Gene Edward Veith Jr.'s Blog, page 53

The Number of Congregations Is Growing

Contrary to the narratives of religious decline in America, a new study has found that the number of Christian congregations has actually increased.

The Ignorance Plague

Democracies require a certain level of civic knowledge and understanding so that citizens can effectively govern themselves.  But today a plague of ignorance threatens our liberties. Cal Thomas writes about two studies that show a monumental ignorance on the part of Americans of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. A poll by the  Annenberg Public […]

House churches

The landscape of contemporary Christianity now includes groups of Christians who get together in each other’s homes and declare themselves a church.  They may meet on Sunday mornings or on convenient evenings during the week.  They may engage in worship, whether making up their order of service or following a liturgy.  Or they may just engage […]

A Biblical text for our time

Here is a text from Scripture for those afflicted by or afraid of storms (as yet another hurricane, Maria, heads towards Puerto Rico), terrorism, tyranny, disgrace, loneliness, abandonment, apostasy, personal attacks, and other troubles of our time.  And it also speaks of vocation. From Isaiah 54: 4“Do not be afraid; you will not be put to shame. […]

A Reformation best-seller to read and give away

Luther’s Small Catechism is a marvel of clarity, depth, and spiritual insight.  Used for centuries to catechize children, it has also proven to be an inexhaustible devotional resource for adults.  Now Concordia Publishing House is making an inexpensive edition designed to be handed out as tracts or given to friends. The edition costs only about 50 […]

All sides are turning against Silicon Valley

The tech geniuses and entrepreneurs of Silicon Valley have been lauded for their creativity and innovation, held up as models of financial enterprise and economic brilliance.  But lately opinions have been changing.  Now the titans of technology are being regarded more as 19th century robber barons. According to Ben Smith in There’s Blood In The Water In […]

A Unified Protestant Confession?

The Reformation, whose 500th anniversary is next month, had as its purpose the reformation of the Church.  But one result has been the emergence of some 33,000 different church bodies.  A major criticism of the Reformation is that it has created disunity among Christians. But is theological diversity the same thing as disunity?  Are there common […]

Refrigerators and anti-virus software as espionage devices

  Our new cybertechnology–all linked, interconnected, and hackable–including now the “internet of things”–opens up whole new vistas for espionage.  The government is requiring that a popular anti-virus and security software program be deleted from agency computers, out of fear that its Russian maker is connected to the successor to the KGB.  And Congress is considering a […]

Tetzel on 7 Years in Purgatory for Every Sin

I came across a sermon from Johann Tetzel, the indulgence peddler who provoked Luther’s 95 Theses.  Part of his sales pitch had to do with the popular, though unofficial, teaching that Christians must suffer 7 years in the fires of Purgatory for each sin they have committed.  Doing the math reminds us of what it […]

The Medicare for All Act

Sen. Bernie Sanders has introduced a bill that would give free medical care to everyone.