“But in the same way, simple reaction back is not reformation either. Some die-hard traditionalist defenders of orthodusty have no more understanding of what they are doing than do the contemporary worship dervishes. And this is why we need the simple honesty of satire. Pietism is an inadequate protector of piety, which is why pietism …
Water From the Cartesian Well
“However, while the temptation has been present a long time, succumbing to the temptation as a way of life is the fruit of modern rationalism. And while we do not wish to blame everything on Descartes, who is, for example, not directly responsible for the Spice Girls, we may certainly mark the ascendancy of Cartesian …
Rich Christians In An Age of Expensive Authenticity
Chapter One of A Generous Orthodoxy is actually Chapter Two, because of that odd Chapter Zero, and is a chapter which, for our purposes here, I will be calling Chapter Six. No, not really. The chapter is titled “Seven Jesuses I Have Known,” and is an outstanding example of the dabbler approach to truth that …
As Ever, the Logic
“For all the tattoos, Details message is no different than any other lifestyle magazine: Who you are depends on what you consume, and how hip you are depends on how enthusiastically you keep up with the new. Nonconformity may be the language, but fashion is, as ever, the logic.” [Frank and Weiland, editors, Commodify Your …
McLaren the Censorious
There are book reviews and there are book reviews. As I undertake a review of Brian McLaren’s A Generous Orthodoxy, I believe that it is best for us to be frank. As my son put it in a discussion last night, my review mode is that I have apparently put on the hockey mask and …
Rock and Roll Samurai
“Despite the whirlwind of trends, Details retains a unifying philosophical viewpoint — the archetypical American male is a rebel consumer . . . ‘These guys are not only musicians, or even rock stars,’ the magazine affirmed, ‘but modern men, emblems of a new masculinity.’ These ‘rock and roll samurai live outside the law, but are …
Don’t Sugar Coat It. Just Tell Them.
“The late Joseph Bayly wrote a delightful little book some years ago called The Gospel Blimp, which lampooned the earlier forms of this kind of evangelistic absurdity, back when inane evangelicalism was still slogging it out in the minors. It is hard to imagine what a man of his gifts would do with the embarrassment …
Many Thanks to God
“The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles” (Ps. 34:17). I wanted to take a moment and ask all our friends to thank the Lord with us. We just received word that the Attorney General’s office in Boise has dropped the perjury complaint that was filed against me …
The Prosaic Ceiling
Indulge me for a moment. I am working through a volume of poetry by Robert Siegel, The Waters Under the Earth, which I am really enjoying. I would encourage you to do the same. Get it today! Christmas is coming! But in the course of reading him, some unsettled thoughts about poetry that I have …
Business Opportunity
From time to time, we get inquiries from people who are thinking about moving here to Moscow. One of the great concerns about doing this is that pesky detail of making a living. If anyone out there is in this position, I know of a good business opportunity here (a business for sale) that requires …