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When I learned that Alain de Botton had written a book with the title Religion for Atheists: A Non-believer's Guide to the Uses of Religion, I thought: "Why, of course he has." I was introduced to de Botton through The Architecture of Happiness‘a book that really is about how architecture can make us happy. Since […]
Comparing different religions is always a tricky business. Even an English word such as “God” cannot be understood as common to both Christianity and Islam. For example, although both affirm that God is transcendent, all powerful, and even merciful, the history and doctrines of their respective texts reveal rather different meanings for each of these […]
The theme indicated by the cover of this issue, Christianity and Islam’or the cross and the crescent, or Jesus and Mohammed’is in actual fact a present-day reflection on the Reformation sola: "Christ alone." With this historic teaching, Christians profess salvation in Christ alone, the sole mediator of grace, our Prophet, Priest, and King. As Peter […]
Adam Francisco (DPhil in Islamic and Christian Relations, Oxford University) is professor of history at Concordia University in Irvine, California. He's a frequent contributor to Modern Reformation magazine and editor of Theologia et Apologia: Essays in Reformation Theology and Its Defense (Wipf & Stock, 2007). How did you become interested in Islam? A. My first […]
Sunni Muslims, who are traditionalists of some sort, usually cite both the Koran and sunna as their sources of authority. The Koran is their scriptural text and sunna a term meaning “tradition.” The latter refers to the tradition established by Mohammed and the early generations of Muslims. Tradition is anything that’s recorded about what Mohammed […]
At the time of the Babylonian exile, the people of Israel asked, "How shall we sing the Lord's song in a foreign land?" (Ps. 137:4). This question is still relevant for the church today, because we too are "sojourners and exiles" on the earth (1 Pet. 2:11). God clearly wants his pilgrim people to be […]
Most of the worship music we refer to as “contemporary” has been influenced by rock ‘n’ roll. As a form of art, the meaning of this style of music involves a whole set of assumptions and ideals, something Ken Myers has described as the “rock myth.” Myers explains, “The essence of that myth was that […]
Like a diet promoter who gains fame by promising better results with fewer restrictions, Christian Smith has produced a stir in the evangelical publishing world by offering an understanding of scriptural authority that is supposedly both easier to maintain and more orthodox. In his book, The Bible Made Impossible: Why Biblicism Is Not a Truly […]
Sealed inside an air-conditioned bubble, far from the eavesdropping ears of society at large, Bangkok's taxi drivers will give you their uninhibited opinion on just about anything. Politics. Religion. Education. The monarchy. Their hometown. How to manage multiple wives in different cities. Of course, not all of them are chatty, and I have many times […]
"Who is my neighbor?" the rich young ruler asked Jesus. The query was an attempt to deflect responsibility. Of course, I have a responsibility for my family, kinsmen, and fellow Jews, but surely not for the outcasts, the morally unclean, or the Gentile. No loophole, Jesus replied. Your neighbor is the one right under your […]
