Legalism-ization and Sexual Consent — As the federal government presses colleges to improve the way they handle cases of sexual assault, schools are turning their focus to defining “consent” — how to distinguish between activity that’s consensual and activity that’s not. This 7 min. audio clip + text is a clear and present case study […]
Items included for this subject area come from a variety of sources. The perspectives conveyed may or may not express a Lutheran ethos. They can serve our instruction as discussion-starters, examples (positive and negative), and illustrations of intersections between God’s two kingdoms, intersections sometimes characterized by tension, sometimes by congruence. Inclusion does not imply endorsement.
"Open Book" by R. Marxhausen: the Bible, the book open to us all
Popular Press and Christian Colleges
Popular Press and Christian Colleges — The GetReligion monitor site offers some comment on the NYT coverage of Bryan College and its current controversies on human origins and instruction: “The real tension seems to be: How do Christian colleges balance their strong biblical worldview with rigorous academic scholarship and freedom? And later in the piece, […]
Switzerland: The Ethical Shift from Human Dignity to the Dignity of Vegetation
Switzerland: The Ethical Shift from Human Dignity to the Dignity of Vegetation — Switzerland’s constitution requires that “account must be taken of the dignity of living beings when handling animals, plants and other living organisms.” No one knew for sure what that meant with regard to vegetation, so the government appointed the Swiss Federal Ethics […]
Death Before the Fall
Death Before the Fall — A review by Tim Stafford of Ron Osborne’s book, Death Before the Fall: Biblical Literalism and the Problem of Animal Suffering. Osborne’s book examines literalistic readings of the texts as not actually true to Scripture, creating as many theological and interpretation problems as they claim to solve. What they impose […]
Are Christian Colleges Worth the Heavy Cost?
Are Christian Colleges Worth the Heavy Cost? — Christian colleges and universities feel the pressure to prove that the education they offer is worth the staggering debt incurred by students. The article profiles several small Christian campuses and their financial status.
Jarislov Pelikan — The Need for Creeds
Jarislov Pelikan: The Need for Creeds — The idea of reciting an unchanging creed sounds suspicious to modern ears. But church historian Jaroslav Pelikan (1923-2006, translator of Luther’s Works and author of The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine, 5 vols.) illuminated ancient tradition in order to enliven faith in the present and […]
How God Became Jesus: A Response to Bart Ehrman
How God Became Jesus: A Response to Bart Ehrman — Bart Ehrman’s narrative and books–his new book is called How Jesus Became God (Harper, 2014)–suggest the more educated you are, the less likely you are to believe. Michael Bird, lecturer at Ridley College in Melbourne and author of How God Became Jesus: The Real Origins […]
How Christians Should Talk About Sex
How Christians Should Talk About Sex — This column uses it’s a point of departure a recent two-part piece from Rolling Stone on current sexual norms. The columnist’s perspective compares today’s Millennials with the culture Paul was addressing with the Gospel 2000 years ago.
Life Exam: Yale’s Course, “A Life Worth Living”
Life Exam — “This academic semester we’ve been teaching a course at Yale College titled Life Worth Living. We have noted that American colleges and universities have let consideration of great questions about the meaning of life fade out of their curricula. We have become increasingly dedicated to and adept at identifying and deploying the […]
Pedagogy for a Politicized Church
Pedagogy for a Politicized Church — Concordia Seminary President Dale Meyer offers an extensive discussion on the Lutheran temperament, the church’s encounter with the larger cultural context, and sustaining a the church’s instruction both as fidelity to our biblical and confessional beliefs and as a faith that is active in love.
