In fairness, Sola Fide is precisely “Justification by faith alone.” We have to be careful as both advocates and opponents of Protestant theology can misstate what the Solas mean. It doesn’t help me or others to help them misstate their own position.
If he had only waited a few years (and, I guess, not died) he could have blamed it on AI. There has been a whole lot of news in the last week. So there was not the coverage there otherwise might have been about the discovery of proof that the late Pope Francis was lying through his teeth when he announced four years ago next week that the world’s bishops hated the Latin Mass.
The other day, I was talking with a friend between jobs who was thinking about how to prepare for the next step. It took me back to a time I had to take the GRE — and that painful reminder of the need for preparation.
When Pope Francis passed away, some people asked me for an evaluation of his pontificate. A few days have passed since. Our Catholic friends finished their mourning period, and the conclave starts tomorrow, so now I think it’s the right time to share my thoughts.
This week, a Christian friend shared a new claim about an alleged health cure based on an event that never happened. Another shared what the briefest of searches would have revealed was a falsehood about a political foe. The short-term “win” is often a long way from the truth.
There are things we can know about 2025 within a minuscule margin of error, and it’s worthwhile to know at least some of them ahead of time, for planning purposes. Many of them are things humans cannot change. Others are things that humans could change but probably won’t, for good or bad reasons.
Who would have thought a National Review alum who has been a long-time Evangelical voice on politics, known for arguing for civility, would be a controversial choice to appear on a panel about politics in a conservative, Evangelical denomination? A few years ago, that’d have seemed absurd. Oh, for a few years ago.
We’ve gotten bad (worse?) about cleaning up our own messes. Sure the other side is a mess, but it’s time to care more about doing what’s right than playing for loyalty or ephemeral victories.
Christmas Day was this week and, I hope, at least some of our OFB readers are continuing the celebration with the Twelve Days of Christmas. As we do and as a New Year beckons, what do we carry from this holiday time into life?