A top-rated relative asked me what I thought of Peter Wehner's piece in the New York Times, "Why I Can No Longer Call Myself An Evangelical Republican." This was my reply: *** I kept saying "Amen" the whole time. I feel the pain of anyone who is sick, sick, sick of...
Mark Ward
Thanks for Praying
I talked with John McWhorter this morning for about 45 minutes to record an episode of Lexicon Valley focused on my new book, Authorized: The Use and Misuse of the King James Bible. I'm an even bigger fan of the guy after this experience; I'm still both shocked and...
Dating in the Fifties, Sex in the Sixties
Probing thoughts from Kenneth Woodward, long-time religion correspondent for Newsweek (as in 1964–2002!), in his fascinating memoir, Getting Religion: Most adolescents in the Fifties were raised to observe certain sexual limits—just as lovers did in the movies from...
MacCulloch on the Reformation and Homosexuality
At the very end of Diarmaid MacCulloch's magisterial (what other word is there for such a book?) The Reformation: A History, he offers some brief assessments of where the various Christian churches are today. This is one comment he makes about the movement that arose...
Rusting the Sword of the Spirit
I heard Mark Noll say this a while back, and it was really striking. May it not be true of me or you (cf. Matt 7:1–5): The Bible has been a great weapon for attacking people you don't like: "You shall not crucify me on a cross of gold!" It has been a much rustier...
Review: Michael Sandel’s What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets
What Money Can't Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets by Michael J. Sandel My rating: 5 of 5 stars I find it incredibly refreshing to find any writer who sees through the tempting veneer secularism has laid not just on our politics but on our lives. It's a tempting...
Two Pieces of Podcast News
I recently talked to Isaac Dagneau of Back to the Bible Canada's InDoubt podcast about English Bible Translations. Give a listen! I'd like to ask something I never have: would some of you, blog audience, be willing to pray just once for me as I go on another podcast...
Pervasive Interpretive Pluralism and Recent Trinitarian Controversies
Just a short reflection on the argument among Reformed theologians about theology proper (read, for example, Frame’s review of James Dolezal here and here). I think some of my brothers and sisters in Christ are looking to confessions and scholastic categories and...
I’ve Got an Article in a New Book
The new Jonathan Edwards Encyclopedia has an article in it from yours truly, namely “Love.” A few friends have credits, too, including (but not limited to) Joe Tyrpak on David Brainerd (he wrote his DMin dissertation on Brainerd); Ryan Martin; and Nathan Lentfer. I...
A Run-Down of Christian Resources on Homosexuality and Same-Sex Attraction
A friend is doing some study on same-sex attraction and asked me if I had any resource recommendations. Here's my reply. Here are a few things to look at: Phil Brown’s recent paper on homosexual desire. I haven’t yet read it, but I’ve been thinking that this is the...