I think I'll just point the way this morning to the two most recent posts by a blogger I've followed for years --- not daily, but often: Richard Beck, who is a professor of psychology at Abilene Christian University down there in Texas.
Beck calls his blog "Experimental Theology." Both Beck, personally, and Abilene Christian are affiliated with the independent Churches of Christ, hardly as a general rule lighthouses of liberality on Christianity's rocky shore. I'm sure I've shared posts of his before.
The most recent post is entitled, "How the Church Summons Demons." By shifting the context slightly it also could be entitled "How a Nation Summons Demons." If you doubt that both do, consider Charlottesville and its aftermath.
The other post, actually a repost from last year, is entitled "America's Holocaust." Each is worthy as a read; combined, they add clarity to a confusing situation.
One of the odd quirks of some Christian thought is the continuing effort to identify the Antichrist, a curious concept based upon a couple of mentions in 1st and 2nd John served up with a hearty portion of the book of Revelation. Back when I was a kid, fundamentalist protestants thought they had the pope cornered on this one; some still do.
But as the years have passed, I've concluded that the church itself is the most likely candidate since so little of Christ remains within so many of its expressions.
But folks like Beck, and a considerable number of others who are out there working to put the "Christ" back in "Christian," do offer modest hope.
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