Issue 94

The fall of Rome was the 9/11 of the ancient world; Alaric, its Osama bin Laden. As the “eternal city” crumbled, Augustine of Hippo pointed Christians to the City of God—the eternal church on pilgrimage through a world that is not our home.

We live in a world of vast economic injustice, crippling poverty, and wealthy churches. So did “golden-mothed” preacher John Chrysostom.

Deadly epidemics and social traumas haunt the news and test the limits of our kindness and courage. How should Christians respond, when the church itself is so divided?

Oppressed women around the globe await those willing to carry on the legacy of Pandita Ramabai.

What is the role of the government? Can we build a Christian society in this world? Protestant Reformers Martin Luther, Ulrich Zwingli, Martin Bucer, and John Calvin all grappled with those questions—and came up with different answers.

Those who fight for religious freedom today stand in a long line of Christian predecessors, including Baptist leader Thomas Helwys.

The difficult choices of Dietrich Bonhoeffer show that, in extreme circumstances, the path to peace may not always be paved with clear ethical answers.

Racism continues to stain society and challenge the church’s commitment to a color-blind gospel. Albert Lutuli’s peaceful pursuit of justice in South Africa pointed a way forward for the generations to come.

Few issues have more serious implications for Christian witness and global politics today than Christian-Muslim relations. We can learn much from Arab Christian apologist John of Damascus, eloquent Assyrian Church leader Patriarch Timothy 1, and tireless Protestant missionary Samuel Zwemer.

Abraham Kuyper reminds us that only Christ can bring wholeness to our fragmented age.

What made African bishop Festo Kivengere rejoice in the face of monstrous evil?