Roger E. Olson's Blog, page 34

Everyone Sins…But There’s a Difference

Everyone Sins…But There’s a Difference M How often I have heard someone say “But everyone sins!” That usually pops out in a conversation among Christians about whether the church should accept LGBTQ people as members. A conservative/traditionalist says “But sex outside of marriage is sin!” Then someone else says “But LGBTQ people can be married!” […]

“The Upside-Down Kingdom,” Chapter 3: “Temple Piety”

“The Upside-Down Kingdom,” Chapter 3: “Temple Piety” According to our author Donald Kraybill, Jesus was an “upside-down Messiah.” Most of the Jews of Jesus’s day expected a powerful messiah who would throw off Roman rule and liberate the people of Israel from all foreign domination. They hardly expected a suffering messiah or one who would […]

Is It the Same “Christianity” I Grew Up With?

Is It the Same “Christianity” I Grew Up With? The other day I was musing about American church life and the many, many churches I have had to do with (pastoring, serving, attending, speaking, watching, etc., etc.). I felt a strong impression that the Christianity of my childhood and youth has by-and-large disappeared. Something else […]

The Almost Forgotten Story of Non-Liberal Feminist Christian Women Influences

The Almost Forgotten Story of Non-Liberal Feminist Christian Women Influencers By “non-liberal” here I mean theologically conservative, even if sometimes unorthodox in some beliefs. Many books about the forgotten history of women influencers in Christianity focus on mystics and later, modern feminist theologians. I have sometimes made a point of emailing or directly asking, face-to-face, […]

The Upside Down Kingdom: Chapter Two: Mountain Politics

The Upside Down Kingdom: Chapter Two: Mountain Politics Just before re-reading The Upside Down Kingdom my wife and I watched the TV series “The Man in the High Castle.” It’s based on a book of the same title. The various plots of both the book and the series rest on the fiction that Germany and […]

Belong, Believe, Behave?

Belong, Believe, Behave? Some years ago I began to hear this motto especially among those associated with the so-called “emerging churches.” I spoke at several such churches, had students affiliated with them, spoke at conventions where they gathered. The “new idea” often floated around in those circles was to allow people to belong (to the […]

Unsafe Sects: Understanding Religious Cults

Unsafe Sects: Understanding Religious Cults Yesterday I received my complimentary copies of this, my newest book: Unsafe Sects: Understanding Religious Cults published by Wipf & Stock under their Cascade Books imprint. I have described the book here before. What surprised me was the two absolutely stellar recommendations on the book’s back cover. I have posted […]

The Upside-Down Kingdom: Chapter One: Down Is Up

The Upside-Down Kingdom: Chapter One: Down Is Up Before I begin commenting on this book I want to tell a true story. Many years ago my wife and I were members of a Baptist church in an Upper Midwest capital city (USA). The state’s capitol building was about two miles away, but we could see […]

Our Next Book Discussion: The Upside Down Kingdom

Our Next Book Discussion: The Upside Down Kingdom It will begin this coming Monday, September 11. I will comment on Chapter One and invite those of you who read it to participate with comments. Those who do not read with us may ask questions only. I am very much looking forward to this book discussion […]

Hegel in a Nutshell

Hegel in a Nutshell Hegel In a Nutshell Many years ago I took a doctoral seminar entitled “Kant and Hegel” at Rice University. On the first day, the professors said that nobody understands Hegel so the whole seminar would be about Kant’s philosophy. I was disappointed. So, I have spent many years, on and off, […]