Greg Forster

David and Collin , I think the connection between Calvinism and the Baptist heritage is more than just about historical overlap. The question of just how much those two categories really overlap in history is very hotly contested, but that’s not the only reason to bring other dimensions into . . . . Continue Reading »

Micah , I’m fascinated by this discussion of negative book reviews. I had taken it for granted that the reviewer’s task is to evaluate—making allowances for reasonable differences of opinion and taste, of course, and trying to be of service to a diverse population of book-buyers . . . . Continue Reading »

Robert , one of the most important things about that excellent Charles Capps article you point us to is that it reminds us of the possibility of a stable compromise in the marriage debate. This need not be a war to the death where one side or the other gets everything it wants. Capps is . . . . Continue Reading »

Perhaps you’ve heard about the MSNBC promo—-part of its “Lean Forward” series—-in which Melissa Harris-Perry asserts that “we have to break through our, kind of, private idea that kids belong to their parents or kids belong to their families.” Commenting on . . . . Continue Reading »

This Easter I’m reflecting on how much ground we Evangelicals still have to recover in connecting our faith to the institutions of human civilization. We make this connection in a few isolated cases, especially marriage (as recent headlines have reminded us). But the empty tomb and the series of . . . . Continue Reading »

Matthew , what I find most fascinating about those Randinalia is how they reveal her irrationality. Her responses are not even remotely tracking the actual content of Lewis’ argument; they’re more like conditioned reflexes than reasoning. It’s clear that she perceives . . . . Continue Reading »

I have to question Alister McGrath’s insistence (linked in this morning’s First Links ) that the date of C.S. Lewis’ conversion “clearly needs review.” Lewis recounted in his autobiography Surprised by Joy that he converted to theism—not Christianity, . . . . Continue Reading »

Anna , I appreciate this exchange on income inequality and executive pay. I agree with you that “the rise in executive pay is due to many factors, not merely to an increase in their productivity or abilities.” My point was that the increase in their abilities has been so dramatic that . . . . Continue Reading »

Anna , as a general matter, changes in social stigmas tend to be the results of changes in underlying social conditions more than their causes . The vanishing stigma on divorce, illegitimacy, etc., which you mention, is one case in point. To some extent a reduction in the stigma preceded the change . . . . Continue Reading »

R.R. Reno’s article about the culture war today—-that the Democrats are becoming the party of culture war, a transition confirmed by the decreasing power of economic interests in the party—-is further confirmed by this observation: The Republicans are becoming the party . . . . Continue Reading »