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Faith and Healthy Democracy: A Research Report on Civility in the Public Square: A Brief Critical Review

Recently, The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention (ERLC, SBC) released a 72 page written report of a research project commissioned and supported by The Fetzer Institute, a non-Christian religious organization devoted to "helping build the spiritual foundation for a loving world." Entitled "Faith and Healthy Democracy" (FHD), the report has been widely distributed online through social media and the ERLC website. According to the author(s), the report results from a compilation of an evangelical survey poll commissioned by LifeWay Research, dozens of interviews with evangelical... Read more →

Justin Taylor on Critiquing Someone’s Theology by Peter Lumpkins

Critique—done well—is a gift to the one being criticized. We should welcome the opportunity to have our thinking corrected and clarified. We see through a glass dimly, and God has gifted the church with teachers who often see things more clearly than we do at present. In God’s providence and through the gift of common grace he may also use unbelievers to critique our views, showing our logical mistakes or lack of clarity. via thegospelcoalition.org Justin Taylor has a helpful, succinct guide to remember when offering up critiques. Three basic... Read more →

Real Apologetics: Dump Debate Sites, Endorse Recognized Scholarship by Peter Lumpkins

Over the last year, the intellectual inadequacy of debate-site apologetics has been explicitly revealed. Inevitably, the "apologetics" offered at these sites end up tearing down people rather than examining truth propositions. Those who've followed SBC Tomorrow are well aware of sites like Alpha & Omega Ministries, the "debate-site" of extreme Calvinist,* James White, who routinely aims his intellectual six-guns at critics themselves rather than the critics' arguments. Someone recently said to me>>> James White is a fairly good debater in formal settings. However, he spends the rest of his time... Read more →

Lifeway Wants to Know--"What Politico-Cultural Icons are Christians?" by Peter Lumpkins

Suppose I asked, “Which, if any, of the following people do you believe are Christians?” and listed five people: Barack Obama Glenn Beck Sarah Palin Oprah Winfrey George W. Bush Do you think a poll like this offers substantial information which assists us with the Great Commission? Or, could the negativity toward the inquirers (Lifeway affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention) outweigh any potential assistance the feedback could offer? Well Lifeway Research answered "yes" to the first question and "no" to the second. Not with an added benefit of a... Read more →