“Faithfulness Is the Future of the Church” - Carl Trueman, The Acton Institute
Everyone should read this essay. Trueman is honest about the many problems facing the church, many self-inflicted, and quick to remember that the church is Christ’s. He is perfecting and sustaining it. He purchased it. He will preserve it. Our job is to faithfully follow him.
Outside credibility is not an unqualified good. What the culture respects and what the church is called to be are quickly diverging. Trueman writes, “Christians are faced with a situation that has perhaps not been seen widely in the West since the fourth century: To be both a good church member and a good citizen has become increasingly difficult. Difficult choices will have to be made in the coming years.”
As a result, the church will likely shrink. Just this week, Axios found that
Americans are rapidly becoming less religious. 21% of the population claims no religious affiliation. The majority of Americans, including many who go to church, disagree with what the Bible teaches on marriage and sexuality.
Trueman recommends that we double down on our core convictions; teach people to read, study, understand and obey the Bible, teach children what we believe, be clear about
why we believe what we believe, practice hospitality, share the Gospel, live like we believe what we say we believe. Come what may.
“How to Think about Christianity and Politics” - Kevin DeYoung, World Opinions
This essay begins a series about how Christians can engage Christianly in politics and why that’s such an elusive goal. DeYoung highlights some of the factors that make this difficult; the internet, social media, politicization, and the lack of a standard universal Christian approach.
“The Ethics of Abortion: Clarifying Misconceptions” - Melissa Moschella, Public Discourse
Moschella goes through many of the common arguments about abortion, clarifies, unmasks, and dismantles. If you’re looking for a resource to find information and answers for so many of the arguments floating around social media, save this article and return to it often. As much as anything, I appreciate that she deals with issues like women’s autonomy, the hardship of unexpected pregnancies, and healthcare with biblical truth, practical understanding, and compassionate insight.
“Christian Reformed Church Codifies Homosexual Sin in Its Declaration of Faith” - Yonat Shimron, Religion News Service
Over the last 5 years, the Christian Reformed Church has been working on a biblical theology sexuality proposal for its denominational confession. Last month they added a list of forbidden sexual acts to their doctrinal standards that includes, “adultery, premarital sex, extra-marital sex, polyamory, pornography, and homosexual sex.” The remarkable thing is not that they added this list, but that the list is remarkable to so many, and especially because only one item on this list has caused an uproar: homosexual sex.
Pornography is far more common in the general population - including the Christian population, unfortunately - but no one is petitioning for it to be removed, conducting 5-year conversations, or leaving the denomination over it. Everyone knows it is sinful and should be put to death. This list is similar to the sexual vice lists in 1 Corinthians 6 and Romans 1 that take their shape from the Old Testament Law.
To underscore the controversy, the CRC’s flagship institution, Calvin University, has led the way in protest. A third of the faculty have expressed disagreement and many are expected to leave over the issue. The University currently has an openly gay student body president. Sooner or later, every denomination and Christian institution is being forced to take a stand on this issue. Fortunately, the CRC has taken a biblical position, unfortunately for the state of American Christianity, it will likely cost them.
“Cancel Culture Goes to Washington” - Allen Guelzo, The Wall Street Journal
Sometimes the irony is too good to be true. A recent op-ed in the
Washington Post called for George
Washington University to change its name. The author - a senior at GWU - called out the school for the legacy of “systemic racism, institutional inequality and white supremacy” tied up in the name. Guelzo covers the background facts and the legacy of George Washington - one worth honoring and revisiting this week.
This short article reminded me of another recent Guelzo essay, “
Bleak Nation” in the Claremont Review of Books. In reviewing Alan Taylor’s American trilogy, he makes a prescient point for the week of the 4th of July; “
What purpose would a multi-volume history of the United States serve? Aristotle said that ‘if a constitution is to be preserved, all the sections of the state must wish it to exist and to continue on the same lines.’ The same might be said about a nation’s history-writing. A Bancroft-sized history of the United States can hardly succeed if there is no deep desire for the subject itself ‘to exist and to continue.’ The uneasy absence of that desire in many intellectual quarters may be another, more fundamental reason why the Bancroft-style narrative no longer exists.”
Over the last few days, I haven’t been able to shake the feeling that there is a lapsing enthusiasm even among those who do wish to see us “exist and continue on the same lines.” Guelzo, and those like him, remind us of the importance of standing up and championing the principles of liberty our nation was founded upon. The insipid cynicism of canceling our founders and recasting our legacy around “systemic racism, institutional inequality and white supremacy” should be dismissed and forgotten. We are a flawed country with the ability to progress. The foundations are solid; we must continue to build on them.
“The EPA Decision Is the Biggest One of All, and the Court Got It Right” - George Will, The Washington Post
I think it’s accurate to say this was the most substantial Supreme Court term in a generation and a great one for conservatives and constitutionalists. Though the
Dobbs case has earned most of the commentary,
West Virginia v. EPA will also have far-reaching implications. To risk a too-brief summary, the court ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency went beyond it’s congressionally delegated powers when it issued the Clean Air Act, a measure that “the EPA construes this as authorization for it to — if this seems ‘best’ — restructure the nation’s power sector by ordering ‘generation shifting’ in electricity production from coal to natural gas and renewables (e.g., wind, solar),” in Will’s view.
The case involves the “separation of powers” and the “major questions” doctrine, both principles that limit an agency’s ability to go beyond what Congress has authorized. In this case, the Chief Justice argued, joined by Justices Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett, the EPA has passed the limit. Like
Roe, one of the core issues here is the wrong branch of government effectively making laws. Congress alone gets to legislate.
Hugh Hewitt adds that the implications of Roberts’ opinion detailing the major questions doctrine will likely affect Big Tech regulation and other instances of agency overreach. Expect this case to resurface in the coming years.
