Eric at Xphiles is doing a series on Lutherans and the so-called Emerging Church. See here, here, and here. I myself am a bit skeptical of this “new and improved” version of Christianity which tends to throw around buzzwords like “postmodernity” a little too cavalierly for my taste, but Eric makes a good case that…

What does it say when probably the highest-profile advocate in America of a “consistent ethic of life” is a Jewish atheist? (Not that there’s anything wrong with that!) Link here. (via A Conservative Blog for Peace)

At Counterpunch Carl G. Estabrook writes on “The Subversive Commandments”: Ignoring government assaults on the Bill of Rights (for which, admittedly, the remedy under the present US Constitution is impeachment, the responsibility of Congress) the US Supreme Court has instead fastened its attention on a political fetish-object: the Ten Commandments. In the midst of an…

Speaking of Atonement theories, Hugo had a very good post yesterday talking about his attachment to traditional theories of the Atonement despite the fact that many in his progressive milieu sharply reject them. He also linked to an article by Richard Mouw defending a Reformed doctrine of the Atonement against criticisms that it promotes violence…

Randall Sullivan, author of The Miracle Detective, isn’t so sure (link via Amy Welborn): I was discovering something a lot of people on the right already understand very well, and that is the depth and breadth of America’s cultural divide, especially when it comes to religion. Back when Publishers Weekly praised The Miracle Detective as…

S. Mark Heim reviews a number of recent books on the Atonement, some of which argue that Christianity should jettison the doctrine altogether, others arguing for a revised understanding of the Atonement, and others defending a more traditional understanding. One pet peeve of mine is that in discussions of the Atonement Anselm’s theory is often…

Wesley J. Smith (mentioned here) is something of a one-man think-tank on end-of-life issues, euthanasia, bioethics, etc. Turns out he also has a blog. As you would expect, he’s all over the Schiavo case (which, sadly, will likely soon be “resolved”). I found his book Forced Exit horrifying and enraging. And I mean that as…

In the bonds of Death He lay,Who for our offense was slain,But the Lord is risen today,Christ hath brought us life again.Wherefore let us all rejoice,Singing loud with a cheerful voiceHallelujah! Of the sons of men was noneWho could break the bonds of Death,Sin this mischief dire had done,Innocent was none on earth;Wherefore Death grew…

I just noticed that Democrats for Life has provided a link to this humble site under “Progressive, Liberal and/or Democrat Oriented Pro-life Blog Sites.” Though I’ve expressed qualms with the “progressive” label in the past, I do adhere to what I hope is a consistently pro-life view (a.k.a. the “seamless garment” perspective). And I certainly…

Good post at Here We Stand on the question of the soul and the “intermediate state.” I generally try to remain agnostic about such after death matters, though I did find this book pretty persuasive. Best, though, to remember that our hope is in the promise of the Resurrection and God’s love, not in some…