The Changing Meaning of V-E Day
How do we remember World War II, on this 75th anniversary of V-E Day? If previous anniversaries are any guide, Chris expects that we'll make meaning of the past in light of present circumstances — and...
View Article“Good Bloodlines”: Some History of Eugenics
Donald Trump's recent praise of the "good bloodlines" of Henry Ford got Chris thinking about Ford's friend, Charles Lindbergh, who shared the auto maker's enthusiasm for eugenics.
View ArticleJesus and John Wayne: An Afterword
Back in June, in anticipation of the book’s release, I published Jesus and John Wayne: the backstory. Now, nearly three months out from publication, I thought I’d take the opportunity to reflect on the...
View ArticleRBG, Historian: Why Justice Requires Memory
“In our long struggle for a more just world,” said Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 2004, “our memories are among our most powerful resources.” Chris pays tribute to a trailblazing jurist who drew often...
View ArticleEvangelicals and the Death Penalty
Forty-nine years ago today, the Supreme Court of the United States announced its decision in the case of William Henry Furman, sentenced to death in Georgia after he accidentally shot the owner of the...
View Article“Evangelical”: Past, Present, and Future
What does it mean to be "evangelical"? Is that term still useful? Chris reports on a recent adult Sunday School class and shares some suggested readings.
View ArticleAn Oral History of The Anxious Bench: Change over Time
Part two in Chris' "oral" history of this blog covers the period from 2015 to the present, when the list of contributors — and the topics they covered — grew considerably more diverse.
View ArticleInterfaith America: An Interview with Eboo Patel
Chris talks to Eboo Patel about his new book, We Need to Build, and his vision for an interfaith America.
View ArticleFrom John Wayne to Max Lucado? A Texas Megachurch Visit
Hi! I am a cultural sociologist on a tour of Texas Megachurches. Check out my first post here. Today I am covering Oak Hills Church and its celebrity pastor, Max Lucado....
View ArticleTaylor, Donald, History, and our Democracy
When I proposed to my fiancée a few years ago, not only was I excited to become a married man, but I was also anticipating building relationships with her three grown daughters. What I did not...
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