Roger E. Olson's Blog, page 31

Between Jesus and John Wayne

Between Jesus and John Wayne Not very long ago I reviewed a book by a professor at Calvin University titled Jesus and John Wayne. You can look up that review in the archives of this blog or just “Google” it. Although I don’t remember if the author mentioned this song, I accidentally ran across it […]

Karl Barth in a YouTube Documentary Not about Him

Karl Barth in a Youtube Documentary Not about Him The great Swiss theologian Karl Barth has often been described as a modern “church father.” That is to compare him in terms of greatness of thought and influence to such Christian theologians as Saint Augustine. I have studied the theology (or theologies) of Barth for many […]

Proof that Something Is Seriously Amiss in America’s Universities

Proof that Something Is Seriously Amiss in America’s Universities According to news reports, ones on TV news network prime time programs, showing three presidents of major Ivy League universities speaking at a congressional hearing, something is terribly amiss in American universities. A congresswoman asked the three female presidents of major universities whether calling for genocide […]

Is Donald Trump “Orange Jesus?”

Is Donald Trump “Orange Jesus?” According to a forthcoming book by former Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney, at least one influential Republican member of congress referred to Donald Trump as “orange Jesus.” So far I have not read or heard of any reliable refutation of that. On MSNBC Lawrence O’Donnell has labeled that “blasphemy.” I’m a […]

Announcing a New Book Discussion

Announcing a New Book Discussion Beginning on Monday, December 18, God willing, I will begin discussion here of The Essentials of Christian Thought: Seeing Reality through the Biblical Story (Zondervan, 2017). I am the author. Here are two recommendations of the book of which I am especially proud: “Olson offers his readers a timely and […]

Are American Christians Persecuted?

Are American Christians Persecuted? According to some new reports, the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representative, Mike Johnson, one of the highest officials in the country, recently commented that American Christians are persecuted. Naturally, this drew negative responses from some left-leaning commentators. One was a woman who wrote a column about Johnson’s claim for […]

An Even Stranger Thing…

An Even Stranger Thing… The Youtube documentary shocked me and shook me to the core of my being. Why have I never head of this before? To see and hear what I heard and saw go to this Youtube video: “The Rise of the Crisis Actor Conspiracy Movement.” Have I been living under a rock […]

How Do You Know You’re Not Brainwashed?

How Do You Know You’re Not Brainwashed? First, let’s define two words. What do I mean by “know?” Well, really just the usual sense of the word except I exclude absolute, total, incorrigible certainty. I don’t think that’s humanly possible. The mind can always possibly be shaken by new experiences. So by “know” I mean […]

The Upside-Down Kingdom, Chapter 12: Successful Failures

The Upside-Down Kingdom, Chapter 12: Successful Failure There’s much in this chapter to “talk” about. But I’d like to focus on one main point: the meaning of “bearing one’s cross.” As I read Kraybill’s explanation, I was reminded of John Howard Yoder’s discussion of this in The Politics of Jesus. According to both Kraybill and […]

Does God Save Everyone He Can?

Does God Save Everyone He Can? This is a question for Christians and evangelical Christians in particular. A friend recently asked me a theological question. He knows I am a Christian theologian in the evangelical tradition. His question was “Does God save everyone he can?” I don’t recall ever being asked that before, so I […]