: I went on The Cartographers podcast to talk spooky Christianity with Ashley and Bryce Hales.
: Read Myles Werntz on the new Bonhoeffer movie. It’s a sober, thoughtful assessment—including …
: Rowan Williams reviews Jordan Peterson’s new book on the Torah. My only quibble is his …
: Read Adam Nayman on Ridley Scott and the original Gladiator.
: Read B. D. McClay on Houellebecq on Lovecraft.
: I’m in CT today with a review of Jordan Peterson’s new book on the Torah, We Who Wrestle …
: Nathan Hatch, The Democratization of American Christianity (1989), p. 163:
: Alan Jacobs published this piece on Didion, stories, and politics on the eve of Election Day. It has …
: Read Douthat on the uncertain new era we find ourselves facing.
: Earlier this year a friend wondered aloud in a text thread whether Judith Butler is the most …
: Jeff Bilbro in Comment: Although many corporations promise that AI will make society more …
: Adam Roberts is nonpareil. He is the GOAT. He is a one of one. Read him today on “Robots, …
: Read Sebastian Milbank on Roger Scruton.
: Read Jeff Reimer on Charles Taylor on the Romantics.
: From Prufrock’s Saturday Links: Martin Scorsese told AP that he wanted to adapt Marilynne …
: Very generous and thoughtful review by James R. Wood of my little book on the church. An interesting …
: Up this morning in Christianity Today: My review of Martin Scorsese’s new docuseries The …
: Two quotes: one from David Graeber, on making the world what it is, and one from Wendell Berry, on …
: In the print edition of Christianity Today I wrote about the doctrine of providence: what it is and …
: I went on The Sacramentalists podcast to talk about Letters to a Future Saint with Fr. Wesley …
: I went on The Raised Hand audio edition to talk about my essay for them two weeks ago arguing for …
: Matthew Burdette: “I have become convinced that one of the primary challenges for Christians …
: On the blog I gathered some stats, resources, and excerpts on rates of ancient illiteracy.
: On a meta-level, our crisis of communicative action can be explained by the fact that the other is …
: I’ve always loved election night. I’d go so far as to say it’s my favorite TV …
: Adam Nayman is one of the best. Here he is on James Cameron’s The Terminator at forty.
: I wrote about threats facing the church today.
: I went on Crackers and Grape Juice to talk about the church with Jason Micheli.
: This morning I’m in The Raised Hand Substack with a little essay called “The Knowledge of God,” …
: For the blog sometime this week: The discrepancy between what contemporary philosophers think would …
: I’ve been remiss with my links… –I’m in CT today with a vision for screen-free …
: Yes, but what can I do while looking at my phone and not looking at the TV?
: Yes, please. Bring hymnals back. Dovetails with my essay for CT on screen-free church, set for …
: This new piece, about the NFL’s concussion crisis, would have benefited from this 12-year old …
: The New Atlantis asked a bunch of writers: “What should we build?" In addition to the …
: Read Fred Sanders in an already-cut exegetical aside from his forthcoming commentary on Ephesians. I …
: An excellent round-up of commentary and writing (good and bad) on AI by Audrey Watters.
: Paul Bloom on bias, skepticism, and academic journals.
: I’m sure I’ll be assigning this to my (mostly Baptist or ex-Baptist non-denom and …
: I can’t speak to whether this is a good reading of Luther. What I can say is that it’s …
: Abilenians! Come join us next week!
: Two new reviews of my two new books, both paradigms of generosity from writers who clearly disagree …
: Audrey Watters is back! Writing on ed tech, and a book on AI and ed tech: “I’ll be damned if …
: American football! But Canadian! In Toronto! This Texan couldn’t believe his eyes.
: Some mixed architecture on the campus of the University of Toronto.
: Speaking directly to fans grieving the recent passing of a pop star, a Toronto radio host says the …
: For more on the glory of God, see butterfly.nwf.org/.
: I wrote about what idols promise.
: Ten thoughts about Liu Cixin’s rightly celebrated novel The Three-Body Problem.
: Thanks to Ross Douthat for the shout-out in his latest newsletter to my essay on Tad Williams, the …
: Read Sonny Bunch on Joker: Folie à Deux.
: In two weeks I’ll be in Toronto for the Wycliffe Centre for Scripture and Theology’s …
: This is pretty dang cool, in more ways than one.
: Read Terry Eagleton on Fredric Jameson.
: Also yesterday: Will Bryant reviewed the book for the ever-delightful Fare Forward. It just appeared …
: In yesterday’s weekly books roundup, Christianity Today’s books editor Matt Reynolds …
: What a lovely conversation about Scotus with Tom Ward on The Sacramentalists podcast. Recommended!
: Thanks to Abby Perry and the folks at Common Good for this interview about Letters to a Future …
: Thanks to Alex Sosler for this kind review of Letters to a Future Saint in Front Porch Republic. …
: IT’S PUBLICATION DAY! Order Letters to a Future Saint today! Available now! Wherever you buy …
: Like Guy Pearce in Memento, I look down at my arm. I see all kinds of tiny messages scrawled across …
: Kat to NYC: a rare win-win for both sides, imo. Minny needed to get off his contract, to remove the …
: Inside the immanent frame, there is a sneaky temptation for the pastor. She is often tempted, and …
: The Bible is not a human record from the distant past, full of a mixture of inspiring and …
: The deBoer-Klosterman theory of sports: they’re meant to be entertaining, and it’s not …
: Wendy Kiyomi writes in CT today: “School Screens Are Worst for the Least of These." …
: In the latest issue of The Heythrop Journal, Oliver Wright reviews The Doctrine of Scripture. He did …
: The headline says it all (from last December): "‘The Witcher’ & ‘Wheel Of Time’ Producers …
: The Christian Century has just published an essay of mine from the next issue of the magazine. …
: I love this essay on homilies by Paul Griffiths so much. I may have to write something up about it …
: In the newest print issue of Christianity Today (not yet in folks' mailboxes, I believe), theologian …
: Copies arrived! Pub date 18 days away…
: In bringing out the predictive and controlling intentions of modern discourse about the future, I am …
: On the blog: More screens, more distractions; fewer screens, fewer distractions.
: The Visitation By Malcolm Guite Here is a meeting made of hidden joys, Of lightenings cloistered in …
: It’s enchantment time! 1. Alan first. 2. Me in reply. 3. Alan in reply. 4. Me in reply. 5. …
: My latest column for Christianity Today: “Worship Together or Bowl Alone."
: I wrote again about the Eucharist.
: “On Cavafy’s Side” by Joseph Brodsky in The New York Review of Books, published in 1977.
: On the blog: defining and defending interest in enchantment over against disenchantment.
: …and before you know it you find yourself on the slippery slope to “SpongeBob”… —Albert Borgmann, …
: Some fair criticisms in this review of Marilynne Robinson’s book on Genesis, but overall it …
: Read TNA Editor Ari Schulman in the NYT on what comes after IVF.
: Some professional news: a grant, a magazine, a sabbatical.
: Read Leah Libresco Sargeant on AI, art, and love.
: Was reading Borgmann as well as Scialabba lately on Rawls and the Original Position, and realized …
: Co-sign: Yascha Mounk’s “Abolish Grades," both the analysis and the proposal. …
: This piece by Matthew Walther is sobering and on the money. His view of prose, scholarship, and …
: Here’s a picture of Albert Borgmann with Eugene Peterson at Laity Lodge in 2010. They were …
: Just found this hour-long interview with Albert Borgmann from nine years ago. Turns he was was …
: Further details about the latest issue of Restoration Quarterly: my essay in it about the future of …
: Eerdmans just put up a 10-minute promotional video interviewing me about my new book, Letters to a …
: I’ve got an essay in The Hedgehog Review this morning called “The Gift of Reality.” It’s an overview …
: This column by Jen Hemphill on blue collar work, raising sons, higher ed, and the church is …
: Welp I only just discovered at this very moment that, for some weeks at least, many fine folks have …
: Notes for the blog: the different dynamics of boys playing video games in their teens versus their …
: I cannot put into words what posts like this one make me feel. I hate it with a perfect hatred.
: On the blog: a reflection on “writing without a platform."
: I had never before read Fr. Paul Mankowski’s 1993 double review of A. N. Wilson and Gore …
: A new post on the blog with links to recent podcasts I’ve joined and three new reviews of one …
: Yesterday was the feast day of Saint Monica; today is that of her son, Saint Augustine. Here are …
: A simple truth I may need to expound on the blog: fewer screens, fewer distractions. This is as true …
: To intend to offend and only to offend is childish, tribal, stupid, and/or cruel. In and of itself, …
: I wrote up a reflection in response to Jeff Reimer’s Comment essay “How Not to be a …
: The blog lies fallow at the moment. Why? Because since Friday I have submitted five total essays to …
: My latest: An essay on the role of reading fiction and poetry in the life of ministry.
: The truth is, men are more inclined to avoid the death of the flesh which they cannot avoid, than …
: The following excerpts are from an English translation of Umberto Eco’s back-page column, …
: Additions or alternates for my list of 150 writers/etc. to cover in my (still imaginary) book …
: ‘We pray intensely for the healing of the schism’: an interview with Ecumenical Patriarch Batholomew …
: Readers my age were made to memorize and recite: their yawns of boredom were discounted. Younger …
: I love Adam Roberts so much. Why he doesn’t elicit weekly critical engagements in every major …
: Ephesians 1:3-14, rendered in a single sentence by the KJV: Blessed be the God and Father of our …
: Read David P. Goldman on tariffs, manufacturing, and decoupling.
: Alan Jacobs writes about playing The Game.
: How I hate such foolishness as not believing in the Eucharist, etc. If the gospel is true, if Jesus …
: And seeing these in black and white … it still feels surreal. Not sure it ever won’t.
: And now this one’s here, too!
: Chris Green had me on his podcast to talk Scripture, politics, and church—but mostly it’s a …
: I expanded on my thoughts about Jedi as Catholic and wizards as Protestant.
: Freddie’s take on Hollywood and popular art is right, but I do wish he would substitute …
: Thesis: Magisterial Protestantism is only viable as a strong possible alternative to Rome and the …
: I can’t speak to the British context, but I don’t think this piece about elite taste and lowbrow …
: An interesting list: “The Most Powerful People in Podcasting in 2024.”
: Catholic Jedi, Protestant Wizards: notes toward a proper blog post on the medieval, Roman, throne …
: Reminder: It costs you nothing not to be on social media.
: Ryan Burge lays out the data on “liberalizing” religion in America, or rather its …
: Read Freddie on forgiveness, ideology, and therapeutic culture. I read this after having written a …
: Timothy Burke with a nice reflection on Deadpool, the MCU, the multiverse, and superhero fatigue.
: Sara Hendren on differentiated, and differentiating, physical and social spaces on campus.
: In which I dream up a sequel or complementary volume to Clive James’s Cultural Amnesia. The …
: Matt Zoller Seitz commemorates all three Guardians of the Galaxy films on the 10-year anniversary of …
: Check out my brother Mitch’s theological reflections on the mother of the mother of Jesus, …
: My latest column in Christianity Today is about sports, athletes, and faith in public.
: Nearly 15 years ago Robert Jenson wrote a retrospective on how his mind had changed over the years. …
: Read Bonnie Kristian on political realignment, women voters, and meme-misogyny.
: The great trouble in human life is that looking and eating are two different operations. —Simone …
: Clive James: Writers don’t read just for the story: they read for the way the story is …
: Odyssey 11.215–24: ὣς ἐφάμην, ἡ δ᾽ αὐτίκ᾽ ἀμείβετο πότνια μήτηρ: ‘ὤ μοι, τέκνον ἐμόν, περὶ πάντων …
: I wrote more about The Acolyte’s finale and first season as a whole: A mea culpa and apologia …
: All that man vainly desires here below is perfectly realized in God. We have all those impossible …
: Clive James: “Australia can afford to do without nationalism because it is a nation. To do without …
: In book 5 a weary Odysseus shelters “Beneath two bushy olives sprung from the same root, / one olive …
: P.S. The lightsaber duel in The Acolyte finale may be the most creative, distinctive, unique Jedi …
: I take it back. The Acolyte had something on its mind and it delivered. And it’s headed …
: The Odyssey, book 4, lines 893–946: A divinely sent body-phantom passes through the locked door of …
: This reflection, by Justin Smith-Ruiu, makes for a nice pairing with the Kingsnorth essay below.
: Paul Kingsnorth, “All the World is a Myth”: “Put the peace of the heart before …
: Read Eve Tushnet on Becca Rothfeld. Also read Garrett Brown on Carlos Eire.
: Certain critics shouldn’t be allowed to write a review after others do; their judgment is …
: Samuel is right: Inside Out 2 is good, actually, in a way that’s sort of shocking given the …
: Finally got around to reading The Verge’s long essay, with charts and images galore, about …
: I went on two podcasts recently: Holy C of E and London Lyceum. On both the subject was a catholic …
: Thanks to Daniel Silliman, I will now treasure this image in my heart for all time.
: Clive James, Cultural Amnesia (2007): Any effective writer of expository prose is an artist of a …
: Michael Weingrad, “Why There Is No Jewish Narnia,” Jewish Review of Books (2010): To …
: Alan Jacobs, “Fantasy and the Buffered Self,” The New Atlantis (2014): The rise of the …
: I don’t think he’s entirely right, but Sonny Bunch offers a powerful reading of …
: Geoff Mann on country, blues, race, and Hank Jr.
: This is a very wise post by Samuel James about the life, calling, and craft of writing—of being a …
: Matthew Walther in the NYT on (not) voting.
: Since his passing in 2013 I have always treasured this quote by Roger Ebert, which he said to Siskel …
: Check out Richard Beck’s ongoing series on what he calls the evangelical (or low-church …
: Fred Sanders on his recommended method of reading a given book of the Bible. Fred is a national …
: A reminder, though, that we’ll never get the Nick Cave sequel to Gladiator. Oh well.
: I don’t care how bad Napoleon was. Just take my money, Ridley. Take it.
: Philip Jenkins on W. H. Auden.
: I wrote about Clive James, twentieth century writers, and theology.
: I wrote about The Acolyte again, this time about what a missed opportunity it is and the problem at …
: I love reading Charlie Clark so much. Him writing about Wilco’s A Ghost is Born on its …
: Read Bonnie Kristian on the politics of American Evangelicals. The kicker: “They—we—are people …
: Read Alan (again) on “Yesterday’s Men” in Harper’s. An essay few could …
: Jonathan Haidt: “Social media is a fountain of bedevilments.” (Page 209 in The Anxious Generation.) …
: My Christianity Today column is up this morning: “Two Cheers for the Wedding Industrial …
: Cheryl Mendelson, per Alan Jacobs, writes the following in her new book on marriage: To write about …
: Every June in Abilene is the Friends of the Library book sale. Best weekend of the year. Here was …
: In defense of podcasts. Against an anti-podcast rant by some idiot a few years back.
: I enjoyed this Sonny Bunch mini-review of Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon. Snyder needs to nab his old …
: W. H. Auden: Art is compatible with polytheism and with Christianity, but not with philosophical …
: The 2024 Celtics may be the most outwardly, sincerely, and unabashedly religious NBA team since the …
: Me on Kendall Soulen on the New Testament on the Tetragrammaton.
: Twister (Jan de Bont, 1996) is a top-5 Spielbergian action spectacle in many respects—the pace, the …
: Marco Polo keeps warning me that it’s going to delete my videos, but that I can pay $$ to keep them …
: Brian Raftery on Thomas Harris, Hannibal Lecter, and ’90s blockbuster publishing.
: And after much rearranging, I now have four dedicated shelf rows for books about (and not about, but …
: In Christianity Today I celebrate faithful fathers, beginning with my own. Happy (early) …
: Clive James (again): catching up with Chesterton’s prose is the work of a lifetime. He wrote …
: Clive James: “Evelyn Arthur St John Waugh (1903-1966) was the supreme writer of English prose in the …
: Clive James: “It is always useful to be reminded that if an ideology contains a prejudice, the …
: Thank you, grant money. (Also Mike Sacasas for the recommendations.)
: Jonathan Tran asks what ‘Christian nationalism’ even means. Thanks to Jonathan for the nod; he knows …
: This patient and insightful piece by Miles Smith IV has me thinking about how useful it would be if …
: Mike Sacasas on labor, creativity, and thought: we must resist the temptation to imagine that the …
: Five months in advance, I got the galleys. The end of a 35-year, 10-book story. Back to Osten Ard, …
: David Clines, “New Directions in Pooh Studies: Überlieferungs- und Religionsgeschichtliche …
: Matt Zoller Seitz on Jason and the Argonauts: I don’t know what to say to somebody who would …
: Frederick Faber on the vice of frittering, per Fred Sanders' blog.
: Read Steffen Lösel on the passing of Jürgen Moltmann.
: Sarah Ruden on Daisy Dunn on women in the ancient world.
: Read Joshua Katz in HHR on living with aphantasia.
: Twelve thoughts on the new Star Wars show, The Acolyte.
: But what if Jaylen Brown really is Boston’s best player? That is, the most valuable on both sides of …
: Timothy Burke on what motivates Star Wars villains—and why the answer makes the eternal conflict …
: Predictions for Game 2: •Luka goes for 40; •Kyrie goes for 22+; •They combine for 18+ assists; …
: I went on the podcast Memorize What Matters to talk past, present, and future of biblical literacy. …
: “I’m cheering for the Mavs because their thingy is a horse and I like horses.” …
: Super 8: Stranger Things before Stranger Things; Better than Stranger Things; As 2000s Spielberg …
: Trevin Wax on three waves in American Evangelicalism—with a fourth on the way.
: In this Finals, nothing would surprise me except a sweep. Either team winning in 5, 6, or 7 is easy …
: One of the best things about Bill Simmons talking hoops with his friends (as here, with House and …
: I wrote this in April 2020. I think I was basically right, especially given the qualifications I lay …
: “The Web is a technology of forgetfulness.”
: Nathan Beacom on monastic manhood.
: Latest blog post: on second naivete in Scripture and historical-critical biblical scholarship.
: Alan Jacobs on the opening chapters of Genesis.
: AI isnt replacing online writing; AI is its natural culmination, the next logical step in a …
: Some people do presidents; others do popes. I do NBA Finals matchups. Went backwards from memory. …
: Heading into Game 2, Seerat Sohi is right about Ant versus Luka. We’re about to see how well, and …
: The best books about technology. (Hint: They’re not about technology.)
: Nine years ago I created an account with Academia.edu. In the interim I’ve done little with …
: Take and listen: An interview between Russell Moore and Ryan Burge.
: This interview, between Damon Linker and Alexandre Lefebvre, is refreshingly honest, very …
: A welcome take from Mia Staub on therapy speak creeping into Christian and other ordinary …
: Texas Monthly profiled my FIL and his crew of Volkswagen lovers on a road trip. Pretty neat.
: Most likeable guys from an extremely likeable set of rosters in the NBA final four: Ant Haliburton …
: Kingsnorth: “I’ll take something pure and clumsy any day of the week over whatever is winning …
: A thoughtful piece on liberal Catholicism by Paul Baumann. In response to, and best read as …
: This stuff is sordid. What’s weird is seeing it encroach on the humanities. I get the same regular …
: My friend Chris Krycho wrote a quick, thoughtful follow-up to my blog post explaining my decision to …
: My latest column for Christianity Today: The Loosening of American Evangelicalism.
: Couldn’t be happier for Minnesota. I’ll be cheering for them through the Finals. What we got from …
: So long as Indiana loses tonight, we are in the win-win phase of the NBA playoffs: Knicks vs …
: I found this David Pozen post about the “presidentialization” of the contemporary …
: Got this from my editor at Lexham. The book isn’t out until October, but someone, somewhere, holds a …
: Walker Percy on artists and writers:
: Why microblog? I have long described my blog as “mezzo” blogging. But I miss the micro! …
: Some ground rules for myself: I’m not following anyone. I’m not allowing or reading …
: After years of following Alan Jacobs' adventures in micro-blogging, I’m going to give this a …