Today I present the first of three interviews with Energion authors about how mainline congregations can be transformed and can renew their ministries. As I read the responses, however, I sensed that these answers don’t just apply to mainline congregations—any congregation can benefit from some of these practices. While I presented the questions for this…
Elgin is correct: the discussion usually revolves around the policing of either the item or the person. Yes, he is correct, partially, in pointing out the problems of enforcing any type of gun control. While his evidence is somewhat anecdotal, most evidences are in this regard. For instance, I know many, including myself, who use…
As I read Joel Watts’ answer, I first found a lot that I agreed with, but soon the differences emerged. I agree that there is a significant social component to this issue. What we do as individuals often impacts others. But while I agree in broad concept, we will probably disagree over the details and…
Following our great Energion political debate last year, two participants were interested in a longer, slower, debate with more time for responses and serious discussion. Thus began our year-long political debate. In this debate, two Energion authors, Elgin Hushbeck, Jr. (Preserving Democracy, Evidence for the Bible, and Christianity and Secularism) and Joel Watts (From Fear…
Background Someone once told me that if you wanted to find a bad law, just look for one that was named for a particular crime victim. The more a law was tailored to a specific event, the less effective it would be in dealing with the problem at hand, and the worse side effects it…
Link to the Question Following each mass killing, as the shock, outrage, and grief fade, and sometimes even before this, the question inevitably becomes what should we do? Is there any way that we could stop these from occurring? As with so much in our society, there are vast differences in how people begin to…
Link to the Question What are the three most important actions that should be taken in this country to deal with violent crime in public places? The issue of violent crime is a social issue, so it must be handled in a communal fashion. One of the largest factors in promoting inaction in response to…
I’ve been asking questions that I thought would concern others. This week I’m answering a question that’s on my mind, and which I don’t think the candidates at any level have addressed enough. How can we go about improving the quality of education in this country? This question may not relate to the presidential candidates…
An informed electorate is important in sustaining a democracy. We’ve just completed a presidential and vice-presidential debate, and will see two more presidential debates. I’ve just read some factchecking from the vice-presidential debate which suggested that accuracy was a bit scarce. What specific recommendations would you make to individual voters as to how they can…
One of the ways in which a president shapes the future of the country is through appointments to the judiciary, and especially the Supreme Court. How do you see each candidate shaping the future of the court, and why is this important? (If you are supporting a particular candidate, focus on that one.)