by John Ellis In 1954, the CIA initiated and supported a coup to remove Jacobo Arbenz from the office of President of Guatemala, an office to which he had been democratically elected in 1951. President Arbenz’s crime? He was in the process of nationalizing large tracts of rich farmland. Here’s the backstory: Going all the … Continue reading The Republican Party Is Neither Pro-Life Nor Pro-Family
Category: Current Events
Florida: “There’s No Such Thing as Structural Racism!” Also Florida: Codifies Structural Racism
by John Ellis One of the sleights-of-hand utilized by the anti-CRT crowd involves crowing that racism is no longer codified in America. They point to the Civil Rights Acts and SCOTUS decisions of the mid-twentieth century (even while attempting to reverse those Acts and decisions) and huff, “See, racism is now illegal in this country. … Continue reading Florida: “There’s No Such Thing as Structural Racism!” Also Florida: Codifies Structural Racism
John Fea Takes on Jack Hibbs Claim that George Washington Would be Included in the Bible if It Were Written Today
by John Ellis John Fea is an evangelical historian who is professor of history and chair of the history department at Messiah University in Pennsylvania. As an evangelical scholar, he takes flak from both his right and his left. I don't agree with everything he says (which is true of every historian I read) but … Continue reading John Fea Takes on Jack Hibbs Claim that George Washington Would be Included in the Bible if It Were Written Today
‘Sound of Freedom’: Smuggling QAnon Conspiracies into Our Churches
by John Ellis What do you get when you cross a QAnon promoting, MAGA actor with a glory hound who uses a very real and devastating issue as a tool for self-promotion? You get Sound of Freedom, the movie currently capturing the hearts of minds of white evangelicals near you. With a production budget just … Continue reading ‘Sound of Freedom’: Smuggling QAnon Conspiracies into Our Churches
Did the Train Switch Problem Go to Sea? Rich Adventure Tourists Versus Poor, Oppressed Migrants
by John Ellis The train switch problem (or Trolley Problem) is a well-known ethics thought experiment created by the philosopher Philippa Foot. The problem operates as an exploration of the Doctrine of Double Effect and was formulated as part of the abortion debate of the late 1960s. Since then, it’s been largely reduced to a … Continue reading Did the Train Switch Problem Go to Sea? Rich Adventure Tourists Versus Poor, Oppressed Migrants
The Inconvenient History of the USA: The Chagos Islands
by John Ellis Introduction In his landmark book Silencing the Past, Haitian-American historian Michel-Rolph Trouillot writes, “past – or more accurately, pastness – is a position.”[1] In other words, there’s no such thing as a view from nowhere, including history; uninterpreted, neutral facts do not exist. This is true, in large part, according to Trouillot, … Continue reading The Inconvenient History of the USA: The Chagos Islands
A Grad Student Recently Uncovered the Largest Slave Auction in the US Known to Date
by John Ellis I'm not going to attempt to add any thoughts to the article linked below. Please read it. Here's an important quote from the article's conclusion: "But for the 600 people sold and their descendants? Only a stark reminder of how America’s entrenched racial wealth gap was born, Davila said, with repercussions still … Continue reading A Grad Student Recently Uncovered the Largest Slave Auction in the US Known to Date
‘Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets’ Exposes the Darkness of Christian Fundamentalism (and Provides a Warning to All White Evangelicals)
by John Ellis (As a head’s up: The footnotes in this article are important. You don’t want to skip them.) When 17 Kids and Counting – eventually 18 Kids and then 19 Kids and Counting – first began airing on TLC in 2008, it quickly became a hit in white evangelical circles. It was embraced … Continue reading ‘Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets’ Exposes the Darkness of Christian Fundamentalism (and Provides a Warning to All White Evangelicals)
Critical Race Theory and Christianity Are Not at Odds
by John Ellis As I’ve continued to study Critical Race Theory (CRT), my appreciation and respect for the complex system of theories has deepened. As a Christian who believes in the Fall and the subsequent Curse, I understand that relationships between humans are now a gross perversion of God’s original design. Sin is malignant, and … Continue reading Critical Race Theory and Christianity Are Not at Odds
Ron DeSantis: Christian Nationalism’s Desired Prince for Their Faux New Jerusalem?
by John Ellis Are you familiar with The Turner Diaries by William Luther Pierce? For those old enough to remember the Oklahoma City bombing, muted memory bells may be sounding in your head. The book was published in 1978 and quickly became the bible for the growing white nationalist movement, including serving as inspiration (and … Continue reading Ron DeSantis: Christian Nationalism’s Desired Prince for Their Faux New Jerusalem?
Practically Known Theology 