John G. Stackhouse, Jr.

On the (In)Adequacy of Theological Description

John — Sat, 18 May 2013 23:31:06 +0000

Peter Van Inwagen is one of my favourite philosophers not only because he is brilliant and because he discusses matters that interest me, but also because his writing characteristically includes a welcome quotient of smarty-pantsery. Indeed, he seems unable to … Continued

“Jesus Camp” Goes to Uganda

John — Fri, 10 May 2013 03:12:15 +0000

I look forward to serving as the lone respondent to the local showing of a documentary that has already received notice in the American press (as a simple Internet search will show): “God Loves Uganda.” Produced and directed by Academy … Continued

Bonhoeffer on “The View from Below”

John — Fri, 03 May 2013 17:31:24 +0000

With clear recognition that the following is, for me, in the “aspiration” column rather than the “accomplishment” column, I set out for you this classic, challenging, hopeful, terrifying passage from Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Letters and Papers from Prison. I will, again, … Continued

C. S. Lewis on Avoiding God

John — Thu, 02 May 2013 16:45:10 +0000

Blaise Pascal, of course, offers classic observations in his Pensées on how industriously we avoid God and ultimate issues such as virtue and death by insulating ourselves with wraps of comfort and insurance while diverting ourselves with entertainments and gossip. I … Continued

Why You Should Review–and Shouldn’t

John — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 05:23:27 +0000

Book reviewing done well is a fine art: one must humbly submit oneself to the mind of the author, to the shape and direction of the book, and to the outlook of the intended audience, while maintaining all the while … Continued

And Now, the Other Kinds of Book Reviews

John — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 05:31:01 +0000

I promised to discuss three nonstandard forms of book reviewing. Here goes. Plundering This sort of review simply offers to the reader whatever the reviewer found valuable in the book. The reviewer doesn’t attempt to present the book according to … Continued

On Book Reviewing: Judging Properly

John — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 22:08:27 +0000

My last post outlined the elements of a good, generic book review. Here are a few extra considerations regarding such a review. First, praise and blame. Both. Not one or the other. Both. (We’ll get to one-sided reviewing later when … Continued

How (and Whether) to Review a Book (Nonfiction)

John — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 00:08:54 +0000

I teach book reviewing at Regent College. I found it a tremendously valuable discipline as a graduate student and young professor (I started reviewing books for publication when I was 23, a year into my PhD work), I since have … Continued

Pope to Sell Vatican

John — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 04:08:46 +0000

(Reuters) Vatican City – Pope Francis I, widely regarded as “the people’s pope” and as an advocate for the poor, announced in a post-Easter appearance today that he had authorized the selling of Vatican City, including the Basilica of St. … Continued

What Christianity Means (Note: Not “to Me”)

John — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 16:48:28 +0000

One of the insidious developments among my students, readers, auditors, and interlocutors is consumerism about theology. Instead of arguing, say, about whether this or that understanding of the Atonement was right or wrong, was true to the Biblical data and … Continued