OT scholar David Lamb notes that the Old Testament is full of sexual violence. We read of rapists, pimps, and other perpetrators of sexual exploitation. Every day we hear about sexual assaults on college campuses, in the military, and even in churches. Sadly, many of us are no longer shocked when we hear such horrific news. Stories […]
According to the new Pew Research Center report, the share of the public saying science and religion are often in conflict is up modestly from 55% in 2009, but the parsed results are mixed. People’s sense of conflict between religion and science has less to do with their own religious beliefs than it does with […]
The Weird and Wonderful Church Drawings of John Hendrix: This illustrator is reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch, the late-medieval painter best known for his busy allegorical visions of biblical scenes. But viewers this side of the Reformation will note that, unlike Bosch, Hendrix draws explicitly from the Word and words. Most of his sketches include passages of […]
This exemplary discourse between two thoughtful and informed Christian scholars serves as a model for students in how to engage in constructive exchange about a vexing culture shift, in this case the topics of transgender, gender dysphoria, and gender identity. Linked first here is Robert Gagnon’s response article as a fast way to understand the […]
Says William Carroll in “Mind the Gap”: Before we rush to embrace transhumanism, it is crucial to ask what it means to be human. Can a mechanistic understanding of mental function sufficiently apprehend what it is to be human? Or does the mind (and, more generally, the soul) remain radically other than, and not reducible to, physical […]
This article on “Life After Death” considers whether it is ethical to use vaccines that save millions of lives but are derived from the tissue of aborted children. Some pro-life advocates “have a deep aversion” to using vaccines that may contain “the remains of an aborted child,” says Debi Vinnedge, founder of Children of God for […]
“Was There an Exodus?” is a very readable essay series in Mosaic that examines the long-standing debate about whether the Exodus actually occurred. Not just for Biblical studies, the themes can apply to the social sciences, history, the sciences, and any class that accesses the past to understand the present. This exchange can help students […]
This brief profile about “More Students, Secular but Feeling a Call, Turn to Divinity Schools” discusses those “religion: none” students who can be found at divinity schools around the country, especially those schools inclined toward theologically and politically liberal Protestantism, such as Harvard and Chicago Theological Seminary. These schools “offer even atheists and spiritual seekers a language of […]
“The New Scientist: Jack of All Trades,” raises the issue of how and why resources are allocated for and in the sciences. “The claim that science needs to focus more on societal needs originates from politicians and is disseminated by intermediate bodies between politicians and scientific institutions such as national or regional funding agencies. Such […]
This position statement from the American Principles Project proposes a four-part strategy to regard the Supreme Court’s Obergefell decision not as a matter of settled law (cf. Dred Scott, Roe, etc.). Joined by 60 scholars from several disciplines, the statement says, “To treat as ‘settled’ and ‘the law of the land’ the decision of […]
