Feb202013
Commentary

In conversations among Christians about the shape of our cultural lives, it is common to hear references to St. Paul’s “all things to all men” declaration. That oft-cited phrase appears in the middle of his first letter to the Corinthians (in chapter 9), in a passage in which he is addressing questions that had been raised about the legitimacy of his apostolic office. This defense is part of a larger argument in the letter about how Christians should always use their freedom for the sake of others, not for their own gain. St. Paul insists that his becoming “like one not having the law” or “like a Jew” was done “for the sake of the gospel, that I may share [with them] in its blessings.”

Later in the letter, continuing his discussion of the shape of Christian freedom, St. Paul insists that freedom must always be exercised with wisdom. In chapter 10:23ff., he cites a slogan apparently in vogue in Corinth among believers eager to assert their freedom in Christ: “Everything is permissible.” But this wise (and inspired) shepherd amends the slogan: “but not everything is beneficial.” Again, he writes: “‘Everything is permissible’ — but not everything is constructive.”

Every effort by Christians to adapt the shape of the Church’s life to accommodate contemporary cultural conventions must be guided by a concern for what is constructive and beneficial as well as what is superficially winsome. St. Paul’s “all things to all men” formula must always be applied in light of other inspired guidance. For example, in his letter to the Ephesians, he writes: “I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking” (4:17). This warning introduces a long passage about how the lives of believers must be remarkably different from those of their unbelieving neighbors. In the middle of this sequence of exhortation, St. Paul urges the same attitude of discernment and prudence displayed in the Corinthian epistle: “Be very careful, then, how you live — not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”

These complementary Pauline passages came to mind as I was re-reading sections of James Turner’s remarkable book, Without God, Without Creed: The Origins of Unbelief in America. This detailed and wide-ranging exercise in intellectual history is concerned with a single question regarding Western cultural life. “How did the practically universal assumption of God disappear?” How — within a very short period of time in the mid-nineteenth century — did atheism become plausible in Western culture?

In Turner’s study, the answer is that many well-intentioned Christians — motivated by a version of the “all things to all men” strategy — embraced a modern “cast of mind,” thereby enabling Christians and their message to seem more “relevant.” The mental sensibility Turner has in view is the habit of mind that gave rise to modern science and technology, a mentality “more insistent on the regularity and orderliness of phenomena; more comfortable with tangible, measurable realities than with the unseen and mysterious; more dubious about traditional explanations and more inclined to experiment with new ones.”

As various Church leaders and theologians tried to repackage Christian thought in a form than was more resonant with this new mental world, they thus signed their own death warrant — and God’s. “In trying to adapt their religious beliefs to socioeconomic change, to new moral challenges, to novel problems of knowledge, to the tightening standards of science, the defenders of God slowly strangled Him. If anyone is to be arraigned for deicide, it is not Charles Darwin but his adversary Samuel Wilberforce, not the godless Robert Ingersoll but the godly Beecher family.”

Motivated by the best intentions, the Church nonetheless “played a major role in softening up belief.” Turner concludes that atheism became plausible because of “the decisions that influential church leaders — lay writers, theologians, ministers — made about how to confront the modern pressures upon religious belief. . . . And the choices, taken together, boiled down to a decision to deal with modernity by embracing it — to defuse modern threats to the traditional bases of belief by bringing God into line with modernity.”

Turner’s compilation of evidence for these charges is thorough, compelling, and sobering. Like all the books I’ve discussed in this column, this one should be required reading by every pastor and seminary student. Without God, Without Creed presents a valuable case study of how forms of cultural adaptation that are well-intentioned and within the bounds of bare moral permissibility nonetheless can fall short of being constructive or beneficial. The destructive effects may not be immediately obvious, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t foreseeable. The story Turner tells here should be read as a paradigmatic warning to all efforts of Christians who are eager to address their cultural situation with wisdom and compassion, who want to know when to be like the Gentiles and when not to, who are willing to be against the world for the world.

This essay first appeared in the “Contours of Culture” column (Touchstone, January/February 2011)

Related reading and listening

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    Sociologist Craig Gay speaks of the charge that Christianity is an otherworldly religion. (12 minutes)
  • Unmasking claims of “secular neutrality” — Lesslie Newbigin on the Church’s prophetic duty concerning public life
  • The kingdom of God has public consequences — Lesslie Newbigin on the subversiveness of the Church’s message to the world
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  • Aspects of our un-Christening — In this Friday Feature — presented courtesy of Biola University — Carlo Lancellotti talks with Aaron Kheriaty about the central ideas in Augusto Del Noce’s writings. (43 minutes)
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  • Cultural participation in reconciliation — Jonathan Wilson on faithfully representing Creation in the culture of the Church
  • The publicly inert Christ of modernity — Dom Anscer Vonier on secularism’s confidence in its freedom from Christ
  • Which story is ours? — “Instead of allowing the Bible to shape us, we may in fact be allowing our culture to shape the Bible for us.”
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  • The disabling consequences of winsomeness — Stanley Hauerwas on how many modern Christians offered atheists less and less in which to disbelieve.
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  • Seasons and everyday saints — Sylvie Vanhoozer introduces a French Advent tradition that involves a community of “little saints” whose stories have something to teach us about following Christ throughout the year. (28 minutes)
  • Worldliness vs. otherworldliness —
    FROM VOL. 38
    Sociologist Craig Gay speaks of the charge that Christianity is an otherworldly religion. (12 minutes)
  • Unmasking claims of “secular neutrality” — Lesslie Newbigin on the Church’s prophetic duty concerning public life
  • The kingdom of God has public consequences — Lesslie Newbigin on the subversiveness of the Church’s message to the world
  • Sports in America —
    FROM VOL. 21
    Robert Higgs looks at the history of sports in American experience and at how organized religion has interacted with that history. (12 minutes)
  • Christopher Hitchens vs. G. K. Chesterton — Ralph Wood compares Christopher Hitchens's view of the cosmos with that of G. K. Chesterton, arguing that Chesterton succeeded where Hitchens failed. (44 minutes)
  • Divorcing the spirit of the age — Thomas C. Oden on overcoming the theological faddism of the late twentieth century
  • Faith and unbelief —
    FROM VOL. 98
    This Archive Feature revisits two conversations, one with Roger Lundin and one with David Bentley Hart, on what makes Christian belief so implausible to non-believers. (39 minutes)
  • Developing a Christian aesthetic — In the inaugural lecture for the Eliot Society, titled “Faithful Imaginations in a Meaningful Creation,” Ken Myers addresses the question of the relationship between the arts and the Church. (59 minutes)
  • Dreary atheist fundamentalism — David Bentley Hart defends the naturalness of religious belief against the assertions of the Naturalists
  • Turner, James — FROM THE GUEST PAGE: James Turner is Cavanaugh Professor of Humanities and Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Notre Dame. He taught for 20 years at the University of Notre Dame, where he belonged to both the History Department and the graduate Program in History and Philosophy of Science.
  • Consecrating the world — Paul Evdokimov on the cosmic effects of the Incarnation
  • Eternal seeds, temporal fruit — Henri de Lubac on how the Church should (and shouldn’t) make a difference in the world
  • Aspects of our un-Christening — In this Friday Feature — presented courtesy of Biola University — Carlo Lancellotti talks with Aaron Kheriaty about the central ideas in Augusto Del Noce’s writings. (43 minutes)
  • David K. Naugle, R.I.P. — Philosophy professor, author, and compassionate mentor David K. Naugle (1952-2021) explains the long history of the concepts of “worldview” and “happiness.” (26 minutes)
  • Fischer, Hart, and Highfield on freedom — Three past guests on the Journal explore the meaning of freedom and some common modern misunderstandings of the concept — errors with real consequences. (22 minutes)
  • Six recent books worthy of note — Ken Myers shares a summary of six recent books that we want our listeners to know about but whose authors we won’t be interviewing. (15 minutes)
  • Questioning the “sacred-secular” division — With the stage set by Michael Sandel, Jean Bethke Elshtain, David L. Schindler, and John Milbank, Andrew Willard Jones examines a medieval alternative to the modern liberal paradigm. (61 minutes)
  • Fr. Chad Hatfield and Peter J. Leithart on Alexander Schmemann — Alexander Schmemann’s book asks a set of questions about “Christianity and culture” that typically don’t get asked, questions that re-center our lives in gratitude and worship. (20 minutes)
  • The idiocy of a-theistic society — Luigi Giussani on the irresistible question of God for human flourishing
  • Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 128 — FEATURED GUESTS: Matthew Crawford, Carlo Lancellotti, James Turner, Rod Dreher, Mark Evan Bonds, and Jeremy Beer
  • From darkness [sic] into light [sic] — David Bentley Hart on the ignorant myth that banishes the transcendent from modern public spaces
  • Not just a counterculture — Peter J. Leithart on the public (and prophetic) mission of the Church
  • Assimilation or identity in Christ — Francisco Javier Martínez Fernández on the modern choice given the Church to conform or die
  • The Church as a public reality — William Cavanaugh on how we must be disciples in public, not just citizens
  • Intellectual apostasy and Christian witness — Harry Blamires on unfashionable beliefs about the ends of human beings
  • Cultural participation in reconciliation — Jonathan Wilson on faithfully representing Creation in the culture of the Church
  • The publicly inert Christ of modernity — Dom Anscer Vonier on secularism’s confidence in its freedom from Christ
  • Which story is ours? — “Instead of allowing the Bible to shape us, we may in fact be allowing our culture to shape the Bible for us.”
  • The dead-end of privatized faith — T. S. Eliot on the Church’s duty to interfere with the World
  • True transcendence, true immanence — D. C. Schindler on how believers can be practical atheists
  • The disabling consequences of winsomeness — Stanley Hauerwas on how many modern Christians offered atheists less and less in which to disbelieve.
  • Crowd Culture — Bernard Iddings Bell: “It is because the Church has thus obscured the socially prophetic note that it seems to most people to have no relevancy.”
  • Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 98 — FEATURED GUESTS: Stanley Hauerwas, Clarke Forsythe, Gilbert Meilaender, Jeanne Murray Walker, Roger Lundin, and David Bentley Hart
  • With enemies like this . . . — Terry Eagleton presents a blistering dismissal of arguments made by celebrity atheists
  • Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 92 — FEATURED GUESTS: Jake Halpern, Stephen J. Nichols, Richard M. Gamble, Peter J. Leithart, Bill Vitek, and Craig Holdrege

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Commodification

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  • Term link format: Worldliness vs. otherworldliness —
    FROM VOL. 38
    Sociologist Craig Gay speaks of the charge that Christianity is an otherworldly religion. (12 minutes)
  • Term link format: With enemies like this . . . — Terry Eagleton presents a blistering dismissal of arguments made by celebrity atheists
  • Term link format: Which story is ours? — “Instead of allowing the Bible to shape us, we may in fact be allowing our culture to shape the Bible for us.”
  • Term link format: Unmasking claims of “secular neutrality” — Lesslie Newbigin on the Church’s prophetic duty concerning public life
  • Term link format: True transcendence, true immanence — D. C. Schindler on how believers can be practical atheists
  • Term link format: The publicly inert Christ of modernity — Dom Anscer Vonier on secularism’s confidence in its freedom from Christ
  • Term link format: The kingdom of God has public consequences — Lesslie Newbigin on the subversiveness of the Church’s message to the world
  • Term link format: The idiocy of a-theistic society — Luigi Giussani on the irresistible question of God for human flourishing
  • Term link format: The disabling consequences of winsomeness — Stanley Hauerwas on how many modern Christians offered atheists less and less in which to disbelieve.
  • Term link format: The dead-end of privatized faith — T. S. Eliot on the Church’s duty to interfere with the World
  • Term link format: The Church as a public reality — William Cavanaugh on how we must be disciples in public, not just citizens
  • Term link format: Sports in America —
    FROM VOL. 21
    Robert Higgs looks at the history of sports in American experience and at how organized religion has interacted with that history. (12 minutes)
  • Term link format: Six recent books worthy of note — Ken Myers shares a summary of six recent books that we want our listeners to know about but whose authors we won’t be interviewing. (15 minutes)
  • Term link format: Seasons and everyday saints — Sylvie Vanhoozer introduces a French Advent tradition that involves a community of “little saints” whose stories have something to teach us about following Christ throughout the year. (28 minutes)
  • Term link format: Questioning the “sacred-secular” division — With the stage set by Michael Sandel, Jean Bethke Elshtain, David L. Schindler, and John Milbank, Andrew Willard Jones examines a medieval alternative to the modern liberal paradigm. (61 minutes)
  • Term link format: Not just a counterculture — Peter J. Leithart on the public (and prophetic) mission of the Church
  • Term link format: Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 98 — FEATURED GUESTS: Stanley Hauerwas, Clarke Forsythe, Gilbert Meilaender, Jeanne Murray Walker, Roger Lundin, and David Bentley Hart
  • Term link format: Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 92 — FEATURED GUESTS: Jake Halpern, Stephen J. Nichols, Richard M. Gamble, Peter J. Leithart, Bill Vitek, and Craig Holdrege
  • Term link format: Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 128 — FEATURED GUESTS: Matthew Crawford, Carlo Lancellotti, James Turner, Rod Dreher, Mark Evan Bonds, and Jeremy Beer
  • Term link format: Intellectual apostasy and Christian witness — Harry Blamires on unfashionable beliefs about the ends of human beings
  • Term link format: From darkness [sic] into light [sic] — David Bentley Hart on the ignorant myth that banishes the transcendent from modern public spaces
  • Term link format: Fr. Chad Hatfield and Peter J. Leithart on Alexander Schmemann — Alexander Schmemann’s book asks a set of questions about “Christianity and culture” that typically don’t get asked, questions that re-center our lives in gratitude and worship. (20 minutes)
  • Term link format: Fischer, Hart, and Highfield on freedom — Three past guests on the Journal explore the meaning of freedom and some common modern misunderstandings of the concept — errors with real consequences. (22 minutes)
  • Term link format: Faith and unbelief —
    FROM VOL. 98
    This Archive Feature revisits two conversations, one with Roger Lundin and one with David Bentley Hart, on what makes Christian belief so implausible to non-believers. (39 minutes)
  • Term link format: Eternal seeds, temporal fruit — Henri de Lubac on how the Church should (and shouldn’t) make a difference in the world
  • Term link format: Dreary atheist fundamentalism — David Bentley Hart defends the naturalness of religious belief against the assertions of the Naturalists
  • Term link format: Divorcing the spirit of the age — Thomas C. Oden on overcoming the theological faddism of the late twentieth century
  • Term link format: Developing a Christian aesthetic — In the inaugural lecture for the Eliot Society, titled “Faithful Imaginations in a Meaningful Creation,” Ken Myers addresses the question of the relationship between the arts and the Church. (59 minutes)
  • Term link format: David K. Naugle, R.I.P. — Philosophy professor, author, and compassionate mentor David K. Naugle (1952-2021) explains the long history of the concepts of “worldview” and “happiness.” (26 minutes)
  • Term link format: Cultural participation in reconciliation — Jonathan Wilson on faithfully representing Creation in the culture of the Church
  • Term link format: Crowd Culture — Bernard Iddings Bell: “It is because the Church has thus obscured the socially prophetic note that it seems to most people to have no relevancy.”
  • Term link format: Consecrating the world — Paul Evdokimov on the cosmic effects of the Incarnation
  • Term link format: Christopher Hitchens vs. G. K. Chesterton — Ralph Wood compares Christopher Hitchens's view of the cosmos with that of G. K. Chesterton, arguing that Chesterton succeeded where Hitchens failed. (44 minutes)
  • Term link format: Assimilation or identity in Christ — Francisco Javier Martínez Fernández on the modern choice given the Church to conform or die
  • Term link format: Aspects of our un-Christening — In this Friday Feature — presented courtesy of Biola University — Carlo Lancellotti talks with Aaron Kheriaty about the central ideas in Augusto Del Noce’s writings. (43 minutes)

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  • Worldliness vs. otherworldliness —
    FROM VOL. 38
    Sociologist Craig Gay speaks of the charge that Christianity is an otherworldly religion. (12 minutes)
  • With enemies like this . . . — Terry Eagleton presents a blistering dismissal of arguments made by celebrity atheists
  • Which story is ours? — “Instead of allowing the Bible to shape us, we may in fact be allowing our culture to shape the Bible for us.”
  • Unmasking claims of “secular neutrality” — Lesslie Newbigin on the Church’s prophetic duty concerning public life
  • Turner, James — FROM THE GUEST PAGE: James Turner is Cavanaugh Professor of Humanities and Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Notre Dame. He taught for 20 years at the University of Notre Dame, where he belonged to both the History Department and the graduate Program in History and Philosophy of Science.
  • True transcendence, true immanence — D. C. Schindler on how believers can be practical atheists
  • The publicly inert Christ of modernity — Dom Anscer Vonier on secularism’s confidence in its freedom from Christ
  • The kingdom of God has public consequences — Lesslie Newbigin on the subversiveness of the Church’s message to the world
  • The idiocy of a-theistic society — Luigi Giussani on the irresistible question of God for human flourishing
  • The disabling consequences of winsomeness — Stanley Hauerwas on how many modern Christians offered atheists less and less in which to disbelieve.
  • The dead-end of privatized faith — T. S. Eliot on the Church’s duty to interfere with the World
  • The Church as a public reality — William Cavanaugh on how we must be disciples in public, not just citizens
  • Sports in America —
    FROM VOL. 21
    Robert Higgs looks at the history of sports in American experience and at how organized religion has interacted with that history. (12 minutes)
  • Six recent books worthy of note — Ken Myers shares a summary of six recent books that we want our listeners to know about but whose authors we won’t be interviewing. (15 minutes)
  • Seasons and everyday saints — Sylvie Vanhoozer introduces a French Advent tradition that involves a community of “little saints” whose stories have something to teach us about following Christ throughout the year. (28 minutes)
  • Questioning the “sacred-secular” division — With the stage set by Michael Sandel, Jean Bethke Elshtain, David L. Schindler, and John Milbank, Andrew Willard Jones examines a medieval alternative to the modern liberal paradigm. (61 minutes)
  • Not just a counterculture — Peter J. Leithart on the public (and prophetic) mission of the Church
  • Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 98 — FEATURED GUESTS: Stanley Hauerwas, Clarke Forsythe, Gilbert Meilaender, Jeanne Murray Walker, Roger Lundin, and David Bentley Hart
  • Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 92 — FEATURED GUESTS: Jake Halpern, Stephen J. Nichols, Richard M. Gamble, Peter J. Leithart, Bill Vitek, and Craig Holdrege
  • Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 128 — FEATURED GUESTS: Matthew Crawford, Carlo Lancellotti, James Turner, Rod Dreher, Mark Evan Bonds, and Jeremy Beer
  • Intellectual apostasy and Christian witness — Harry Blamires on unfashionable beliefs about the ends of human beings
  • From darkness [sic] into light [sic] — David Bentley Hart on the ignorant myth that banishes the transcendent from modern public spaces
  • Fr. Chad Hatfield and Peter J. Leithart on Alexander Schmemann — Alexander Schmemann’s book asks a set of questions about “Christianity and culture” that typically don’t get asked, questions that re-center our lives in gratitude and worship. (20 minutes)
  • Fischer, Hart, and Highfield on freedom — Three past guests on the Journal explore the meaning of freedom and some common modern misunderstandings of the concept — errors with real consequences. (22 minutes)
  • Faith and unbelief —
    FROM VOL. 98
    This Archive Feature revisits two conversations, one with Roger Lundin and one with David Bentley Hart, on what makes Christian belief so implausible to non-believers. (39 minutes)
  • Eternal seeds, temporal fruit — Henri de Lubac on how the Church should (and shouldn’t) make a difference in the world
  • Dreary atheist fundamentalism — David Bentley Hart defends the naturalness of religious belief against the assertions of the Naturalists
  • Divorcing the spirit of the age — Thomas C. Oden on overcoming the theological faddism of the late twentieth century
  • Developing a Christian aesthetic — In the inaugural lecture for the Eliot Society, titled “Faithful Imaginations in a Meaningful Creation,” Ken Myers addresses the question of the relationship between the arts and the Church. (59 minutes)
  • David K. Naugle, R.I.P. — Philosophy professor, author, and compassionate mentor David K. Naugle (1952-2021) explains the long history of the concepts of “worldview” and “happiness.” (26 minutes)
  • Cultural participation in reconciliation — Jonathan Wilson on faithfully representing Creation in the culture of the Church
  • Crowd Culture — Bernard Iddings Bell: “It is because the Church has thus obscured the socially prophetic note that it seems to most people to have no relevancy.”
  • Consecrating the world — Paul Evdokimov on the cosmic effects of the Incarnation
  • Christopher Hitchens vs. G. K. Chesterton — Ralph Wood compares Christopher Hitchens's view of the cosmos with that of G. K. Chesterton, arguing that Chesterton succeeded where Hitchens failed. (44 minutes)
  • Assimilation or identity in Christ — Francisco Javier Martínez Fernández on the modern choice given the Church to conform or die
  • Aspects of our un-Christening — In this Friday Feature — presented courtesy of Biola University — Carlo Lancellotti talks with Aaron Kheriaty about the central ideas in Augusto Del Noce’s writings. (43 minutes)

Links to posts and programs featuring Nigel Biggar:

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Links to posts and programs featuring Carl Elliott:

Links to posts and programs featuring Victor Lee Austin:

Links to posts and programs featuring Sørina Higgins:

Links to posts and programs featuring Steve Wilkens:

Links to posts and programs featuring Gilbert Meilaender:

Links to posts and programs featuring Martin X. Moleski:

Links to posts and programs featuring Brendan Sweetman:

Links to posts and programs featuring Allan C. Carlson:

Links to posts and programs featuring Jason M. Baxter:

Links to posts and programs featuring Barrett Fisher II:

Links to posts and programs featuring Paul Weston:

Links to posts and programs featuring Steven Knepper:

Links to posts and programs featuring Susan M. Felch:

Links to posts and programs featuring Fred Turner:

Links to posts and programs featuring Matthew Dickerson:

Links to posts and programs featuring Jack R. Baker:

Links to posts and programs featuring W. Bradford Wilcox:

Links to posts and programs featuring Bill Vitek:

Links to posts and programs featuring Adam K. Webb:

Links to posts and programs featuring Mark Bauerlein:

Links to posts and programs featuring Felicia Wu Song:

Links to posts and programs featuring Joseph E. Davis:

Links to posts and programs featuring Thaddeus Kozinski:

Links to posts and programs featuring Craig M. Gay:

Links to posts and programs featuring Mark T. Mitchell:

Links to posts and programs featuring Karen Dieleman:

Links to posts and programs featuring Tim Clydesdale:

Links to posts and programs featuring J. Mark Bertrand:

Links to posts and programs featuring Mathew Levering:

Links to posts and programs featuring Mark G. Malvasi:

Links to posts and programs featuring Kirk Farney:

Links to posts and programs featuring Bradley J. Birzer:

Links to posts and programs featuring Ralph C. Wood:

Links to posts and programs featuring Paul Heintzman:

Links to posts and programs featuring Gil Bailie:

Links to posts and programs featuring Zygmunt Bauman:

Links to posts and programs featuring Matthew Lee Anderson:

Links to posts and programs featuring Mike Aquilina:

Links to posts and programs featuring Bishop Robert Barron:

Links to posts and programs featuring Frederick Buechner:

Links to posts and programs featuring Jeffrey Bilbro:

Links to posts and programs featuring James A. Herrick:

Links to posts and programs featuring Andrew Wilson:

Links to posts and programs featuring Susan Cain:

Links to posts and programs featuring Marilyn McEntyre:

Links to posts and programs featuring Andrew Spencer:

Links to posts and programs featuring Albert Borgmann:

Links to posts and programs featuring Catherine Prescott:

Links to posts and programs featuring Maggie M. Jackson:

Links to posts and programs featuring Garret Keizer:

Links to posts and programs featuring Andy Crouch:

Links to posts and programs featuring Kyle Hughes:

Links to posts and programs featuring Philip G. Ryken:

Links to posts and programs featuring Eric Miller:

Links to posts and programs featuring Ted Prescott:

Links to posts and programs featuring Landon Loftin:

Links to posts and programs featuring Barry Hankins:

Links to posts and programs featuring Quentin Schultze:

Links to posts and programs featuring Dale Ahlquist:

Links to posts and programs featuring Paul Walker:

Links to posts and programs featuring Jason Peters:

Links to posts and programs featuring Alexander Lingas:

Worldliness vs. otherworldliness —
FROM VOL. 38
Sociologist Craig Gay speaks of the charge that Christianity is an otherworldly religion. (12 minutes) With enemies like this . . . — Terry Eagleton presents a blistering dismissal of arguments made by celebrity atheists Which story is ours? — “Instead of allowing the Bible to shape us, we may in fact be allowing our culture to shape the Bible for us.” Unmasking claims of “secular neutrality” — Lesslie Newbigin on the Church’s prophetic duty concerning public life True transcendence, true immanence — D. C. Schindler on how believers can be practical atheists The publicly inert Christ of modernity — Dom Anscer Vonier on secularism’s confidence in its freedom from Christ The kingdom of God has public consequences — Lesslie Newbigin on the subversiveness of the Church’s message to the world The idiocy of a-theistic society — Luigi Giussani on the irresistible question of God for human flourishing The disabling consequences of winsomeness — Stanley Hauerwas on how many modern Christians offered atheists less and less in which to disbelieve. The dead-end of privatized faith — T. S. Eliot on the Church’s duty to interfere with the World The Church as a public reality — William Cavanaugh on how we must be disciples in public, not just citizens Sports in America —
FROM VOL. 21
Robert Higgs looks at the history of sports in American experience and at how organized religion has interacted with that history. (12 minutes) Six recent books worthy of note — Ken Myers shares a summary of six recent books that we want our listeners to know about but whose authors we won’t be interviewing. (15 minutes) Seasons and everyday saints — Sylvie Vanhoozer introduces a French Advent tradition that involves a community of “little saints” whose stories have something to teach us about following Christ throughout the year. (28 minutes) Questioning the “sacred-secular” division — With the stage set by Michael Sandel, Jean Bethke Elshtain, David L. Schindler, and John Milbank, Andrew Willard Jones examines a medieval alternative to the modern liberal paradigm. (61 minutes) Not just a counterculture — Peter J. Leithart on the public (and prophetic) mission of the Church Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 98 — FEATURED GUESTS: Stanley Hauerwas, Clarke Forsythe, Gilbert Meilaender, Jeanne Murray Walker, Roger Lundin, and David Bentley Hart Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 92 — FEATURED GUESTS: Jake Halpern, Stephen J. Nichols, Richard M. Gamble, Peter J. Leithart, Bill Vitek, and Craig Holdrege Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 128 — FEATURED GUESTS: Matthew Crawford, Carlo Lancellotti, James Turner, Rod Dreher, Mark Evan Bonds, and Jeremy Beer Intellectual apostasy and Christian witness — Harry Blamires on unfashionable beliefs about the ends of human beings From darkness [sic] into light [sic] — David Bentley Hart on the ignorant myth that banishes the transcendent from modern public spaces Fr. Chad Hatfield and Peter J. Leithart on Alexander Schmemann — Alexander Schmemann’s book asks a set of questions about “Christianity and culture” that typically don’t get asked, questions that re-center our lives in gratitude and worship. (20 minutes) Fischer, Hart, and Highfield on freedom — Three past guests on the Journal explore the meaning of freedom and some common modern misunderstandings of the concept — errors with real consequences. (22 minutes) Faith and unbelief —
FROM VOL. 98
This Archive Feature revisits two conversations, one with Roger Lundin and one with David Bentley Hart, on what makes Christian belief so implausible to non-believers. (39 minutes) Eternal seeds, temporal fruit — Henri de Lubac on how the Church should (and shouldn’t) make a difference in the world Dreary atheist fundamentalism — David Bentley Hart defends the naturalness of religious belief against the assertions of the Naturalists Divorcing the spirit of the age — Thomas C. Oden on overcoming the theological faddism of the late twentieth century Developing a Christian aesthetic — In the inaugural lecture for the Eliot Society, titled “Faithful Imaginations in a Meaningful Creation,” Ken Myers addresses the question of the relationship between the arts and the Church. (59 minutes) David K. Naugle, R.I.P. — Philosophy professor, author, and compassionate mentor David K. Naugle (1952-2021) explains the long history of the concepts of “worldview” and “happiness.” (26 minutes) Cultural participation in reconciliation — Jonathan Wilson on faithfully representing Creation in the culture of the Church Crowd Culture — Bernard Iddings Bell: “It is because the Church has thus obscured the socially prophetic note that it seems to most people to have no relevancy.” Consecrating the world — Paul Evdokimov on the cosmic effects of the Incarnation Christopher Hitchens vs. G. K. Chesterton — Ralph Wood compares Christopher Hitchens's view of the cosmos with that of G. K. Chesterton, arguing that Chesterton succeeded where Hitchens failed. (44 minutes) Assimilation or identity in Christ — Francisco Javier Martínez Fernández on the modern choice given the Church to conform or die Aspects of our un-Christening — In this Friday Feature — presented courtesy of Biola University — Carlo Lancellotti talks with Aaron Kheriaty about the central ideas in Augusto Del Noce’s writings. (43 minutes)

Links to posts and programs featuring Fr. Damian Ference:

Links to lectures and commentary by Ken Myers:

Links to posts and programs featuring David Cayley:

Worldliness vs. otherworldliness —
FROM VOL. 38
Sociologist Craig Gay speaks of the charge that Christianity is an otherworldly religion. (12 minutes) With enemies like this . . . — Terry Eagleton presents a blistering dismissal of arguments made by celebrity atheists Which story is ours? — “Instead of allowing the Bible to shape us, we may in fact be allowing our culture to shape the Bible for us.” Unmasking claims of “secular neutrality” — Lesslie Newbigin on the Church’s prophetic duty concerning public life True transcendence, true immanence — D. C. Schindler on how believers can be practical atheists The publicly inert Christ of modernity — Dom Anscer Vonier on secularism’s confidence in its freedom from Christ The kingdom of God has public consequences — Lesslie Newbigin on the subversiveness of the Church’s message to the world The idiocy of a-theistic society — Luigi Giussani on the irresistible question of God for human flourishing The disabling consequences of winsomeness — Stanley Hauerwas on how many modern Christians offered atheists less and less in which to disbelieve. The dead-end of privatized faith — T. S. Eliot on the Church’s duty to interfere with the World The Church as a public reality — William Cavanaugh on how we must be disciples in public, not just citizens Sports in America —
FROM VOL. 21
Robert Higgs looks at the history of sports in American experience and at how organized religion has interacted with that history. (12 minutes) Six recent books worthy of note — Ken Myers shares a summary of six recent books that we want our listeners to know about but whose authors we won’t be interviewing. (15 minutes) Seasons and everyday saints — Sylvie Vanhoozer introduces a French Advent tradition that involves a community of “little saints” whose stories have something to teach us about following Christ throughout the year. (28 minutes) Questioning the “sacred-secular” division — With the stage set by Michael Sandel, Jean Bethke Elshtain, David L. Schindler, and John Milbank, Andrew Willard Jones examines a medieval alternative to the modern liberal paradigm. (61 minutes) Not just a counterculture — Peter J. Leithart on the public (and prophetic) mission of the Church Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 98 — FEATURED GUESTS: Stanley Hauerwas, Clarke Forsythe, Gilbert Meilaender, Jeanne Murray Walker, Roger Lundin, and David Bentley Hart Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 92 — FEATURED GUESTS: Jake Halpern, Stephen J. Nichols, Richard M. Gamble, Peter J. Leithart, Bill Vitek, and Craig Holdrege Mars Hill Audio Journal, Volume 128 — FEATURED GUESTS: Matthew Crawford, Carlo Lancellotti, James Turner, Rod Dreher, Mark Evan Bonds, and Jeremy Beer Intellectual apostasy and Christian witness — Harry Blamires on unfashionable beliefs about the ends of human beings From darkness [sic] into light [sic] — David Bentley Hart on the ignorant myth that banishes the transcendent from modern public spaces Fr. Chad Hatfield and Peter J. Leithart on Alexander Schmemann — Alexander Schmemann’s book asks a set of questions about “Christianity and culture” that typically don’t get asked, questions that re-center our lives in gratitude and worship. (20 minutes) Fischer, Hart, and Highfield on freedom — Three past guests on the Journal explore the meaning of freedom and some common modern misunderstandings of the concept — errors with real consequences. (22 minutes) Faith and unbelief —
FROM VOL. 98
This Archive Feature revisits two conversations, one with Roger Lundin and one with David Bentley Hart, on what makes Christian belief so implausible to non-believers. (39 minutes) Eternal seeds, temporal fruit — Henri de Lubac on how the Church should (and shouldn’t) make a difference in the world Dreary atheist fundamentalism — David Bentley Hart defends the naturalness of religious belief against the assertions of the Naturalists Divorcing the spirit of the age — Thomas C. Oden on overcoming the theological faddism of the late twentieth century Developing a Christian aesthetic — In the inaugural lecture for the Eliot Society, titled “Faithful Imaginations in a Meaningful Creation,” Ken Myers addresses the question of the relationship between the arts and the Church. (59 minutes) David K. Naugle, R.I.P. — Philosophy professor, author, and compassionate mentor David K. Naugle (1952-2021) explains the long history of the concepts of “worldview” and “happiness.” (26 minutes) Cultural participation in reconciliation — Jonathan Wilson on faithfully representing Creation in the culture of the Church Crowd Culture — Bernard Iddings Bell: “It is because the Church has thus obscured the socially prophetic note that it seems to most people to have no relevancy.” Consecrating the world — Paul Evdokimov on the cosmic effects of the Incarnation Christopher Hitchens vs. G. K. Chesterton — Ralph Wood compares Christopher Hitchens's view of the cosmos with that of G. K. Chesterton, arguing that Chesterton succeeded where Hitchens failed. (44 minutes) Assimilation or identity in Christ — Francisco Javier Martínez Fernández on the modern choice given the Church to conform or die Aspects of our un-Christening — In this Friday Feature — presented courtesy of Biola University — Carlo Lancellotti talks with Aaron Kheriaty about the central ideas in Augusto Del Noce’s writings. (43 minutes)
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