In this episode we’re joined by Dr. Jesse Nickel, who is a member of the Faculty of Biblical Studies at Columbia Bible College in Abbotsford, British Columbia and the author of the new book, A Revolutionary Jesus: Violence and Peacemaking in the Kingdom of God (published by Fortress). Over the course of our conversation, we talk about Jesus’s non-violent kingdom and his call to peacemaking, noting, among other things, how pacifism is not passive-ism. As...
Continuing our conversation on the role of faith in our political discourse and political engagement, in the present episode Dr. John Anthony Dunne and Brandon Hurlbert talk with Michael Spalione about his doctoral research on the topic of war within political theology. Having just recently passed his viva in pursuit of a PhD in political theology from Trinity College, Bristol through the University of Aberdeen, Michael helps us think about the topic of war from...
I have hesitated to write this post for some time now. Military service holds a special place of honor in American society. Veterans are our heroes, and everyone who joins the military gives up their life. Some sacrifice their lives unto death, while the rest forsake their homes, their families, their friends, and a “normal” life within society. I would expect that almost everyone joins for noble reasons—for the protection of the weak and innocent...
This is a story about the stories we tell ourselves every time we turn on the television, and every time we leave our homes. They’re the stories we tell whenever we see someone and assume we know who they are, what they’re about, before we’ve met them, before we’ve heard the actual stories that make them who they are. The Zimmerman trial ended a week ago, and there’s been a strong reaction to the verdict. I haven’t...
As part of National Women’s History Month, I wanted to comment on an interesting video I recently watched on YouTube. It’s about the ‘Damsel in Distress’ trope. Although it’s central focus is the prevailing use of this trope in video games since the early 80’s, the perspective is actually quite a bit broader, drawing upon the origin of the trope in Greek mythology, as well as cinematic classics like the original King Kong and cartoons...
A month ago I went to the Museum of Tolerance. If you haven’t been, you should go. It’s fascinating but sobering. As great as I thought it was, I found it strange that the only mention of abortion in the entire museum is concerning George Tiller. For those of you who don’t remember, George Tiller directed a clinic in Wichita that performed abortions past the 21st week of pregnancy. In 2009, he was murdered while...
Before my title causes you to misunderstand my position, I want to say a few things. I like guns. I really do. It is part of the reason that I have a concealed weapons permit. More then that, I believe in self-defense. If someone enters my home to harm either myself or my soon to be wife, I will dispense the appropriate deadly force. Yet my belief in the use of force in one area...
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