left made him into a messianic figure. I took it as a fiery expression of zeal for someone that was not George Bush - people have already forgotten how much he was despised near the end of his term. Regardless, whatever happened with Obama surely pales in comparison to the way Trump is viewed by his most devoted followers. And devotion is the correct word as many have crossed the line and for them Trumpism is far more than a political platform or a style - it's a religion.

Discerning Trueman's Confusion

https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2023/12/has-hitler-won-on-the-left

Carl Trueman of Grove City College laments the moral decline in society and the kind of confusion that would lead to people celebrating the 7 October Hamas attack on Southern Israel.

Evangelicalism's Outsourced Worldview

Some time ago I heard someone discussing the 'outsourcing' of a great deal of Evangelical thinking and it has stayed with me. It's another interesting way of framing what has happened.

The Persistent Myth Regarding Moscow and Covid

On numerous occasions in conversation and from the pulpit I have heard Christians appealing to the example of Doug Wilson and his followers in Moscow, Idaho. Inspired by their resistance to 'Covid Tyranny' in the fall of 2020, this group is being held up as an example of courage and Christian conduct.

Little do these Wilson fans realize, what they deem inspiration is in fact a source of shame, and rather than call attention to an example of heroism and Christian fortitude, they in fact trumpet their own lack of discernment.

A Pastoral Rebuke of a Different Kind

This was but another case of meeting Christian people at a church and getting one impression and then finding them on social media and discovering they are in fact something else. The Nazarene body in question is something completely unrelated to the fairly numerous Nazarene churches which are part of the Wesleyan tradition.

A Libertarian Perspective on Food Freedom (I)

https://www.ironsharpensironradio.com/podcast/august-25-2023-show-with-jim-mogel-on-food-freedom-agriculture-from-a-biblical-perspective/

This episode of Iron Sharpens Iron caught my eye as it touches on a larger topic of attitudes about food and what is 'natural' that have emerged in more extreme Right-wing Christian circles. I have notes and a partially completed piece on this topic that's been on the back-burner for a couple of years. God willing I'll get to it before the end of this year. It's important and discussions like this remind me of this fact and the need to counter these assumptions.

The UCC Backlash: Conservative remnants within old Congregationalist, Hungarian, and German Reformed Congregations

https://www.ironsharpensironradio.com/podcast/june-15-2023-show-with-ed-boyle-micah-clouse-on-is-there-hope-for-the-united-church-of-christ/

A recent episode of Iron Sharpens Iron caught my eye as it called attention to some of the conservative remnants and their resistance to theological liberalism within the United Church of Christ (UCC).

John MacArthur Continues to Disappoint

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-ofKxfYqGw

In recent weeks, as the media focused on the seventy-fifth anniversary of Israel's founding, I have been musing on Dispensationalism and its geopolitical influence. I happened to come across a video of John MacArthur appearing on the Ben Shapiro show back in 2018.

The Frankfurt Declaration: Its Disordered Assumptions, Deceit, and Dangers (II)

Providence lobbed the American Church a softball when it came to Covid. Did it rise to the occasion? No, the episode exposed a metastatic spiritual cancer, a real ugliness, and it revealed a reigning ethical system antithetical to the New Testament. The rotten harvest of a generation of Right-wing Dominionism came to bear in the selfishness and avarice we witnessed. The survival of the fittest ethic of capitalism and the sociopathic mercenary ethics of Libertarianism contributed to the deaths of over 1 million people – just in the US. These false social systems and ideologies have been deeply established in the minds and hearts of American Evangelicals due to an aggressive programme of false teaching that has been in place now for more than a generation. Covid exposed the rotten heart of the larger Evangelical movement – of American Christianity in all its mammon-loving repugnant splendour. Many Church leaders (including the supposed and farcical tyranny-resisters of The Frankfurt Declaration) have blood on their hands.

The Frankfurt Declaration: Its Disordered Assumptions, Deceit, and Dangers (I)

https://frankfurtdeclaration.com

This last summer a new doctrinal declaration appeared that for all its bluster has received surprisingly little attention.  From what I can tell the forces behind it represent an informal effort or loose alliance that would include the likes of John MacArthur, and people associated with James White and G3 ministries.

Inbox: A Psychology Follow-up (II)

The psychology explosion took place (culturally speaking) in the 1970's and the Evangelical movement in its zeal to be culturally relevant trailed closely behind. We see this in Tim LaHaye's psychologically-rooted approach to spiritual gifts which gained popularity during the same decade. He revived and recast The Four Temperaments, a notion rooted in the long discounted physiology based on humors and the ideas of ancients and pagans like Galen. How this took root in ostensibly Bible-based circles is still a wonder.

Finding Meaning in History and the Dangers of Historicism

Following recent Christian discussions on historiography, it was inevitable that criticism directed at Historicism would eventually be put on the table. In this case the reference is to the argument for inevitable historical processes that govern human development and progress. Following in the footsteps of thinkers like Hegel, the philosopher studies these processes and by understanding them, a right view of history can be developed and with it a coherent political theory and strategy.

The False Dilemma of the 2022 Election

Albert Mohler and other Evangelicals are right, we as Christians cannot vote for Democrats. Amen. And they go further and suggest those that do so fall under condemnation. Amen to that as well.

Inflation as a Tool and the Spectre of Corporatism

When inflation rates rise, the Right often makes demagogic appeals to the Gold Standard accompanied by denunciations of fiat currency and central banking policies. Some go much further and speak of conspiracies. Others focus on the ethical side of things and how inflation is a form of theft in that it decreases the value of money that people have worked for, saved, and invested.

The Meloni Problem (II)

Whether Meloni is able to implement her policies or not is yet to be seen. Her coalition may very well implode as she is contending with some powerful personalities and egos that will certainly challenge and undermine her leadership at points. If they can actually work together they will be very powerful and given what's happening in France and Germany, (the only EU members more powerful and influential in Italy) – the prospects for the future are a cause for concern.

The Meloni Problem (I)

God, Family, and Country – what's wrong with that? This is the response of the Christian Right to the electoral victory of Giorgia Meloni and her choice slogan. In fact it sounds a lot like what one hears with the Trumpite movement. Meloni who is all but set to be the next prime minister of Italy has certainly been making the rounds and has garnered considerable support in American Right-wing circles. Fluent in English she has been able to blend in nicely at the National Prayer Breakfast and CPAC.

Biden's Independence Hall Speech and the Evangelical Response

Did Biden err in making this now infamous speech – in calling out MAGA Republicans and the Trumpite movement, and in identifying them as a threat to the country?