The story of my recent book, Why Religion Went Obsolete: The Demise of Traditional Faith in America, presents an empirical challenge to traditional secularization theory, which holds that, as societies become more modern and developed, they will become more secular. While traditional religion has declined in the United States, it
In the 1987 film, Wall Street, Gordon Gekko (played by Michael Douglas, who won the academy award for best actor), amid illegal insider trading schemes, states that “greed, for lack of a better word, is good.” Is that true? William T. Sherman, after the Civil War, became a divisional commander
For members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, General Conference talks are a treasure trove of inspiration, guidance, and doctrine. Since 1971, these talks have been made available online at churchofjesuschrist.org, offering a wealth of spiritual resources that span over five decades. Yet, despite their accessibility, these
“For what shall we pray?” is a weekly post inviting individuals, groups, and congregations to lift up our world in prayer. This resource is prepared by a variety of leaders in the ELCA and includes prayer prompts, upcoming events and observances, and prayer suggestions from existing denominational worship materials. You
Building Bridges: Reaching Unreached Families Through Embrace Ministry “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility, consider others as more important than yourself.” These words from Philippians 2:3 guide the heart of Station Hill’s Embrace Ministry, where Matt Grieve has served faithfully for over six years. Matt’s
Welcome to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows. Since the invention of the telegraph in the nineteenth century, there has been a revolution in electronic communication, particularly in the last 50 odd years. This technological revolution has had a significant effect upon the church as well as larger society. In this
With the upcoming centenary of Under the Sun of Satan (Sous Le Soleil de Satan) (1926) on the horizon, and with the explosions of rage, real or contrived, before us on the daily basis, the endless lies streaming through our information systems, constantly recycled as bilge, with the inversion of
In John the Evangelist’s account of the woman caught in adultery, there is an odd detail. We know the scene. A group of scribes and pharisees bring a woman caught in adultery before Jesus. They wanted to stone her to death in fulfilment of the Law and catch Jesus in