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Essays

In the Beginning Was the Talk

Can a Reformed denomination interpret Scripture collectively to discern God’s will? A Reformed denomination such as the Reformed Church in America is fundamentally a network of churches holding each other accountable according to a shared interpretation of Scripture. We allow divergence in interpretations, but we recognize our divergences as legitimate. Yet this is not what happened at the RCA General Synod of 2016, where I was a delegate. We did not interpret God’s Word together. We did not share a…
Daniel Meeter
September 1, 2018
EssaysReviews

Bringing Balance to the Missional Church Movement

As is felt in the pews on Sunday mornings and reported statistically, the American church is in decline. While this raises a lot of anxiety among church leaders, there are resources and movements attempting to change this trend. One of the most compelling movements is the missional-church movement. However, the word “missional” is so ubiquitous that it can be difficult to discern what people mean when they use it. One helpful tool for understanding is the book The Permanent Revolution.…
September 1, 2018
Reviews

Finding a Deeper Piety in the Lord’s Supper

Remembrance, Communion, and Hope REMEMBRANCE, COMMUNION AND HOPE: REDISCOVERING THE GOSPEL AT THE LORD’S TABLE J. TODD BILLINGS WM. B. EERDMANS PUBLISHING CO., 2018 $25 (PAPERBACK) 237 PAGES At the beginning of his book, J. Todd Billings presents readers with a wager: “that a renewed theology and practice of the Lord’s Supper can be an instrument for congregations to develop a deeper, more multifaceted sense of the gospel itself.” As a church planter and pastor, I’ve accepted this wager. And…
September 1, 2018
MagazineReviews

Abraham Kuyper and the Immigration Debate

Christian Hospitality and Muslim Immigration in an Age of Fear, by Matthew Kaemingk CHRISTIAN HOSPITALITY AND MUSLIM IMMIGRATION IN AN AGE OF FEAR MATTHEW KAEMINGK WM.B EERDMANS PUBLISHING CO., 2018 $28 (PAPERBACK) 352 PAGES On January 27, 2017, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order temporarily suspending the U.S. Refugee Admission program and banning admission to immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries. President Trump’s actions reveal a growing tension among many European aend North American nations between the desire to…
June 30, 2018
Inside OutMagazine

Falling into the Earth

In Chapter 12 of the Gospel of John, Jesus announces, “The hour has come,” and with these words the focus of this gospel shifts. Knowing that his hour of death is near, Jesus turns his attention to his disciples and tries to explain to them the meaning of his life and imminent death. Jesus begins with this striking image: “Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much…
June 30, 2018
MagazinePoetry

Bigger than Him

It was bigger than him Smooth heart wood     called a walking stick For a three-year-old trying to be older It’s not about walking     running Being first down the trail      nor about the tangle Of want and need        in his legs And it’s not about the way we roll The pitiful scraping of the chin While the spine      backbends around The roll and skiddish landing It’s not the extended yeowl       or the interminable pause Before there is breath or comfort’s coos…
June 30, 2018
As We See ItMagazine

On Crafting Coalitions: Lessons from the Right-to-Life Movement of the 1970s

I know half of you just saw that title and are ready to take me to task. Learning a lesson on building political coalitions from the right-to-life movement? Baloney. From one of the most stalwart conservative movements of the past 40 years – a movement on an issue that remains one of the most polarizing issues in American society? Good luck. And you’re right to be skeptical. The polling numbers continue to show stark polarization on abortion, at least in the political realm. And…
June 30, 2018
Reviews

War’s Insanity in Verse

No Turning Back, by R.L. Barth NO TURNING BACK: THE BATTLE OF DIEN BIEN PHU R.L. BARTH SCIENTER PRESS, 2016 26 PAGES $12.50 In his brief introduction to No Turning Back: The Battle of Dien Bien Phu, R.L. Barth tells us that, after writing poems about his experience as a Marine in the American war, he “wanted to establish for the historical background of own tour” and thus took a deep look at the final battle of the French war…
June 30, 2018
Poetry

Having the Last Word

I’m holding a thought    in my mouth I’ve got it polished and smooth, and oh it’s hard II the middle like a rock        I spotted its glint just behind you In the neighbor’s decorative gravel          a confident little sas Calling me       as they say It’s my calling now           a rather remarkable Way to be       to feel right about something I mean I’m actually kind of proud to have it Tucked away        this lozenge held in my teeth      l Like a…
June 30, 2018