Pastor Foltz is Pastor Emeritus of Saint James Lutheran Church in Gettysburg, PA and author of the the Frontline Study content.
I had to do some research on Dietrich Bonhoeffer last week. It was very unsettling because it quickly became evident that he was facing very much the same situation we are. True, he opposed Adolf Hitler, but that involved opposing the German National Christian Church, which heralded his rise. In many ways, this group produced […]
Since day one of his 2016 campaign, Donald Trump has used immigration to play on people’s fears and present himself as the only one who can save them. He blames immigrants for taking our jobs, raping our women, murdering our children, and destroying our country. In 2024, his rallies focus almost exclusively on this. In […]
Like so many others, I have been concerned with the lying in the election campaign, but perhaps even more so with the terrible exaggeration used to justify the lies. Claiming this is the most important election in American history—or even world history—is incredibly self-centered and far from reality. Claiming one administration is good and that […]
A traditional Lutheran response might think my contrast between Jesus’ teachings and the way Donald Trump presents himself at his rallies and on social media is unfair. It would see comparing religious and political programs somewhat like comparing apples and oranges. The Church proclaims the Gospel, and the government provides order. Jesus’ teachings were not […]
I was surprised at the response to last week’s lesson. I don’t think I ever had so many people write or speak to me about what I posted. Quite frankly, I expected dead silence. Obviously, many share my concerns about the presidential election. Let me reiterate what prompted me. Believe it or not, I think […]
Many of us have become very upset watching politicians weaponize Christianity as the political debate has become a political war. People claim their party speaks for Christ. Some churches even consecrate a candidate supposedly chosen by God to save our nation. We find ourselves in a situation where the way you vote determines whether you […]
I was first drawn to examining judgment when seeking a new way to describe what might help us overcome our society’s deep divisions. I thought maybe talking about making good judgments would distract us from simply arguing about our differences. It might lead to new insights rather than the defense of old ideas. When I […]
If having good judgment includes weighing what others think, some standards are needed for doing this. There are all sorts of bad ideas out there, including strange conspiracy theories. This is nothing new. The Bible continually offers standards for judging false prophets. It’s worth reading 10 Ways We Can Recognize a False Prophet, as it […]
Good judgment when making decisions involves, to some degree, consideration of the common good. This does not negate the singularity of every situation but recognizes that everything is also related to everything else. A judge representing the people in a criminal or civil court primarily offers a verdict in a single case, but that judgment […]
I’ve been looking at the different meanings of judgment in hopes that they might offer some clues to helping us move beyond our society’s deep divisions. It is not that they make a different argument but that they come at it from a different perspective that encourages us to work together. For instance, claiming that […]
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