R.C. Sproul writes:

In the sixteenth century, the term evangelical came into prominence as a description of the Protestant church. In many cases, the terms evangelical and Protestant were used interchangeably. Today, that synonymous use of the adjectives no longer functions with any accuracy. Historic Protestants have forgotten what they were protesting in the sixteenth century. The central protest of the Reformation church was the protest against the eclipse of the gospel that had taken place in the medieval church.

He points to loss of biblical truth, loss of discipline (meaning appropriate church discipline of congregants), and loss of faithful worship as three danger points for the modern church.

I heard yesterday a Moody radio producer say they believed their listeners were hungry for teaching on the fundamental principles of the Christian faith. Why would that be? Have these people only heard sermons that make application points of principles assumed to be understood? Do most of our churches preach notes from a Christian life over the character and heart of our triune God through whom that life is possible?

My impression (of course I only move in limited circles, usually three times before I lie down) is that this past Earth Day was a relatively muted celebration. The Greenies were observing in private, while we Spoilers of the Earth were having a big old time whooping it up over tired Al Gore jokes.

So I think I’ll pile on a little more. But in a serious vein.

One of the most common responses I’ve met when talking religion with non-Christians (and liberal Christians) is, “I can’t believe in your angry God. Your doctrine of Original Sin offends me. My God is a God of love. My God would never condemn a baby for something Adam and Eve did.”

And it occurred to me, “Well, what do environmentalists believe about sin and guilt?” Continue reading Green sin →

Here’s another of those insights that many of you probably have already figured out. But I share it on the chance that a few of our visitors may be even more spiritually immature than I am.

As you know, I’m a big fan of Dennis Prager’s radio show. Today he was promoting a charity called CURE International, which provides medical services in the Third World.

He talked with a physician who told a story which intersected (in my mind) with something I was thinking about, and gave me an insight which, frankly, frightens me. Continue reading Them's the breaks →

So a volcano erupted in Iceland, they tell me. I’m always interested in what goes on in Iceland, because it’s saga country, and I’ve been there and enjoyed it. Not much good has been happening in those parts recently, which has provided the opportunity for many (including Rush Limbaugh, but he was joking) to ponder the question, as old as Job, of “What have I (they) done to deserve this?”

It brings to mind a story from the sagas (I’m embarrassed to admit I can’t tell you which one; thought it was Njal’s, but it’s not) about the debate held at the Icelandic Althing (national assembly) around the year 1000, when they adopted Christianity by legislative decision. Word came that a volcano had erupted, and was threatening the farm of one of the participants. A heathen claimed the disaster was a threat from the old gods. Snorri the Chieftain (who appears in my novel West Oversea—you can read about it there) pointed to the ancient lava floes all around their meeting place and asked, “And what were the gods angry at when this flowed?”

Because back then, it was Christianity that was hard-headed, skeptical world-view. Continue reading Does God hate Icelanders? →

As C.S. Lewis says somewhere, the first generation of Christians spread all over the Roman empire with one doctrine–that the Lord has risen.

Assume it’s all a lie. (A mistake seems to me out of the question, at least for the first believers. You don’t go to the stake or the lions because Cousin Gaius passed a rumor on to you.) So assume that it’s a lie–what an odd lie. It’s a crime without a motive. A suicide pact whose participants aren’t bitter and sick of the world, but full of joy and charity for others. A conspiracy with no plan for seizing power. A Ponzi scheme that promises poverty.

An Easter ceremony at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre today in Jerusalem.

Women waiting for the Via Crucis or ‘Way of the Cross’ performance to pass by in Chicago yesterday.