If you read through the complaint filed against Doug Phillips and Vision Forum by Lourdes Torres-Manteufel, it is plain that the tangled mess there — a mess that is entirely the responsibility of Doug Phillips — is a tangled mess. I make a point of saying (again) that this whole catastrophe is the responsibility of …
Vice, Victims, and Vision Forum
I can see from the comments on this thread that more needs to be said on the Vision Forum fiasco. In the nature of the case, I will have to address various subjects, and so it may look like I am meandering. Bear with me. First, by way of background, let me refer you to …
Vision Forum and Confessing Your Virtues
Lourdes Torres-Manteufel was 15 when she met Doug Phillips, leader of Vision Forum, back in 1999. On her account, she was an adult when the relationship became sexual. The whole tangled affair is now in the courts, and it looks to become even more tangled and tawdry before we are all done. My point in …
Vision Forum and Blaming the Victim
If you glance at the right side bar, you may quickly ascertain that my previous two posts about Doug Philips and Vision Forum are right up there among the most read. This was, in part, driven by some who want to cast me as a defender of things I do not actually defend. If you …
Patriarchy, Vision Forum, and All the Rest of It
Patriarchy Patriarchy simply means “father rule,” and so it follows that every biblical Christian holds to patriarchy. The husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church (Eph. 5:23), and fathers have the central responsibility to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Eph. …
Doug Phillips’ Resignation from Vision Forum
I thought I should say something about Doug Phillips’ resignation from Vision Forum, but it won’t be very much. The news was of course tragic, sad, and humbling. That said, I thought his letter of resignation was good, and accomplished what a letter like that needed to accomplish. I am glad he stepped down from …
Vision 20/20 Posts On Sitler
As many of you know, the fracas this last week over the Steven Sitler situation occurred (for the most part) on a listserve discussion here in Moscow called Vision 20/20. I subscribed to it for the course of a few days, and then when it appeared that continued discussion in that setting would be counterproductive, …
And a Well Done for Abigail
Introduction: Over the years, I have had periodic occasion to wish that more Christian women in bad situations would show the courage and initiative shown by the biblical heroine Abigail. I ...
Letters in the Dog Days Come Early
Letter to the Editor: What concerns us is our pastor's insistence on remaining unpolitical. He has mentioned in sermons that he wants to be focused on the gospel and not politics. I suspect ...
A Brief Tour of My Little Mablog Shop
I know that some of you have figured this out, and so apologies to you, but I haven't really highlighted all the features of my shop here on the front page yet, and I thought it was time. If you have ...