Featured Articles

Rest in a Low-Touch World
Rest in a low-touch world will require intention. Boundaries matter, but boundaries are not the whole story. A phone-free table is good, but the goal is not the absence of phones. The goal is the presence of persons. A tech-free evening is good, but the deeper question is whether we are becoming people who can listen, wait, apologize, forgive, laugh, and remain. The point is not to become nostalgic for a pre-digital past. The point is to become more human in the digital age we actually inhabit.
Featured Articles

Whatever Happened to Certainty?
We are not called to be certain so that our side wins denominational debates and culture wars. We are not called to be certain so that we can assert our right to be right. God calls us to be certain for the sake of others, especially for the sake of a lost world.

Lay Down Your Nets: On LGBTQ+ Inclusion and a Radical Gospel, the Only Kind Worth Believing
There’s just not much evidence that people form their ideas about LGBTQ+ people, about sexuality, gender, and gender expression, and about family and leadership and

White Privilege and White Liberals: The Anesthesia of Comfort, Status, and Moderation
I don’t want to reach the end of my life having been admired for being measured, careful, and safe. I want to have lived truthfully

Nursery Rhyme Racism: From “Roosevelt Park Rising”
Church is many different things, but at its core deep inside me, it still is a place where people dignify each other by respecting their

Meeting People Where They Are: What Eugene Callender’s Harlem Ministry Can Teach the Church Today
Callender was the first Black student to attend Westminster Theological Seminary and, in 1951, the first African American ordained by the Christian Reformed Church. From

The Fire of God (Part Two): The Sanctification of Jeremiah
Jeremiah’s examination of the depths of his heart invites us to respond with a similar self-examination. When I accept the invitation, when I slow down

The Fire of God: A World Dazzling and Bedazzling (Part One)
God was not immutable and self-contained: like fire, God, burned, flared forth, illuminated, and energized everything in the world. In the words of an ancient
Latest from the Blog
Daily blog by our regular bloggers & guest contributors.

The Climate Crisis and Christian Witness
It is the “least of these among us” —the poor, the marginalized, communities of color, our children and grandchildren, and many of our fellow creatures

The Shared Work of Worship
Every Sunday, an elder writes and leads a prayer of intercession for the congregation, and a deacon writes and leads a prayer for our context

Traditional Values, Human Rights, and Being “Modern”
I introduce the Rev. Carolyne Adhola, a priest in the Anglican Church of Kenya. Her story is both shocking and thrilling: shocking because of what

Barak: The Great Ache for Blessing
That declaration of goodness, the conferral of favor from a voice of ultimate importance — it’s the great ache of human life.

Another Shanghai Story
I stumbled upon the remarkable story of how Shanghai proved to be a place of refuge for Jews fleeing the Nazi terror in central Europe.

Your Own Small Syllabus
As an academic, the start of the school year is more the new year than whatever that thing we do in January. I know no

In Praise of Human Kindness
Two tornadoes within two weeks tore through our leafy little village. The first split trees, broke branches, and caused flooding – a glancing blow. The

Stories Written into the Land
I’ve wondered what must it have felt like to the Indigenous people to have someone from outside, just say, “Actually no, from now on this
Reviews

Grace and Social Ethics: A Review
“…grace makes possible a life that is not otherwise possible” which…reminds us of our nature and calls for a social ethic powerful enough to reimagine

Opening Ourselves to the Voice of the Lord: A Review of Songs from the Stillness
Making a sincere, direct address to God in most of his poems, Kuiper brings praise and gratitude, as well as genuine questions and pleas before

Live, Laugh, Love: (A Review)
This book is for everyone regardless of gender, political leanings, denominational affiliation, or stage of life; there is something in Live Laugh Love for all

The Amen Effect
The Hebrew word for amen is emunah, which means, “I see you, you are not alone, and I bear witness to your joy and pain.”

When Bread Is Resistance
How long, Lord? How long before you set everything right?

The Long Shadow of Adam: A Review of Defending Sin: A response to the challenge of evolution and the natural sciences
A few years ago, I read Loren Haarsma’s When Did Sin Begin. The book explored possibilities for understanding some key theological claims of orthodox Christian

Room for Gay Bellwethers in God’s Flock
He begins to pray, apologizing to his Maker for how he has been made.

Loosening the Grip on Power
Perhaps Nolan is suggesting that the way forward looks more like loosening our grip on power, acknowledging our mistakes, and seeking to be faithful to
Poetry

Absolution
Church bells rung candles ligted welcome offered we stand to sing …

Lord of Light and Dark
who maketh stars to leap in the gaped black mouth of heaven …

Choosing Stones
The last thing the Gittite saw was a laughable pebble flung by a gnat of a boy …

Psalm, roughly the size of a lung
The hate mail appeared in the church Suggestion Box …

Compulsion
After our home burned down in the Tea Fire, I started picking up trash on the streets …

Upon Our Seeing the Grand Tetons for the First Time
Deplaning the gondola after the steep ascent into the cloud-turbaned peaks, I am stepping high …
Podcasts

“Absolution” by Jillian Burden
In this week’s episode of the Reformed Journal Podcast, Rose Postma interviews Jillian Burden about her poem “Absolution.” Jillian is a Canadian-American poet based in

“Lord of Light and Dark” by Haley Hodges
In this episode of the Reformed Journal Podcast, the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Haley Hodges about her poem “Lord of Light and Dark.” Haley

“Choosing Stones” by Cody Adams
In this episode of the Reformed Journal Podcast, the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Cody Adams about his poem “Choosing Stones.” Cody is an English Teacher

“Compulsion” by Paul J. Willis
In this episode of the Reformed Journal Podcast, the poetry edition, Rose Postma talks with Paul Willis about his poem “Compulsion.” Paul has published eight

“Upon Our Seeing the Grand Tetons for the First Time” by Jo Taylor
In this episode of the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Jo Taylor about her poem, “Upon Our Seeing the Grand Tetons for the First Time.” Jo

“Aeronaut” by Brian Phipps
In this episode of the Reformed Journal Podcast, the poetry edition, Rose Postma interviews Brian G. Phipps about his poem “Aeronaut.” Brian is the author