Weekly lessons in theology and public life • Since 2011
AbortionExamines the abortion debate as the church argues it, starting with Jesus and testing both pro-life and pro-choice positions. Digs into when life begins and religious freedom.Christian EthicsWorks through major ethical frameworks, utilitarianism, libertarianism, Kant, and Rawls, using Michael Sandel’s Justice as a guide. Compares them with Paul’s and John’s own Christian ethics.CivilityLooks at staying civil with people you disagree with, drawing on classic rules of civility and the book of Proverbs. Asks what happens when civility breaks down.CompassionTraces compassion from its biblical roots to concrete situations, people economically oppressed or religiously abused. Connects compassion to forgiveness, transformation, and the doctrine of atonement.Either…OrTakes on forced public choices, gay or straight, pro-life or pro-choice, us or them, and tests whether they hold up. Looks at what’s lost when issues get flattened.Fratelli TuttiWorks through Pope Francis’s encyclical Fratelli Tutti: the common good, globalism, and political economy. Closes with its case against cultural warfare and violence, and for love over fear.FriendshipTraces how friendship has changed, from Facebook friends and professional networking back to shared meals and self-denial in the early church. Asks what Christian friendship looks like today.PeaceAsks whether peace is actually possible, starting with whether it begins with you personally. Tests nonviolence against objections, and what it means to love your enemies.PowerExamines how power works, from ‘might makes right’ and ‘America First’ politics to living under oppression. Sets these against a biblical view of power and speaking truth to it.TruthAsks what truth means in an age of virtual reality, political correctness, and a crisis in language. Connects truth to love, and reads John’s Gospel on truth as personal.ViolenceTraces violence through the Old Testament, Christian history, and just war theory, against the nonviolent kingdom Jesus preaches. Looks at guns and violent language in public life today.Woke ChristianityUnpacks what ‘woke’ means and how it gets applied to racism, sexuality, and the state. Tests the ‘woke Christianity’ framing against reality, its strengths and weaknesses.
Recent Comments
An extremely timely topic. Thanks, Fritz!
yes we need to forgive our leaders yet make sure they do the right thing – which they aren’t.
So forgiveness pre-requires understanding the mistakes of the past? here hear re this opposing this me-first, America-first, white-first, male-first approach>…