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The Cholera and the Christian Religion

In the summer of 1873, cholera struck the city of Nashville. From a population of 25,865, about 1,000 people died—4% of the city, in other words. David Lipscomb lived about 10 miles outside of town, yet he remained in Nasvhille throughout the epidemic to tend to the sick and the dying. He was disturbed, however, that a number of his fellow Christians fled rather than staying to minister to the needy. In response, he wrote an article in the July…

Don’t Let Your Politics Trump Your Christian Principles

Here is another excellent article from Wes McAdams’ blog “Radically Christian.” I shared this on Facebook this week, but I know that not everyone has an opportunity to see that, so I am reprinting it here. Especially in light of recent national events, I believe this is a timely reminder for those on both sides of the aisle. BP  During the political season, some of us seem to say and do things unbecoming of Christians. I suppose it has always been…

It Came Upon the Midnight Clear

And in the same region, there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of…
Children in spring field

He Settles the Solitary

Psalm 68 emphatically celebrates God’s defeat of his enemies and enthronement in Jerusalem. It lacks a superscription tying it to any particular historical circumstance, but some scholars have speculated that it was composed for the procession when David first brought the Ark of the Covenant to his new capital city of Jerusalem. So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom to the city of David with rejoicing (2 Sam 6:12). The psalm begins with…
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Restored and Always Restoring

For several weeks, we have been telling the history of the Restoration Movement in this space. If you missed any of the articles in this series, you can find them on our website. Throughout its course, we have covered a lot of ground: we noted the impulse toward recovering the New Testament church in several movements from the Middle Ages; saw the principle of restoration applied in different ways by groups like the Anabaptists and the Puritans; explored the simultaneous…
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Renaissance, Reformation, and Restoration

The Renaissance When we divide world history into discrete periods – realizing, of course, that nothing, in reality, is ever as neat and tidy as it appears in a textbook – the ebb of learning that characterized much of the Middle Ages is followed by the Renaissance (c. 1300-1517). The dependence on institutional authority that defined much of medieval life for common people – not least in the church – was rejected for an individualism manifested primarily as faith in…
Tombstones with American Flags on Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery

How Do You Want to be Remembered?

No one is entirely sure how Memorial Day got started. It is so shrouded in mystery that it is a little scholarly specialty; Columbus State University in Georgia even has a dedicated Center for Memorial Day Research. But whatever its origins in this country, whether in the Civil War or earlier, the fundamental practice of Memorial Day – decorating the graves of soldiers – is an ancient one. Human beings, across civilizations, continents, and millennia of history, have sought to…

Lazy Sunday

I passed by the field of a sluggard,     by the vineyard of a man lacking sense,  and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns;     the ground was covered with nettles,     and its stone wall was broken down. Then I saw and considered it;     I looked and received instruction. A little sleep, a little slumber,     a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber,     and want like an armed man. –Proverbs 24:30-34 No…

Once Upon a Pew

Once upon a pew I sat. And heard the preacher ask “We need someone to teach an adult class, Now who will take this task?” Then God sat down beside me there And said, “Son, that’s for you.” “But, Lord, to stand before a class Is one thing I can’t do. Now Brett or Don would be the men to call, There’s nothing they won’t do. I’d rather hear the lesson taught From here upon my pew.” Once upon a…