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Responses to our May/June issue.

Edits by Christianity Today / Source Image: Lumina Images / Getty

Our Pulpits Are Full of Empty Preachers

As a retired pastor, I cannot help but reflect on the financially transactional nature of the pastoral “calling.” The question I ask of any active pastor today, whether struggling in frustration or soaring in satisfaction, is “If you won the lottery tomorrow, would you still be an institutional pastor in 12 months’ time?” The answer tells me everything I need to know about the nature of the situation.

Brad Gustafson Charleston, SC

When Doubters Declare the Glory of God

Worship tunes—“corporate” in community and commerce—often feature lyrics of such positivity that they are simplistic and narrow, even to the point of banality. The best Christian art, music included, emanates from and speaks to the soul with nuance, even ambiguity.

Tom Hynes (Facebook)

I question the use of doubters. Secular doesn’t mean nonbeliever. There are many Christians and people of other religions who aren’t in Christian music. In some ways, the mainstream artists who are Christian can reach others who may not listen to Christian or gospel music. Even some of the artists that didn’t always promote a Christian lifestyle will still [mention] God, heaven, and Christian themes. Bob Dylan went through an evangelical Christian period. He returned to his Jewish roots. I wouldn’t label him a “doubter” either.

James Hucke (Facebook)

The Scottish Complementarians Who Teach Women to Preach

For a few weeks, my May/June CT had been sitting out waiting for me. I was intrigued by the [text] on the cover: “Scotland’s Brave Women.” I was amazed to find an eight-page spread about Niddrie Community Church (NCC). My sister’s husband is an elder of this church. They joined NCC about three years before Mez McConnell was hired. For a hundred years, Niddrie had been a dependent mission station of Charlotte Chapel Baptist Church, the big, rich, historic church in the center of Edinburgh—a paternalistic relationship. Mez was just the right person to lead Niddrie as it became an independent church, and he has gone far beyond that in providing leadership with 20schemes. I love visiting NCC whenever I’m over visiting my family. In the 1930s my grandmother moved to Niddrie, about 200 yards from NCC, as new social housing was built. But my mother lived with her grandmother a few miles away. I was born in Edinburgh but lived there only sporadically, as my parents were missionaries. Whenever I would be there with my relatives, I was in a matriarchal world with a distrust of men who were considered unreliable, just as the article described. A big thank you to Kara Bettis for writing such a fine article, and to CT for publishing it.

Bernard Bell Cupertino, CA

They Might Be Giants. (Or Angels. Or Superhuman Devils.)

Another explanation of the Nephilim is that this text represents a long-held folk memory of Neanderthals. It is well established that Neanderthals and humans interbred, and there is fossil evidence in Israel. The text continues, “They were the heroes of old, men of renown.” The scientific probability that Neanderthals were physically stronger than humans would fit well. But what about Numbers 13 reporting that the 12 spies stated, “We saw the Nephilim there” (v. 33)? This reports the spies’ own interpretation of what they saw. Scripture itself is not claiming that the Nephilim were still living at this time.

David Misselbrook London, UK

As for Me and My Household, We’ll Resist Mammon

The Biblical life I experience fits neither the utopia Andy Crouch describes nor the “Mammon” he imagines to be its antithesis, so I have to wonder what the Scriptural support is. Other than the one verse setting an unexplained Mammon against God, Crouch gives us nothing. This appears to be a book excerpt, but nothing here leads me to believe that paying for and taking the time to read the rest of the book would answer my questions. That’s disappointing in a piece that purports to offer us something better than the status quo.

Tom Pittman Grants Pass, OR

I agree that Mammon and technology have put us in the service of things and that we need to do something about it. What it left me wondering is if the household is enough of an answer. Unless we can take back our communities and relearn to depend on our neighbors, there is little hope for change.

Rick Voss Stafford, VA

Secularism Doesn’t Have to Be Bad

Our ecclesiology is taken from contemporary American culture, and it’s resulted in few disciples being made. We’re also trying to be a “Christian nation,” which isn’t the interest of Jesus.

Marcus McClain (Facebook)

Is There a Tiny Puritan Living in Your Head? Tell Him to Get Lost.

I loved this article. Good reminder that God has joy in seeing us joyful. Thank you, CT.

Angelin Higgins (Facebook)

Also in this issue

Our cover story this month argues that Christians have a unique opportunity, in our difficult housing market, to model for the watching world better kinds of community—not only inside our homes, but also out in the towns and cities where we live. Also in this issue: Dallas Willard's worries, enforcing abortion bans, and Afghanistan refugees a year after the pullout.

Cover Story

There Are Many Mansions in Heaven, but We’d Like Something Sooner

The Grain of Truth Grows Slowly

Revelation Is Good News for Today, not a Game Plan for the Future

Echoes of Greatness

Testimony

Police Work Nearly Broke Me

If God Is Your Father, You Have Seven Mothers

Stopping Abuse Is Sexual Ethics 101

News

The Curious Case of Coronavirus Contagion in Church

News

Something Old, Something New. Something Borrowed, Something Pew.

News

Christian Nonprofit Buys Luxury Yacht

New & Noteworthy Books

Our September Issue: Modeling Home

Excerpt

Those God Sends, He First Humbles

How Americans Got Away with Abortion Before ‘Roe v. Wade’

Why Shamelessness Is a Superpower

News

Back to Bolsonaro? Evangelicals Hesitate Ahead of October Election

Americans Forgot How Long Refugee Resettlement Takes

News

Four Out of Five Victims Don’t Report Sexual Assault. Can Christian Colleges Do Better?

Dallas Willard’s 3 Fears About the Spiritual Formation Movement

Playing the Cultural Long Game

Review

The Unsung Heroes of the Underground Railroad

Review

There Is No One Fully Optimized, Not Even One

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As Malibu Burns, Pepperdine Withstands the Fire

University president praises the community’s “calm resilience” as students and staff shelter in place in fireproof buildings.

The Russell Moore Show

My Favorite Books of 2024

Ashley Hales, CT’s editorial director for print, and Russell discuss this year’s reads.

News

The Door Is Now Open to Churches in Nepal

Seventeen years after the former Hindu kingdom became a secular state, Christians have a pathway to legal recognition.

Why Christians Oppose Euthanasia

The immorality of killing the old and ill has never been in question for Christians. Nor is our duty to care for those the world devalues.

China’s Churches Go Deep Rather than Wide at Christmas

In place of large evangelism outreaches, churches try to be more intentional in the face of religious restrictions and theological changes.

The Holy Family and Mine

Nativity scenes show us the loving parents we all need—and remind me that my own parents estranged me over my faith.

Wire Story

Study: Evangelical Churches Aren’t Particularly Political

Even if members are politically active and many leaders are often outspoken about issues and candidates they support, most congregations make great efforts to keep politics out of the church when they gather.

Have Yourself an Enchanted Little Advent

Angels are everywhere in the Bible. The Christmas season reminds us to take them seriously.

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