In this very fine book, Jonah Goldberg rises to the defense of ideology, and about time somebody did. He acknowledges that there has been a stream of Burkean/Kirkian conservative thought that has been suspicious of ideology, but this has just been the natural prudence that wants to avoid movements in the grip of one idea. …
Not Even Sure How to Spell Kleagle
In his engaging and admirable book, Bad Religion, Ross Douthat mentions me in an aside,[1] and in that particular citation, he touches on a few things that need to be addressed at the very outset of any argument for a “mere Christendom.” They can be grouped under the heading of proposals that no one should …
That Seamy Chain of Syllogisms
Marriage is a political act, and not an individual choice. How you marry is a way of testifying to what city you belong to. Who defines marriage? The difficulty we are having in our generation in answering this question shows how theology shapes and drives everything. If God created the world, and put one man …
Book of the Month/May 2012
Below is the cover of my selection for the book of the month in May 2012, and just following that image is the book trailer. Full disclosure: the author, Mitch Stokes, is a friend of mine, which some might assume could skew this review. But no, I write objectively, with steely-eyed resolve. And also, on …
Book of the Month/April 2012
Reformer of BaselDiane PoythressReformation Heritage Books This might seem like an odd book to get excited about (at least to some), but I have wanted to see a book like this for years. In Reformer of Basel, Diane Poythress has given us a very fine introduction to the life and influence of John Oecolampadius, the …
A Little Rooster of a Brother
In most instances, bringing up daughters also includes bringing up sons at more or less the same time, and this means that someone has to manage the interaction. Boys and girls discover their differences early on, and in many cases, they discover that they don’t like those differences all that much. And they say so. …
Book of the Month/March 2012
The World-Tilting GospelDan PhillipsKregel Publications, 2011 I want to start a new feature on this blog, if I can keep up the pace. I have occasionally done extended reviews of books, blogging through them, but I think I would like to start reviewing a book a month in more of a one-off, hit-and-run fashion. But …
You Don’t Use the Whole Horse
“Transcendent politics can sometimes be a very dangerous politics, but is the only kind of politics for human beings” (Glenn Moots, Politics Reformed, p. xii). One of the reasons I like this quote — besides the fact that it is so gloriously true — is the fact that it collides so spectacularly with the actual …
Proverbs and Promises
God gives parents assurance in two ways. The first can be called proverbial assurance, and the second kind is grounded in the promises. Suppose husband and wife are talking about their daughter, now only eight-years-old, and mom is worried about whether or not she will “turn out.” As her husband tries to reassure her, they …
Caryatides and Their Glory
The process of bringing up daughters should be understood as a process of glorification. Just as manhood is where boyhood should be aimed, so also womanhood is where girlhood should be aimed. Before undertaking any task, it unreasonable to begin without knowledge of what the completion of the task ought to look like. Human life …