Things Glen Found Interesting, Volume 10

In the time of King David, the tribe of Issachar produced shrewd warriors “who understood the times and knew what Israel should do” (1 Chron 12:32). In a similar way, we need to become wise people whose faith interacts with the world.

To that end, I share articles/resources I have found helpful recently in thinking about broader cultural and societal issues (be sure to see the disclaimer at the bottom). May these give you greater insight, so that you may continue the tradition of Issachar. Past emails are archived at http://glenandpaula.com/wordpress/category/links

1. From the current events department: the church been opposed to abortion from our earliest days for many reasons. One of them is that John the Baptist, while still in the womb, rejoiced when he was close to Jesus (Luke 1:39–44).
   • How The Planned Parenthood Videos Set Off A Renewed Wave Of Activism On Abortion (Sarah Pulliam Bailey, Washington Post)
   • Looking Away From Abortion (Ross Douthat, New York Times)
2. From the same-mouth-as-blessings department: How Dare You Say That! The Evolution of Profanity (John McWhorter, Wall Street Journal): culture’s moral values change over time, and what we consider unspeakable is a big clue to what those values are. The same author has another piece that came out around the same time: America’s Flawed New Religion — Antiracism (John McWhorter, The Daily Beast). The latter is a flawed piece — but it made me think.
3. From the standing-with-our-family department: US Wants Answers on Evangelical Persecution–In Mexico (Morgan Lee, Christianity Today): Christianity is the most persecuted religion in the world — even in places you wouldn’t expect.
4. • Dying For Christianity (Harriet Sherwood, The Guardian): this article from a secular source puts the previous article into a broader context.
5. From the things-are-always-complicated department: 
   • Why The Islamic State Leaves Tech Companies Torn Between Free Speech and Security (Scott Higham and Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post)
   • When A Child Goes To War (Malcolm Harris, Aeon)
   • Does Fair Trade Help Poor Workers? (Alex Tabarrok, blog): the author is an economics professor.

Disclaimer

Chi Alpha is not a partisan organization. To paraphrase another minister: we are not about the donkey’s agenda and we are not about the elephant’s agenda — we are about the Lamb’s agenda. Having said that, I read widely (in part because I believe we should aspire to pass the ideological Turing test and in part because I do not believe I can fairly say “I agree” or “I disagree” until I can say “I understand”) and may at times share articles that have a strong partisan bias simply because I find the article stimulating. The upshot: you should not assume I agree with everything an author says in an article I mention, much less things the author has said in other articles.