Fellow-Countrymen . . . With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations. - Abraham Lincoln, Second Inaugural Address (March, 4, 1865). On Sunday, November 30, John Fea (Chair, Dept of History, … [Read more...] about ESN Local: Malice Toward None; Charity for All
Messiah College
Why Does God Suffer?
2012 Lenten Reflection Series Sweeping Up the Heart: A Father's Lament for His Daughter (Paul Nisly. Good Books, 1992) provides both a raw and a rich narrative of a Messiah College English professor's wrestling with God (and himself) after his daughter Janelle's death. As you may remember from last week, several months after her Messiah College graduation and the beginning of the practice of nursing, Janelle was struck by a tractor-trailer rig. The truck rear-ended several cars, then smashed over into the … [Read more...] about Why Does God Suffer?
Lent brings me back to reflections on loss, grief, suffering
2012 Lenten Reflection Series Last week I began the 2012 series with Entering Lent: “I Want” in Higher Education. As you may remember, Kent Annan's After Shock saturated my 2011 Lenten reflection. With Kent's recent visit to South Central PA and the deep chord which "I Want" struck not only with me, but also a number of the students with whom I watched it, I wondered if my 2012 reflections would largely draw from his earlier book Following Jesus Through the Eye of the Needle (InterVarsity Press, 2009). … [Read more...] about Lent brings me back to reflections on loss, grief, suffering
Deploying Vocational Power: Four Pathways
Amy Sherman begins Chapter 8 of Kingdom Calling: Vocational Stewardship for the Common Good (InterVarsity Press, 2011) with a bang! Jesus is actually looking for people He can trust with His power. -- Dallas Willard Faithful vocational stewardship is not only about doing, it's also about being. To deploy their vocational power for the common good, believers must possess a character that handles this power humbly and eschews its misuse. This is why discipling for vocational stewardship involves not only the work … [Read more...] about Deploying Vocational Power: Four Pathways
Interview: Ted Davis, the Story of a Historian of Science
In preparation for next week's 65th Annual Meeting of the American Scientific Affiliation,* I interviewed the outgoing ASA President, Edward B. (“Ted”) Davis. As you may remember from an earlier post, Ted serves as the Distinguished Professor of the History of Science at Messiah College (Grantham, PA), and directs the Central Pennsylvania Forum for Religion and Science. Our conversation focused upon what sparked his interest in studying the History of Science, tips for Emerging Scholars seeking academic … [Read more...] about Interview: Ted Davis, the Story of a Historian of Science