“I find it fascinating that credulity about scientifically stated absurdities should thus exceed the wildest examples of religious superstition. I have often thought it would be a very good idea to bring an African witch-doctor or medicine-man to London, and let him have an intensive course of looking at television advertisements. The good man, I …
Indeed, Why Not?
“In honesty, however, I must warn in advance any who may embark upon exploring it, that books about the media almost all have one, on the face of it, surprising feature in common—although their subject is communication, they display a singular incapacity to communicate themselves. Perhaps on consideration this is not so surprising as it …
God’s Camouflage
“The Bible can be interpreted as a string of God’s triumphs disguised as disasters” (Herbert Schlossberg, Idols for Destruction, p. 304).
While Calling It Capitalism, Just to Keep Things Jumbled
“Modern statism is a return to mercantilism, to forcible impoverishment of some in order to benefit others, to zero-sum thinking” (Herbert Schlossberg, Idols for Destruction, p. 279).
And That, To Use An Old-Fashioned Word, Is False
“The great fallacy of our time, Malcolm Muggeridge has written, is the one that says that we may pursue collective virtue apart from personal behavior” (Herbert Schlossberg, Idols for Destruction, p. 264).
Maybe This Applies to Us
“In a society in which idolatry runs rampant, a church that is not iconoclastic is a travesty. If it is not against the idols it is with them” (Herbert Schlossberg, Idols for Destruction, p. 254).
Religion, Civil or Biblical?
“A religious statement, on the other hand, which says, ‘do not be conformed to the values of society’ swings an axe at the trunk of civil religion. Civil religion eases tensions, where biblical religion creates them. Civil religion papers over the cracks of evil, and biblical religion strips away the covering, exposing the nasty places. …
The Key to Eternal Relevance
“Examining the economic pronouncements of the church leaders, one is reminded of Chesterton’s remark that the morality of most moralists has been ‘one solid and polished cataract of platitudes flowing forever and ever.’ Having convinced themselves, rightly, that the biblical tradition has much to say about economics, the church intellectuals make theological statements serve as …
Why Dead Fish Always Swim Downstream
“The historicist mentality finds it difficult to consider the possibility that a dominant trend may be evil, and thus stands ready to embrace anything that will confer contemporaneity on itself” (Herbert Schlossberg, Idols for Destruction, p. 237).
Shouldn’t Be Surprised Anymore
“From the time that Aaron, the first high priest, acceded to the people’s wish by casting a golden calf (Ex. 32), the religious leadership has always prepared the way for apostasy” (Herbert Schlossberg, Idols for Destruction, p. 232).