Support First Things by turning your adblocker off or by making a  donation. Thanks!

James R. Rogers is associate professor of political science at Texas A&M University. He also blogs at Law & Liberty.

RSS Feed

Os Guinness’ A Free People’s Suicide

From Web Exclusives

Freedom in the U.S. is poised to collapse sooner rather than later, according to Os Guinness in his new book, A Free People’s Suicide: Sustainable Freedom and the American Future. The reasons pertain both to external relations”imperial overreach and hubris in particular”but results more particularly from the increasing internal decadence among its people and leaders… . Continue Reading »

A Few More Religious Songs …

From First Thoughts

Below, Matthew Schmitz lists “fifty essential religious songs” and asks what he missed. I wouldn’t suggest that Matt has missed anything on his list. For me, though, I add at least a few classical selections. The Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah would rank at the the top . . . . Continue Reading »

Business and the Way of the Cross

From Web Exclusives

A comment in a Huffington Post article on the “new monasticism” caught my eye a few months back. “Nobody wants their kid to get interested in new monasticism, ” joked Ben, a young seminarian from Michigan when he arrived at The Simple Way for a visit, “They want them to become businessmen. ” This joke is an exaggeration of what many Christian parents want for their children … Continue Reading »

Democrats Not a Major Party

From First Thoughts

I make way too many mistakes to play “gotcha” journalism. Yet the first paragraph in this Huffington Post blog entry did arrest my attention: Mitt Romney’s choice of Paul Ryan as his running mate marks the first time in American history that no Protestant will appear on a . . . . Continue Reading »

N.T. Wright’s How God Became King

From Web Exclusives

Some years back I visited several Christian schools to help a friend’s widow choose where to send her four young children. While touring a large evangelical school, the principal showed me to the auditorium where the school choir rehearsed Joy to the World in preparation for the upcoming Christmas concert. At the conclusion of the song, the choir director instructed the children that Joy to the World didn’t apply for today, it was a “millennial hymn” because “Jesus doesn’t reign today.” The choir director’s comment would be non-controversial in many, perhaps even most, American evangelical churches… . Continue Reading »

Serving the Least of These

From Web Exclusives

Matthew 25.31-46 exemplifies the divine inversion. Inverting worldly expectations, the king explains to those gathered before his throne that they served him as king by serving the least kingly people of all: the hungry, thirsty, naked, and the sick and imprisoned. The king identifies these individuals as his very brothers… . Continue Reading »