by John Ellis My daily social distancing-approved walk takes me past the sprawling athletic complex that houses the baseball fields where my son’s Babe Ruth league plays. Played. Most days my eyes sweep the empty fields as I wonder when my son will again join with his teammates on those fields. Yesterday, though, my gaze … Continue reading The Joy and Blessings of Churches Worshiping Corporately Online
Category: Current Events
Is Social Distancing a Christ-Like Response to Covid-19?
by John Ellis For the first three decades of my life, my native Floridian father scoffed at tourists, Yankee transplants, and anyone else who took preemptive measures beyond simply boarding up their windows whenever hurricanes would threaten the Panhandle. While in high school, I laughed along with my dad as he mocked the Pensacola Christian … Continue reading Is Social Distancing a Christ-Like Response to Covid-19?
‘Dixie Highway’ and the Lingering Disgrace of Confederate Monuments
by John Ellis In a recent expose, The New York Times calls into question the validity of allowing stretches of roads in Florida to retain the name “Dixie Highway.” The highway system was originally envisioned in the early 20th century as an ambitious project to connect Chicago with Miami. As more states became involved, the … Continue reading ‘Dixie Highway’ and the Lingering Disgrace of Confederate Monuments
The Gospel’s Relation to Social Justice and Mercy Ministries
by John Ellis I wrote and posted this article on my previous blog a few months ago (October 2019). It’s a topic that continues to concern me. And it’s a topic that exists within a larger cultural framework that prioritizes this earthly kingdom’s concerns over that of the Eternal Kingdom’s concerns. During a long phone … Continue reading The Gospel’s Relation to Social Justice and Mercy Ministries
President Trump: ‘We Have God on Our Side’
by John Ellis Our President who has famously boasted that he doesn’t have any need to repent is now crowing that, “we have God on our side.” Presuming to speak for God, President Trump made his assertion to a crowd of his adoring worshipers at the inaugural “Evangelicals for Trump” event held at a megachurch … Continue reading President Trump: ‘We Have God on Our Side’
Truth Matters: The Margaret Sanger Myth
by John Ellis In an article published by The Atlantic, Jonathan Haidt argues that social media has circumvented the societal and political checks our founding fathers folded into the warp and woof of this country to guard against the worst excesses of democracy. Best known as the co-author of The Coddling of the American Mind, … Continue reading Truth Matters: The Margaret Sanger Myth
What Pronouns Should Christians Use When Speaking to a Transgender Person?
by John Ellis In a recent episode of his “Ask Me Anything” podcast, pastor and current SBC president J.D. Greear provided extra fuel to the conservative evangelical discernment blogosphere’s rage by admitting that he would likely use the preferred pronoun of any transgender person that visited his church. Never minding that Greear clearly and unequivocally … Continue reading What Pronouns Should Christians Use When Speaking to a Transgender Person?
