(REVIEW) Adventurous, dangerous, fabulous, redemptive and revolting: Medieval travel was all of this and more, as Bale describes, drawing upon a host of period narratives to paint a vivid picture of the experience during an era dominated in the West by pilgrimage. The reasons that pilgrims embarked for places like Canterbury, Santiago de Compostela, Rome and Jerusalem (the holiest and most desirable of all) were manifold.
Read More(REVIEW) Is subjugation and oppression central to the life of a Muslim woman? What roles do Islamophobia and white supremacy have in this misogyny? And where do the biggest threats to Muslim women’s freedom and safety really come from? These are some of the many pertinent questions that Samia Rahman answers in her new book, “Muslim Women and Misogyny: Myths and Misunderstandings.”
Read More(ANALYSIS) Thoughtful Christians do need to speak up. During the late 20th century Marxist-Christian syncretism was a major problem, but Christian nationalism has much more influence within the evangelical world now and is, right now, the greater danger. In “Untangling Critical Race Theory,” Ed Uszynski writes, “Too often Christian commentary denounces CRT while making light of the real problems it seeks to address.”
Read More(ANALYSIS) In our post-pandemic, technologically-infused culture, burnout is on the rise across all sectors of the economy. People are struggling with the frenetic pace of the modern workplace. The church is no exception. In fact, pastors and clergy find it difficult to keep up with the evolving demands of church life in a digital age.
Read MoreThe history of the soundtrack of American evangelical culture is profiled in the new book, “God Gave Rock & Roll to You: A History of Contemporary Christian Music” by Leah Payne, Associate Professor of American Religious History at Portland Seminary. Payne, as a Pentecostal pastor’s daughter in a working-class town in rural Oregon, grew up with this music and later married an aspiring CCM artist.
Read More(ANALYSIS) According to a recent Pew study, the vast molarity of U.S. adults agree that religion’s influence is shrinking, yet they continue to hold a positive view of it. This disparity highlights the challenge facing the church today: How can people of faith navigate a world that is increasingly losing faith? With the looming election cycle ahead and the opportunity for a little summer reading, now is an ideal time to consider a few insightful books on the church’s role in society.
Read MoreThe John Templeton Foundation announced on Tuesday that Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela was named this year’s recipient of the Templeton Prize in recognition for her work around trauma and forgiveness in post-apartheid South Africa. Gobodo-Madikizela, 69, an author and professor, has created a model for social healing in the aftermath of conflict — one that she calls “the reparative quest.”
Read MoreAndrew Root’s “The Church in an Age of Secular Mysticisms” (Baker Academic, 2023) includes some ponderous writing but a central concept well worth pondering. Root asks us not to think of politics and culture not as a battle of socialistic secularists versus MAGA right-wingers but as a pyramid. Two secular philosophies are on the bottom: “Exclusive Humanists” on the left and “Counter-Enlightenment” on the right.
Read More(REVIEW) “Ghosted” focuses on how the Frenches lost friends and colleagues alike when they became critics of Donald Trump, the twice-divorced billionaire who won the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 and ascended to the White House.
Read MoreHall’s new book — “Who’s Afraid of Christian Nationalism” — shines a light on the debate around Christian nationalism following the Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol, which is often characterized by unfounded claims, lots of name-calling and plenty of fear-mongering. Here’s our interview with Hall on the origin of the term and what it all really means.
Read MoreIn “Soul by Soul: The Evangelical Mission to Spread the Gospel to Muslims” Adriana Carranca follows the pilgrimage of a missionary family from Brazil as they move to Afghanistan. Carranca brings us on a harrowing journey through the underground passages of the global evangelical movement as it clashes with militant Islamic groups. What follows is an excerpt from Carranca’s new book.
Read MoreThe Pulitzer Prize committee awarded a “special citation” to journalists covering the war in Gaza. In addition, “A Day in the Life of Abed Salaman: Anatomy of a Jerusalem” Tragedy by Nathan Thrall, which documents the experience of a Palestinian father whose 5-year-old son was killed in a bus crash, won the prize for general nonfiction.
Read More(REVIEW) Paul Seabright’s “The Divine Economy: How Religions Compete for Wealth, Power and People” does not take into account what’s true, but does explore well what pays. Churches compete with theaters and other entertainment venues. They also compete with each other and offer explicit or implicit inducements.
Read MoreIn her new book “Motorhome Prophecies,” Carrie Sheffield writes about growing up as the fifth of eight children with a violent and mentally ill street musician father who believed he was a modern-day Mormon prophet destined to someday become U.S. president. She and her siblings were forced to live as vagabonds, constantly moving across the country. Here’s what else she had to say about her life and faith.
Read More(EXCERPT) Several explanations for the seemingly sudden appearance of “The Book of Mormon” in 1829 (first published in 1830) have been put forth by both historians and apologists alike. Each holds some value to its advocates while displaying obvious inconsistencies and unexplained features. Significant new evidence necessitates the revision of all such theories.
Read MoreMany across the world will celebrate Earth Day on Monday, which marks the 54th anniversary of the birth of the modern environmental movement. The theme for Earth Day 2024 is the fight against plastic, aiming to increase awareness of the issue of pollution around the globe and its harmful effects on the environment.
Read MoreLifeWise Academy founder Joel Penton was on Bluetooth, driving a vibrant red and yellow school bus fashioned into a camper, heading from Ohio with his wife and five school-age children to the newest academy sites in Arkansas, Tennessee and Georgia.
Read MoreStructured around an academic year of teaching law, the book explores monthly themes such as "Where is the Line Between Wrong and Evil?" and draws on experiences and legal case studies to discuss empathy in disagreement, trust across differences and challenging assumptions. The book is relevant for everyday community interactions during election years and beyond.
Read MoreScripture engagement among American adults is at its lowest point in the 14 years the American Bible Society has commissioned the annual State of the Bible report, researchers said in releasing the first chapter of the 2024 report. Well over half — 57 percent, or 151 million — of American adults are Bible Disengaged, based on a 15-question metric.
Read MoreEvery year at Passover we are commanded to imagine ourselves leaving Egypt — Joel Silverstein painted himself into the picture. In “The Brighton Beach Bible” — an art book with narrative commentary — Silverstein envisions the boardwalks and abandoned attractions of his childhood in Brooklyn as the staging ground for the Exodus and 40 years in the wilderness.
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