John Buchanan
God with us: Children's letters to God
There is a veritable feast of recommended books and DVDs in this issue, and I have already circled and clipped several and left them lying in conspicuous places just in case anyone is wondering wha...
The Niebuhr connection: His history with our magazine
Reinhold Niebuhr, the theologian whose work Andrew Finstuen invokes in this issue, had an interesting relationship with the Christ...
Final verses: John Updike's last words
John Updike’s death in January left a giant hole in my reading life. He chronicled American culture during my lifetime in a way that I always found lucid and smart....
Words and miracles: Realities outside the text
I have a friend who was a college professor before she made the brave decision to leave the security of academia and strike out on her own as a writer....
Graveside: The best and worst of ministry
The articles in this issue on funerals set me to thinking about my own experience and the changes I have witnessed in funerals....
Calvin at 500: A reformer's legacy
You may find members of Presbyterian and Reformed churches more theologically engaged than usual these days. This year marks the 500th anniversary of John Calvin’s birth....
A closer look: Images of faith
Happily, the offices of the Christian Century are located across the street from the Art Institute of Chicago, one of the world’s great art museums....
Everyday notes: The familiar essay
A few years ago I was given a book of Anne Fadiman’s essays, Ex Libris, and was smitten....
The price of print: Economic reality
The only downside to spending time on a barrier island in North Carolina in the summer is that it’s hard to find a good newspaper....
Lincoln log: Reading recommendations
This year marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, which makes this summer a good time to read or reread a Lincoln biography....
Grace by Federal Express: A small kindness
Harsh things happen in the world with numbing frequency. So when somebody does something kind and thoughtful, we really ought to celebrate it....
Pro-choice perspective: On the occasion of George Tiller's death
The murder of abortion provider George Tiller prompts me to do something I do not like to do—venture into the issue of abortion. My hesitation is not because I do not have a position. I do....
Old Hickory: Andrew Jackson and Abraham Lincoln
What I knew about Andrew Jackson, the seventh president, was pretty much confined to the popular image of him: he was the hero of the battle of New Orleans and a “man of the people.” After reading ...
The case for condoms: Bishops versus the pope
In March, when Pope Benedict XVI, on a flight to Cameroon, declared that the use of condoms is not the answer to the AIDS epidemic in Africa—that, on the contrary, it “increases the problem”—I thou...
Silent on guns: Why aren't we talking about this?
Why aren’t we talking about guns? A week before Easter, three Pittsburgh police officers were shot and killed while responding to a domestic disturbance....
Postlude: In memory of a pastoral colleague
There is not much applauding in the church I serve, and that’s all right with me. When applauding in church becomes routine, it loses any meaning....
The end is life: "Love is the victor"
Every year we preachers eagerly look for help with the daunting challenge of preparing an Easter sermon....
Wilderness of uncertainty: Forgotten virtues to relearn
Theologian N. T. Wright says that even when you are in the Promised Land you are never far from the wilderness....
Creative invocation: In that holy name
When Rick Warren was invited to deliver the invocation at Barack Obama’s inauguration, the choice annoyed some people because of Warren’s conservative position on several important and controversia...