On Fridays I share articles/resources I have found helpful recently in thinking about broader cultural, societal and theological issues. Be sure to see the explanation and disclaimers at the bottom.
- China Reveals What It Wants To Do With Christianity (Brent Fulton, Christianity Today): “how China’s atheistic regime plans to deal with the country’s growing Christian population, projected to become the world’s largest within the next couple decades.”
- After Pastor’s Wife Buried Alive, Chinese Church Wins Land Battle (Sarah Zylstra, Christianity Today): useful to read in conjunction with the preceding article.
- Radiant Zinc Fireworks Reveal Quality of Human Egg (Marla Paul, Northwestern University News): you were formed in a burst of light. For real. “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14)
- You’re More Likely To Die In A Human Extinction Event Than A Car Crash (Robinson Meyer, The Atlantic): but did they factor in the return of Christ?
- Relating To The Skeptics (Robert Mims, PE News): short and encouraging.
- Are History’s “Greatest Philosophers” All That Great? (Gregory Lewis, Daily Nous): interesting but misses a huge point. Socrates is not famous merely for the words he used — he is famous for the life he lived. Greatness is not a matter of cleverness alone.
- Things that tickled me:
- Man of God Perfects The Side Hug (The Babylon Bee)
- Will This Be On The Test? (PHD): your TAs read this comic, I guarantee it. You have been warned.
- Scottish Parenting Win (John Tierny, Twitter)
- Drought Ends Just In Time For Admit Weekend (The Flipside)
- PC(USA) Discernment Group Senses Holy Spirit Leading The Denomination to Lose More Members (The Babylon Bee): I found this hilarious. Your mileage may vary.
Why Do You Send This Email?
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. I pray this email gives you greater insight, so that you may continue the tradition of Issachar.
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 (although if I strongly disagree with something in the article I’ll usually mention it).
Also, remember that I’m not reporting news — I’m giving you a selection of things I found interesting. There’s a lot happening in the world that’s not making an appearance here because I haven’t found stimulating articles written about it.