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Talkative. Funny. Getting smarter. Able to move beyond literalism. Increasingly concerned about physical appearance. Having a strong need for affirmation. These are the traits of
Some of our regular RJ bloggers offer their favorites of 2022 — books, TV, movies, whatever. These aren’t necessarily works that came out this year,
The daily blog of the Reformed Journal turns 11 today. Adolescence is just around the corner! On October 31, 2011 the first blog was posted.
Sometimes I get up early in the morning to read the Bible because I know it makes for a peaceful start to my day, or
It’s December 30. The year 2021 is almost gone. There are many who will wax philosophical as the year closes. Much of that commentary is
Have you visited the newly refreshed Reformed Journal site?For example, try Travis West’s essay, Learning Lament: Remembering Tina. There are enough essays, poems, and book
We’ve all heard so many jokes and cracks about 2020. It can’t end too soon. And behind the jokes are deep sorrow and outrage. At
Our annual fundraising week is over. To all who gave, thank you so much! To all of you who said to yourselves, “I really should
Okay, so it may not be quite as momentous as the events of October 31, 1517 in Wittenberg, Germany, but… Nine years ago, on October
I work as an educator at a school associated with the Christian Reformed Church. I am also a regular reader of The Twelve. I’m writing
2019 was a great year here at The Twelve–thanks for reading, commenting, engaging, supporting, and caring! Here are the top five most read posts of
2019 draws to a close. Thank you for your collegiality and support this past year. The Twelve is here for you, day after day. Before
This story is true, but I have changed some details to protect identities, because revealing identities goes against the spirit of the story. A while
We’re eight years old today! The Twelve first appeared on October 31, 2011. It was no coincidence we appeared on Reformation Day, the day Luther
If you live in the United States, chances are that taxes, income taxes specifically, have been on your mind and part of your life in
People seem to have given up on the idea of a perpetual motion machine. But The Twelve is about as close as you’ll come. Day
Reformed folk don’t need to be embarrassed by mixed motives. What other kind of motives are there? As 2017 draws to a close, we hope
Boxing Day–in the United States, we’re never quite sure what to make of it. The tradition, we believe, is that today is the day you
You’ve probably heard plenty about the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther nailing his 95 theses on the door of the church in Wittenberg, Germany. Nearly
Comparing yourself to American Motors is probably never a good idea, especially when many of your readers reside in Michigan. For those who don’t know,
Most people say they pull for the underdog. Here at The Twelve, we see ourselves as underdogs in today’s world. Left versus right, each dug
On the first day of school, I remember being handed a sheet of paper. Today we would say it was “landscape” format, wider than high.
These are the days of the endless summer These are the days, the time is now There is no past, there’s only future There’s only
Longtime blogger here on The Twelve, Theresa Latini, was named the first president of United Lutheran Seminary, with campuses in Philadelphia and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, earlier
Bright Monday! Easter Monday. It is a tradition among some Christians—not so much Reformed, but especially Orthodox. This day after Easter is filled with jokes,
Arise, my love, my beautiful one, and come away; for now the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on
The origins of Valentines Day are jumbled and uncertain. So much so that in 1969, the Roman Catholic Church knocked Saint Valentine’s Day off the
Have you heard how money and support are streaming into Democratic and progressive causes since the election of Donald Trump? It worked the other way
Late last century, Dunkin Donuts used it as their tagline—“Time to make the donuts!” The ads showed a faithful little baker working ceaselessly to be
A timely, interesting, and important conversation between Matthew Tuininga (Calvin Theological Seminary) and Nicholas Wolterstorff is available on the Perspectives site. You’ll want to take
by James Schaap It was, as I remember, an Emerson, a tiny off-white boxy thing with a circular dial, maybe an inch or so bigger
by Sarina Gruver Moore I once joked to a class that I am a promiscuous reader. They looked at me like I was the Bad
by Kate Kooyman I do a lot of speaking in churches about immigration — and I often get a question about assimilation during those talks.
by Jes Kast Dear Twelve Readers, Do you know how much I have grown to care about you? What started as a side blogging project
by Chuck DeGroat I’m grateful for this opportunity to appeal to readers of The Twelve to give generously so that Perspectives and The Twelve can
by Scott Hoezee My involvement with Perspectives goes back to the 1990s when I occasionally wrote articles that I was thrilled to get published. By
by Brian Keepers It was almost a year ago that I joined The Twelve as a regular contributor—something I agreed to with a good amount
Twelver, James Calvin Schaap, was awarded first place in fiction by the Evangelical Press Association for his “Yet in My Flesh” that appeared in The
To God: be glory. To the angels: honor. To Satan: confusion. To the cross: reverence. To the church: exultation. To those who confess: forgiveness. To
Happy birthday to us! It was on October 31, 2011 that The Twelve slipped on to the web, without much fanfare or introduction. The first
Does one “celebrate” Labor Day? Mark it? Observe it? Perhaps our resident historians (Rebecca and Jim) can illuminate us about the origins of this day.
The Washington Post picked up Theresa Latini’s April 23 post here on The Twelve, “Please don’t pray for me.” Congratulations, Theresa!
Today, the day before those in the United States must file their incomes taxes, we take this opportunity to encourage you to support Perspectives/The Twelve
Comments by you, the reader, are an important part of The Twelve. Your comments play an important role in the conversation and community we want
As the year draws to a close, Perspectives and The Twelve thank you for your support, your attention, and your time. We wish you a
Merry Christmas and Advent blessings to all the readers of Perspectives and its blog, The Twelve. As you consider your year-end charitable giving, we invite
I am traveling this weekend, so my friend Nard Choi has agreed to allow me to share with you her recent piece on “third culture
Yesterday the staff of the Chimes, Calvin College’s student newspaper, released their weekly issue with a special insert called “Listen First.” In this feature, eight
Teaching Dante always puts me in an awkward position. I wind up admitting to a class of Calvin College students that I find the idea
When she started playing, I thought, Whoa there, sister, dial it back! You have a whole concerto to get through yet! She looked so young
Can I sue American entertainment culture for sexual harassment? I am wondering about this because I have been working my way through an online training
As a member of the planning committee for the Festival of Faith and Writing at Calvin, I have the best committee work in the world:
I would like to thank faithful readers of The Twelve blog for supporting this little venture, and I do hope you continue to enjoy our
My wife and I have been traveling around the Netherlands the past ten days on a trip with our adult children and their consorts in
August is the sweltering month. At least that’s how I used to remember it. Maybe because my family, when I was a boy, would take
Maybe it’s too easy to pile on the Mitt Romney global gaff-fest, but one of his remarks is too close to the core of Reformed
A Humble Petition To the One Who Sits Above the Cherubim and Seraphim, Commander of all Angels and Archangels, Refuge of the Martyrs, Hope of
“Rick Santorum is John Winthrop.” So proclaimed Joe Nocera at the top of his column in the New York Times a week ago today (“A
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All
It’s pretty common to hear people, not least Protestants, talk about what they might give up for Lent. Some of them even follow through and
The mad rush to Christmas has begun. The signs are all around us: blaring Christmas carols, colorful blinking lights, trees and mistletoe, cookies galore, and
When I realized that I had been assigned Thanksgiving Day for my second blog, I moaned with weariness and dread. I even avoided blogging until,
