Featured Articles

Caroline J. Simon

In the Overlap: A Short Story

I have no idea how to be a decent soon-to-be-former-mother-in-law. My local library has no self-help books on the topic. I find no such books on Amazon. But I discover that “mother-in-law” is not even a legal term. In family law, blood is primary. “Consanguinity” is the legal term. Its contrasting term is “affinity relation.” Affinity is a friendly-sounding word for a flimsy bond. Nothing I can do will prevent me from becoming a former-mother-in-law.

Featured Articles

Don Tamminga

A Lesson Never Learned

Because synod has left no space for other opinions, the end result is going to be disaffiliation. The fact that our congregation was even in the CRC is a beautiful testimony to the wideness of the kingdom of God. The Native way of dialogue, discussion, compromise, and holding room for other opinions also testifies to the Kingdom of God. Sadly, there isn’t space for that approach in today’s Christian Reformed Church.

Featured
Rebecca Tellinghuisen

Remember to Take and Eat

I wonder if I kept that cup of July 2023 yogurt because I was savoring a memory or because I was fearing loss. But there

Featured
James Bratt

1925

Let’s look back at 1925 to see the portents of the year but also its other possibilities, to compare what looked big at the time

Featured
Rick Patterson

An Insurrectionist Set Free

A raucous mob of religious stalwarts gathered on a day centuries ago outside a palace. Like many of those gathered in the Capitol on January

Featured
Tom Boogaart

Tears and the River of Life

The God of the scriptures does not have a heart of steel; God has a heart of flesh, a bleeding heart, and God has eyes

Featured
David Landegent

Drawing 101

While many art classes were designed to enhance creativity, this drawing class mostly helped us learn to draw realistically and accurately. I enjoyed this extended

Latest from the Blog

Daily blog by our regular bloggers & guest contributors.

Sara Sybesma Tolsma

Science Under Attack

The cuts to science risk the health and safety of Americans and people around the world—especially the marginalized and underrepresented.

David Landegent

Theology of Ugh

While undergoing the stem cell transplant process, all I could do was pray, “Ugh.”

Rebecca Koerselman

Take Heart

Cooper’s conception of Christianity was not a set of theological propositions meant for discussion. “Religion must be life made true.”

Christy Berghoef

Spring

Spring is coming. Spring will arrive. One terrible moment is not the center of everything. Nor is it the end of everything.

Tom Walcott

Good Order and Discipline

I have never heard a senior military leader talk about politics or who they would or would not vote for.

Daniel Meeter

Time to Confess

Our churches defined themselves by publicly confessing—especially to princes—their common beliefs on issues in conflict.

Tim Van Deelen

In the Aggregate

My parents sacrificed to show my two siblings and me the astonishing riches of the United States as protected by the National Park Service. We

Reviews

Caleb Lagerwey

How to End Christian Nationalism

Amanda Tyler’s timely new book, How to End Christian Nationalism, is a short and accessible addition to an expanding list of books written by Christians

Kathryn Schoon-Tanis

For Our Daughters  

While this film doesn’t trace how segments of the church ended up with a culture of toxic masculinity and prevalent sexual abuse (there are resources

Poetry

Poetry
Margaret DeRitter

Lost Sheep

Seventy-seven pounds of wool on that merino sheep who got lost
in the Outback.

Poetry
Patrick T. Reardon

Table

Let the sparrow take a chair at the Juneteenth table with Elijah …

Poetry
Michael Zysk

You Said, Let There Be Light

You said, Let there be light, and there was light. And you saw that the light was good …

Poetry
Sarah M. Wells

Jesus, Son of Gop

On the night he was supposed to be betrayed, Jesus strapped on a Glock under his cloak, just in case the breastplate of righteousness didn’t

Poetry
Andrew Lansdown

Blessed

Unnoticed except by their Maker, my wife and me–a dozen sparrows blissful at their ablutions …

Poetry
Zoie Jones

Near Death

We drove nails into His wrists, air reeking of animal remains and criminal bodies piled next to the horse trough …

Podcasts

Podcast
Margaret DeRitter

“Lost Sheep” by Margaret DeRitter

In this episode of the Reformed Journal Podcast, the poetry edition, Rose Postma talks with Margaret DeRitter about her poem “Lost Sheep.” DeRitter is the

Podcast
Patrick T. Reardon

“Table” by Patrick T. Reardon

In this episode of the Reformed Journal Podcast, the poetry edition, Rose Postma talks with Patrick T. Reardon about his poem “Table.” Reardon, who was

Podcast
Matthew Pullar

“Life Beneath” by Matthew Pullar

In this episode of the poetry edition of the Reformed Journal Podcast, Rose Postma interviews Matthew Pullar about his poem “Life Beneath.” Pullar is a poet

Podcast
Sarah M. Wells

“Jesus Son of Gop” by Sarah M. Wells

In this episode of the poetry edition of the Reformed Journal Podcast, Rose Postma talks with ⁠Sarah M. Wells⁠ about her poem “Jesus Son of GOP.” is the

Podcast
Zoie Jones

“Near Death” by Zoie Jones

In this episode of the poetry edition of the Reformed Journal Podcast, Rose Postma talks with Zoie Jones about her poem “Near Death.” Jones lives