Recent Viewpoints

Kerby Anderson Each year, we take time from our busy lives to celebrate a day of Thanksgiving. Though many holidays have become secular celebrations, this holiday still retains much of its historic religious overtones. A day of Thanksgiving was set aside by the Pilgrims who founded Plymouth Colony. Life was hard in the New World.  Half of the Pilgrims died in the first terrible winter. After the first harvest was completed, Governor William Bradford proclaimed a day of Thanksgiving and…

Kerby Anderson Thanksgiving is tomorrow, and I suspect that you are doing lots of things to get ready for this special day. Let me suggest you add one more item to your to do list. Visit our website and download a copy of my Thanksgiving Quiz. Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to gather as a family, but I also believe it can be a great time to teach our children and grandchildren about America’s godly heritage. I created this short…

Kerby Anderson Has Christianity made a positive impact on Western civilization? That was a question I posed a few months ago in a commentary, and in it I provided a short list of atheists who would agree with that statement. Now, there are more atheists coming to that conclusion. Jonathon Van Maren writes about a number of atheists who he calls “King Agrippa Christians.” After the Apostle Paul gave his testimony and the gospel, the king said he was nearly…

Kerby Anderson Harvard professor Steven Pinker had a simple explanation for why Republicans wanted to reopen the economy. Evangelicals were exerting an influence because they believe in an afterlife, which he said is a “malignant delusion.” It was a bizarre tweet, even for an atheist. Although many have answered his comment, I thought we might revisit it because you are likely to run into similar arguments. Pinker argued that belief in an afterlife “devalues actual lives and discourages action that…

Penna Dexter For months now, politicians have been negotiating over trillions of dollars in new spending. Inflation is surging partially due to the “stimulus” dollars already injected into the economy for pandemic “relief.” Adding trillions more will exacerbate inflation. This spending has another devastating consequence in that it provides poor families with a disincentive to work. The Heritage Foundation’s news outlet, The Daily Signal, points out that “President Biden’s Build Back Better” plan increases means-tested welfare spending by $756 billion over…

Kerby Anderson In a recent column, Dennis Prager argues that we are seeing a dress rehearsal for a police state. Although I think he makes a convincing case, I am intrigued by people’s response to it. Some people see it, while others do not. It is like watching people look at an optical illusion. Some people see it; others do not. Prager argues that our country is closer to a police state than ever before. And he hastens to add…

Kerby Anderson Although America is certainly a divided nation, the divisions between the various tribes are not as great as you might be led to believe. Yes, the social and political debates are loud and intense, but the fringe, rather than the mainstream, gets most of the attention. A study done by the group “More in Common” discovered “The Hidden Tribes of America.” The researchers discovered that a small group (8%) in the liberal wing and a smaller group (6%)…

Kerby Anderson A recent research paper concluded that first responders are more likely to die by suicide than in the line of duty. The Ruderman White Paper on Mental Health and Suicide of First Responders is a chilling look at the sobering statistics of the lives of men and women who protect us each day. The paper explains that, “Police and firefighters, when compared to the general civilian population, are at heightened risk for depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and suicide.”…

Kerby Anderson Most Christians understand that the problems facing America are not going to be solved in Washington. But it is noteworthy when a sitting U.S. Senator says that “Politics Can’t Solve Our Political Problems.” That was the title of a commentary by Senator Ben Sasse. He believes that the tribalism in our nation has a deeper source and is tied to loneliness in America. We are relational beings and want to be in tribes. He observes that, “the traditional…

Kerby Anderson A study by the Manhattan Institute explains why it is so hard for middle-class families to make ends meet. The author, Oren Cass, distilled his research down in a Twitter post. “In 1985, the typical male worker could cover a family of four’s major expenditures (housing, health care, transportation, education) on 30 weeks salary. By 2018 it took 53 weeks. Which is a problem, there being only 52 weeks in a year.” Christopher Ingraham wrote about this in…

Penna Dexter Many churches did a wonderful job providing digital services during the Covid-19 lockdowns. The trouble is, now some are finding it difficult to wean significant proportions of their congregations off of the convenience of online church.  It’s a worldwide problem. A Wall Street Journal op-ed by Paul Glader, a Kings College professor who is also Executive Director of Religion Unplugged, and John Semakula, a reporter at the Ugandan daily newspaper New Vision, is entitled “Are Internet Services as…