This is very weird but fascinating. Not sure what to think about it.

The Nation has a forum up with input from various left-wing and liberal luminaries trying to hash out where they should go in the wake of the election. Here are some snippets I found of particular interest: SUSANNAH HESCHEL: Democrats are being advised to respond to their election losses by enhancing their rhetoric of religion.…

After some not-so-subtle prodding from me, Jennifer graciously responded in greater detail to some of my questions about “sectarian” Christian social ethics. Her response comes in the form of a reply to the criticisms offered by Robert Benne in this essay I had linked to earlier. Here’s Benne’s criticism: If God is indeed the creator…

In a comment on this post Bill Keezer questioned whether torture should be prohibited in all circumstances, raising the wrenching hypothetical dilemma of a loved one who can only be saved from certain death by applying torture. I tried to offer some reasons why one should never resort to torture, but it occured to me…

So says Jacob Hornberger.

Godspy interviews Pat Buchanan.

From Christianity Today: Once upon a time, in 4th- and 5th-century Gaul and Spain, “Advent” was a preparation not for Christmas but for Epiphany. Epipha-what? That’s the early-January celebration of such diverse events in Jesus’s life as his Baptism, the miracle at Cana, and the visit of the Magi. In those days, Epiphany was set…

I really like this theologically rich post by Jonathan at The Ivy Bush on why, despite his appreciation for Calvinism, he remains an Arminian/Wesleyan. As a Lutheran, I suppose I should be more sympathetic to the Calvinist side of the debate, but I’ve always thought that traditional Lutheran theology has a hard time avoiding the…

Paul Cella lucidly dissects the fallacy of appealing to “Science” to settle what are ultimately moral and philosophical debates: Science, when it aspires to step outside itself and explain how its fruits should be put to use, is no longer science but philosophy. The scientific enterprise tells us how a discrete question is to be…

Fellow Lutheran Dwight P. at Versus Populum has a very thoughtful essay on same-sex relationships in the church that actually pretty closely matches the place where I am on the issue: a desire to be faithful to the witness of Scripture and tradition existing in tension with personal experience of gay and lesbian friends and…