Do we still need institutions?
Yes, says Yuval Levin. But only if they serve a formative function.
Books
Vincent van Gogh, Still Life With French Novels and Rose, oil on canvas, 1887.
Why the death penalty came back
And why it might be abolished
Donna Haskins defeats the devil
Onaje X. O. Woodbine’s book about a Black woman’s life is a model of ethnographic work that centers the voice of its subject.
Lies about the Old Testament
Brent Strawn aims to debunk mistruths that come from biblical illiteracy and anti-Semitism.
How fighting for human rights can lead to idolatry
Rights are good, argues theological ethicist Nigel Biggar, but they are not the only good things.
Who was Henrietta Mears?
A new biography of the woman who shaped the men who shaped modern evangelicalism
A body in pain navigates the world
Poet Molly McCully Brown’s memoir of life with cerebral palsy
Can H. L. Hix improve on Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John?
An odd, charming gospel account that draws from dozens of sources
The real Eugene Peterson
Many of my LGBTQ friends and clergy sisters have disavowed Peterson’s writings. Not I.
A Black scholar’s challenge to White evangelicals
Anthea Butler is clear about the disastrous legacy of racism at the heart of White evangelicalism.
Is privilege real or imagined?
Sociologist Matthew Clair explores race and class at work in the criminal court system.
Henry Louis Gates celebrates the Black church through history and stories
The companion book to the PBS series is accessible, comprehensive, and joyful.
What does the Mississippi Delta sound like in verse?
Philip Kolin’s poetry is about juke joints, bluesmen, mosquitoes, ladybugs, race, faith, and more.
Does faith promote human flourishing?
Yes and no, says the data.
How the dream of a Judeo-Christian America shaped the culture wars
Healan Gaston excavates a label that has both divided and united us.
