Old and Relevant: Augustine's City of God
No doubt many of our readers are very familiar with all the quotable (and some unquotable) C. S. Lewis, so they should not be surprised to be reminded that the eminently understandable academician said, “The only palliative is to keep...
Old and Relevant: Augustine and History
In Augustine’s classic defense of Christianity and critique of pagan culture, the City of God Against the Pagans, he introduces a new historical schema that marks a radical departure from prevailing views of history. Rather than view history as a...
The Wisdom of the Law
I wonder if I have presumed too far upon the generous gift of a friend. When I was married over a year ago I was graciously given a sabbatical rest from my labors as a Mere Orthodoxy contributor in keeping...
Bono Got It Wrong
Sometimes conservatives are right to feel about silly or ashamed of their values and beliefs: the old Bill Gothard-esque penchant for oversized down jackets and dressing children in matching outfits or the thankfully short-lived movement to ban interracial dating at...
Turkish Shoe Shine: An Illustration of the Superiority of the Free Market to Socialism
Mention the country of Turkey and most people think of exotic carpets and rugs, crusader castles and the Blue Mosque, Ottoman potentates, and the missionary journeys of the apostle Paul, but I submit to you that these are mere accidental...
The Politics of Nice
Moral vices prosper by dressing themselves as virtues. Niceness presents itself as benevolence, but is often merely an evasion of hard decisions that the realities of human nature require. And it has spread throughout our societies because it is often...
Memorial: A Meditation on Advent
This Sunday marks the second Sunday of the Advent season. Though historically neglected by many evangelicals, Advent has made a resurgence in recent years. To that end, we are going to be offering Advent meditations throughout the season here at...
World Philosophy Day: In Memoriam
Last Friday and Saturday the world celebrated World Philosophy day. Where were you? Were you trapped in a Sartean Hell with No Exit and the only windows being the eyes of your tortured inmates? Or were you finding your intial...
APEC 2008
Eyes are on Peru this week, and this time they aren’t the ever-watchful eyes of NGOs monitoring fair and just elections, nor are they the eyes of the bulldog military that are constantly on guard against drug trafficking. Peru is...
Green Markets, Evangelicals, and the Poor
One issue that has received less and less attention in the run-up to November 4th, and especially since the Economic Crisis of 2008, is environmental stewardship and global warming. If the environment is mentioned at all, it usually is in...