Books: Taking the New Atheism to Task

This review by Dr. Leander Harding is brief and well worth reading in its entirety:

Graham Kings on the final version of the Anglican Covenant

Just heard from my friend and colleague at Fulcrum, Graham Kings (Bishop of Sherborne and theological secretary of Fulcrum).  He asks four key questions in his cogent commentary on the final version of the Anglican Covenant:

The New Season

Must reading for Episcopalians seeking light amidst the fog of our fragmenting foolishness....

To Arrive Where We Started

A great reflection of the finally completed Anglican Covenant by my friend, Dr. Christopher Wells....

Christian Realism, Martin Luther King Jr., and President Obama

Martin Luther King, Jr. via last.fm

My experience with President Obama is much like that of President Bush.  I have friends who see him as the Great Deliverer and Protector of Things Cherished, and I have friends who abhor a president whom they view as a symbol of the iconoclasm that pervades our land.  As for me, I feel an instinctive respect for the president simply because he is my president, and I long ago was taught the importance to a culture of cultivating the respect due to the offices through which we distribute responsibility, accountability, and authority.  But more than that, I find President Obama not hard to like at a personal level, and I do my best to support him even though I am at times uncomfortable with some of his philosophical underpinnings, especially in the areas of economics and the role of the federal government.  I say that to make clear that what follows is not intended as an attack on a man I respect, but rather to express concern about a particular claim regarding his method of moral reasoning.

I mentioned in a previous post that President Obama is reported to be heavily influenced by a political theology known as Christian Realism. This was said to underly the president's defense of American geopolitics when accepting his Nobel Peace Prize by relying on 'just war' theory.  I don't know if President Obama is truly influenced by Christian Realism.  However, if such claims are true, then Christians ought to be concerned about the ethical reasoning that might guide our president.  Here's why:

Good Books on Sexuality and Spirituality for Christian Teens

Recently I had the privilege of being the speaker at our diocesan youth retreat, "Sexuality and Spirituality for Christian Teens."  Our book table was a big hit with the teens, and, because we took care in selecting texts to commend to the teens, I thought I would pass those selections along here for the benefit of others. They are listed in alphabetical order.

Obama’s Christian Realism - NYTimes.com

In an NY Times Op-Ed column, David Brooks describes the philosophy animating President Obama's approach to international politics as Christian Realism, the political theology most often associated with Reinhold Niebuhr. Christian Realism is profoundly aware of the reality of sin in the world and therefore urges a restraint borne of an awareness of our own capacity for sin in spite of our best intentions. Brooks also connects this political theology with Cold War liberalism.
If Brooks is right, there is cause for concern inherited from concerns about Christian Realism. These have been documented by theologians John Howard Yoder and Stanley Hauerwas. In response to this opinion piece by Brooks, I have posted an article explaining why Christian Realism presents ethical problems for our nation if it is in fact the president's political theology.  For now, I commend Brooks' commentary:

Pink Candles and Broods of Vipers

A sermon on Phillipians 4:4-7 and Luke 3:7-18 preached by the Reverend Craig David Uffman at St. Anne's Episcopal Church in Warsaw, Indiana.

MP3 File

Copenhagen, the Land, and Our Witness

Today's headlines - and surely those throughout the next ten days - include news of the United Nations meeting in Copenhagen on global climate concerns.  Because the goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in order to mitigate climate changes has such profound economic  - and therefore, political  - consequences, it seems likely that we will witness an intensified public relations battle as the leaders of nations gather to negotiate our commitments to one another.  

The Lights of Advent

As I run around Winona Lake before dawn these days, there is a cheery anticipation in the crisp air. Christmastide is just around the corner. Lights lovingly hung on freshly cut Christmas trees mark my path as I run past home after home.  Santa, Rudolph, and icons of the polar toy shop flash high-wattage smiles at me as though they hear their names in  the rhythm of my iPod-animated run. While we sleep, red, green, and white lights announce our wait.

A Promising Ride

I arose early this morning expecting to find snow on the ground.  Alas, the much anticipated storm lost its bite, and all I found were some wet streets with the thermostat indicating 35 degrees (29 degrees with wind chill).  I hoped for snow because I have been eager to test my winter cycling gear. 

I was in high spirits when I called my wife after a great shakedown ride this morning.    I remember well how depressing it was to find myself seemingly imprisoned by the frigid weather here in Indiana last winter, and so I spent a lot of time this summer planning. I am determined that that will not happen again.  I did a lot of research on running and riding in the wintry weather that we'll have here these next several months and gathered the gear that I hope will liberate me when the temperatures are sub-zero.  I figure that what works in Montana and Belgium ought to work here.

I felt toasty this morning riding along at about 15 miles per hour in the chilly air, dressed like a skier.  Most importantly, I could see because of the headlamp I wore on top of my helmet.  I need to do more to make myself more visible, however.  The few cars I saw did not seem to see me as well as they should have.

The high point of the ride was when I was returning home through the woods along the Greenway trail behind Winona Lake.  I had quite a rush when I nearly hit a doe who must have been stunned to discover she did not have the woods to herself at that hour.  I got within ten feet of her on my bike as she finally bolted away.

Bring on the winter.  I am ready.