The Reformer’s Resistance: John Calvin
As we celebrate Reformation Day…
I hate your Halloween decorations
I’m sharing this a little late for this year, but I wonder if next year some letters to local papers could have an impact.
Is Alice Cooper a Christian?
The shock-rocker has written a biography in which he professes to be, and Tim Challies offers his review.
Should Christians watch horror films?
The short answer is obvious – murder and darkness isn’t something to revel in.
But what if we first talk about horror films using a goodly smothering of Christian terminology? Couldn’t we say they highlight the “depravity of Man”? And don’t they explore the evilness of evil? And oftentimes there’s a portrayal of some sort of supernatural elements, which run right up against our world’s prevailing naturalist ideology. That’s a reason why generally conservative commentator Matt Walsh says horror flicks are “the most Christian genre of film.”
But really? In theory, maybe we could imagine a horror flick that could be worth watching, and 2023’s Nefarious is probably the closest I’ve ever seen. Dr. James Martin is a secular psychologist who has to sign off on the sanity of a death-row convict so the State can send the killer to the electric chair. But is the killer sane? He claims to be demon-possessed, which of course, runs right up against Martin’s disbelief in all things supernatural. But as the two continue talking, Martin finds his naturalism wavering as this killer brings the dark supernatural forces out of hiding. This is a scary story, but not because of any blood splattering gore, but because the warning it issues is based in reality – the devil is real. Still, the truth the film offers up is only a half truth, because it skips entirely over the God who has already defeated this devil.
So, maybe a horror film could be Christian, but I haven’t seen one yet. And if we’re going to pretend that Friday the 13th, Part 76 is redeemable, that’s only because we’re trying to justify, rather than sanctify our viewing habits.
A pro-life hero…
In September the hereditary prince of Liechtenstein has used his royal veto to stop a law that would have legalized the murder of unborn babies in his country.
Victory through badgering?
The point of Jesus’ parable of the persistent widow and the unjust judge (Luke 18:1-8) is that if even a judge who hates God and man will listen to a poor powerless widow simply because she is persistent, how much more so our loving Heavenly Father. That’s the point, but the stratagem is worth noting too. How did this widow get the judge to side with her? By badgering him until he got sick of her.
As the video below illustrates, this stratagem can be employed successfully even by the guilty. So how much more effective could it be used, when the cause is just? A key to the video example is that the “judge” didn’t care all that much. So this would be more relevant for issues where Christians are up against powers that might be petty, but aren’t that invested, like the zoning for the building of a new church building. Endless letters and calls could prove effective in a way that a single appeal – no matter how well written or argued – just wouldn’t be.