A Thinking Reed

  • Notes on a theocentric ethic of creation, 2

    In addition to theocentricity and what I’ve called a “qualified” anthropocentrism, any Christian ethic of creation needs to address the issue of the “fallenness” of creation. This is a controversial topic since, while most theologians have no problem with the idea of human fallenness (in some sense), the idea that the non-human creation is somehow…

  • Notes on a theocentric ethic of creation, 1

    As a kind of follow up to yesterday’s post, I’ve been thinking a bit more about what a Christian environmental (or better “creation”) ethic might look like that steers between anthropomorphism and misanthropy. I think a key concept here is theocentricity. A theocentric ethic would recognize that human beings, while perhaps the most valuable creature…

  • Cockburn’s heresies

    I’m not endorsing his arguments, but idiosyncratic leftist Alexander Cockburn never disappoints in roasting up liberal sacred cows. In the wake of the VA Tech shootings he called, not for gun control, but for militias. This week he comes out as a skeptic of anthropogenic climate change.

  • Beyond antrhopocentrism and misanthropy

    I’ve been reading a short collection of essays by Wendell Berry called Another Turn of the Crank. I’m not ready to sign on to Berry’s agrarian vision, but I do think he makes some important observations. In an essay called “The Conservation of Nature and the Preservation of Humanity,” he points out that much of…

  • Obama’s interventionism

    Though they’ve been united in their loathing of the Bush administration and its conduct of the war in Iraq, there’s always been a division on the Left between interventionists and non-interventionists. The former deplore the means the Bushies have employed, while latter also oppose the ends (“American global leadership” a.k.a. “hegemony” or just plain “imperialism”…

  • Office hours

    Derek of Haligweorc has a nice essay up at the new “Epsicopal Cafe” on the Daily Office and Anglican identity. I confess to having more or less fallen off the Daily Office wagon. What discipline I’ve managed to keep up has consisted of a Bible reading plan combined with a couple of Psalms each day…

  • Bread for the world

    Interesting primer on feeding everybody, and sustainably to boot.

  • The triumph of anti-Constantinianism

    Over at Faith and Theology there’s a (somewhat tongue-in-cheek) poll on the “worst theological invention.” What’s interesting is not just that only one of the “inventions” is an actual heresy, but that “Christendom” and “just war theory” got enough nominations to make the poll. (Though, in fairness, biblical inerrancy and “the Rapture” are the current…

  • anagnosis

    Check out the new blog of regular ATR commenter Josh/Joshie/Joshie (Poo). He’s blogging texts of the Christian mystical tradition, beginning with The Mystical Theology by Pseudo-Dionysious.

  • Ethical seriousness without self-absorption

    Hugo has a reflective post on his journey “further up and further in” to the vegan lifestyle and contemplates the importance of gradual change. And here’s an insightful post on how the quest for moral improvement can become ironically self-absorbed. The last point is an important one, I think. In our society, obsessed as it…