Religion

Meditating on COVID-19

Does our collective preoccupation with the coronavirus get in the way of our ecclesial calling to meditate upon Jesus’s passion? Continue Reading »

2 Apr 2020

How can the mathematical realm be so apparently godlike? The traditional answer, originating in Neoplatonic philosophy and Augustinian theology, is that our knowledge of the mathematical realm is precisely knowledge, albeit inchoate, of the divine mind. Mathematical truths exhibit infinity, . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Apr 2020

The Vaccinator’s Dilemma

by Shalom Carmy

Among the blessings of modern living, we routinely count standard vaccinations for adults and children. Scourges such as smallpox have been eradicated, due in part to mandatory vaccinations that ensure immunity in entire populations. When I heard that a significant number of parents, including some . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Apr 2020

Formation for Worship

by Hans Boersma

The Christian faith does not terminate in propositions about God. This conviction comes through loud and clear in James K. A. Smith’s recently completed three-volume work, Cultural Liturgies. Smith’s trilogy may be read as a friendly yet firm word of caution to his Reformed . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Apr 2020

The Ghost of Classical Liberalism

by Matthew Schmitz

In America, most right-leaning pundits espouse some form of “classical liberalism,” a theory that stresses free markets, individual rights, and the inviolability of private property. The more libertarian defenders of this theory stress its individualistic aspects, while the more traditional seek . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Apr 2020

The Great Saracen

by Thomas F. Madden

In 1187, Pope Urban III received news so startling that he died from hearing it. Across the Mediterranean, in the Crusader-controlled Kingdom of Jerusalem, a great battle had been fought between Christian knights and the forces of the Muslim leader, Saladin. On a rocky plain formed by an extinct . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Apr 2020