Mere-Orthodoxy: 2009 in Review

The Lord was extremely kind to us in 2009, and we have much to be grateful for.  We have a number of new readers, which is a huge blessing.  We also brought on some new writers, and I am very thankful for their voices and contributions.

Here are some our 9 most popular posts in 2009:

1. Is Beauty Objective? (Google apparently loves this post)
2. The New Evangelical Scandal (the essay that started it all)
3. Thought’s on Willard’s Renovation of the Heart
4. What Marriage is For:  Robert George’s Latest in the Ongoing Conversation
5. The Dr. Pepper Question
6. Blest Be the iTies that Bind:  Thoughts from CWC on Online Church
7. Subordinate Complexity (one of our earliest posts, and still one of Google’s favorites)
8. The Enlightenment and Evangelicals
9. Clint Eastwood’s Theological Vision

I was pretty bad at book (and movie!) reviews this year, which I hope to remedy next year.  But here are three that we did worth noting:

1. Urban Planning 101:  Love and Study and Actual Cities
2. I Told Me So:  Self-Deception and the Christian Life
3. Making Friends with Stanley Fish:  Hunter Baker’s The End of Secularism

Other books that I read in 2009 and hope to review in 2010:

1. Deep Church: A Third Way Beyond Emerging and Traditional
2. Education for Human Flourishing: A Christian Perspective (Christian Worldview Integration Series)
3. Desiring the Kingdom: Worship, Worldview, and Cultural Formation (Cultural Liturgies)

Oliver O’Donovan continued to make his influence felt around here.  While I never formally reviewed his book The Desire of the Nations, it prompted a number of posts:

1. O’Donovan Contra Liberalism
2. The Politicization of Marriage
3. Clarifying “Christendom”:  A Brief Response to Christianity Today
4. Political Fruit:  Christendom in Proper Perspective
5. What Kind of Culture is the Church

Two other gems deserve noting.  First, Gary offered a series of insightful, informative, and edifying reflections on the thought of Thomas Aquinas, all of which are worth reading. Second, Cate MacDonald offered a deeply insightful post on fasting during Lent.

There were other highlights to the year, chief among them making friends with new blog neighbors and deepening other friendships.

In the latter category, three writers especially stand out:  first, John Dyer’s writing on technology is both profound and patient.  I suspect his book on the topic will be the go-to resource for a long time to come.   Second, when Mere-O grows up, I want it to be like Milliner’s place.  I want to read every word Matthew writes, a quality I wish I could say about my own work.  Finally, watch out for Owen Strachan.  He’s sharp and insightful, and is carving out a fantastic niche as a leader of the young reformed crowd.

But there were old friends, as well.  Mark Roberts continues to dispense wisdom, and Rhett continues to challenge me. Joe Carter has done a remarkable job at First Things, and Justin Taylor’s presence at The Gospel Coalition has made it a “must-read.”

I’ll save the full taxonomy of everyone whom I wish I could be like for another time, as the list would be too long.  But I should mention the many readers who have emailed me, offered me feedback, friended me on Facebook, and followed me on Twitter.  It is an enormous blessing, and I am so thankful for your interest in what we are trying to do here at Mere-O.

Stay tuned for our plans for 2010, which we will announce early next week when people return to their normal schedules.  I will simply say that the biggest announcement in Mere-O’s short history is coming on Monday, and I am bursting to make it.

In the meantime, do two things for me:

1. Sign up to get Mere-O by RSS or email if you haven’t yet.
2. Put a note in the comments letting me know what sort of things you want to see happen at Mere-O in 2010.  What do you want to see?  More movies?  Shorter posts?  Anything is fair game.

Thanks again for making 2009 a fantastic blogging year.  If it’s half as good as the half that’s been, here’s “hail!” to the rest of the road.