In the Light of the Sri Lankan Suffering
[This was originally posted in April 2019] What’s the real story of the Sri Lankan bombings? Is it that Christians are being persecuted...
THINKBETTER
What's wrong? How did we get here? What shall we do?
JOHN G. STACKHOUSE, JR.
Thoughts on
CHRISTIANITY, THE ACADEMY, AND PUBLIC LIFE
Easter: Who Needs It?
The world’s great religions offer what millions of people want: a sensible, straightforward path to life. That’s why those religions are...
What in Hell Is Going on?
The Walrus, a magazine not renowned for a sustained interest in Christian thought, in its April number commendably features a review...
The End of Life—and the End of an Era?
We are approaching an inflection point. In geometry, an inflection point is where a curve starts to change its shape—say, from curving...
Christianity Is Weird, but Perhaps Not as Weird as Your Think
Christianity has what I sometimes call a “double weirdness problem.” Elements of its teaching that are truly strange—such as the...
Evangelicals, Ethics, and Supporting Donald Trump
Evangelicals—at least, we white ones—are having a hard time in the public eye these days. Perhaps you’ve noticed. Jerry Falwell, Jr.,...
The Charlie Brown Christmas Problem
Charles Schultz’s classic TV special “A Charlie Brown Christmas” was originally broadcast in 1965. And, a generation later, the problem...
Gretta Vosper and the United Church of Canada: What’s Going on?
Self-declared atheist Gretta Vosper held on to her pulpit in the United Church of Canada last week as denominational executives decided...
Does Location Equal Importance?
NASA recently celebrated the end of the unlikely long run of the Kepler spacecraft. Sent up in 2009, this marvelous flying telescope...
Immortality Will Be . . . Boring?
It is astonishing, and depressing, to encounter again the blithe arrogance of certain members of my class: the highly educated pundits...
News Flash: Dog Doesn’t Bite Man
Exactly zero news agencies would bother reporting that a local man encountered a dog who didn’t bite him, as he had feared it would, but...
Reality: What a Concept
“I prefer to think of my bank account as limitless.” “I prefer to think of myself as universally charming.” “I prefer to think of traffic...
If Sorrow Is Stalking You
Sometimes God presses us right up against the wall of what we can endure. And sometimes God smashes us right through it. I sat down with...
Paige Patterson, Donald Trump, and Theological Malpractice
As Christian leaders have defended Southern Baptist leader Paige Patterson over this past couple of months and President Donald Trump...
My Lunch with David Suzuki
David Suzuki, Canada’s leading figure on matters of science and environmental responsibility, is in the news again because the University...
Second Thoughts about That Royal Wedding Sermon
When Nadia Comaneci scored perfect 10’s in gymnastics during the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, the world took notice. That, we all...
The Ascension of the God Who Remains One of Us
Europeans do like their titles. And why shouldn’t they? They have some excellent ones. I was attending a meeting in Britain of university...
Space: The Final Frontier
As Elon Musk indulges in the world’s highest-altitude product placement, putting both SpaceX and Tesla into solar orbit, theological...
What the Governor-General Got Right
I was a bit hard on Her Majesty’s representative last week as I encouraged her to stick to what she knows and what her office...
Why Isn’t Christianity Simpler?
When I moved to Vancouver in 1998, once people found out I had been a guest of various radio hosts in Winnipeg and elsewhere, the...