Gene Edward Veith Jr.'s Blog, page 242
June 16, 2015
Christianity and the Magna Carta
Yesterday was the 800th anniversary of the signing of the Magna Carta, which established the principle of the Rule of Law, to which even kings and other rulers are subject. What often gets forgotten, as Eric Metaxas points out, is that the Magna Carta was a creation of the Christian church. From Eric Metaxas, Why [Read More...]
Jeb Bush formally joins the race
Jeb Bush made it official yesterday, becoming the 11th candidate for the Republican nomination for the presidency. Is there any way, rightly or wrongly, that the Republicans would nominate or the public would elect a third president named Bush? From Jeb Bush launches 2016 presidential bid – CNNPolitics.com: Jeb Bush, a scion of the most [Read More...]
June 15, 2015
Our new book: Where Christ Is Present
I have collaborated with John Warwick Montgomery in editing and contributing to a new book that has just come out: Where Christ Is Present: A Theology for All Seasons on the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation. It’s a collection of essays that constitute an apologetic for Lutheranism, making the case that Lutheran theology and practice [Read More...]
If transgender, why not transracial?
We are told that personal identity is different from physical being, that some individuals feel like women, even though they have a male body. But we should treat them according to the way they “self-identify,” rather than according to their physical makeup. This way of thinking is being applied to sex and gender. But another [Read More...]
House Democrats defy Obama on trade deal
Democrats in the House of Representatives gave President Obama a stunning defeat, voting against his free trade deal with Asia despite his personal pleas. The president’s only reliable allies, ironically, are the Republicans, who promise to find a new way to advance legislation that fast-tracks the Trans-Pacific Partnership. From House Democrats rebuff Obama on trade, [Read More...]
June 12, 2015
The Pope’s preacher says Luther was right
British religion reporter Christopher Howse tells about a sermon from Pope Benedict XVI ‘s preacher, Fr. Raniero Cantalamesa, that basically concedes that Luther was right on justification. Well, sort of. This was in the context of the Joint Declaration on Justification between the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation. We confessional Lutherans deny [Read More...]
New York Times exposes Marco Rubio
The New York Times has published a series of articles (linked at the source, after the jump) uncovering scandalous details about Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio: He has had 4 traffic tickets over 17 years! He has a boat! He has oversized windows in his house! He has a nice car–OK, he just leases it, [Read More...]
See this Lucas Cranach video
In Germany there is a big revival of interest in Lucas Cranach as an artist. You have got to see this video based on an exhibit in Weimar. It includes remarkable closeups of Cranach’s famous altarpiece in the Weimar church, the one with the artist’s self-portrait inserted into a Crucifixion scene, with Christ’s blood–thanks to [Read More...]
June 11, 2015
“Nones” are fine with denominations
Contrary to the common assumption, “Nones”–people with no religious preference–have positive feelings about most Christian denominations and denominations in general, according to a LifeWay study. The most favorable impressions among non-believers are Baptists and Catholics. Baptists scored 61% favorable, 19% unfavorable, and 20% not familiar enough to have an opinion. Catholics scored 57% favorable, 23% [Read More...]
Evolution vs. liberalism
In the course of a discussion about an article by a feminist attacking transgendered folks like “Caitlyn” Jenner, saying that these men can never know what it is to be a woman, Andrew Klavan makes the point that evolution and feminism are incompatible. Which made me realize that evolution is incompatible with lots of other [Read More...]
