Our Week-in-Review feature has a new format. We know there's way too much to read out there already, so we're going to be highlighting the top five articles, books, websites, etc., that we've been reading or thinking about the past week. If you have items you'd like us to consider for the top five, add them in the comments or send them to Tom or Mike. The Millennial Muddle (Eric Hoover, Chronicle of Higher Education, October 11, 2009) takes awhile to wade through but is worth it. Tom's placing this topic on his to … [Read more...] about Week in Review: Milliennials in Transition Edition
theology
Does Theology Advance Knowledge?
What is the place of theology in the secular academy? I don't have hard data for this, but I think almost no secular colleges and universities still have "theology" departments. Rather, they have "religious studies" departments, of which theology may be a part. Even those universities that have well-respected schools of theology - Harvard, Yale, Duke - keep those schools in a separate line, and offer religious studies courses to undergraduates. We are all aware that religious beliefs have to be carefully articulated and … [Read more...] about Does Theology Advance Knowledge?
Reading Lists and Primary Literature
In my post last week about advice for undergraduates, Katie Weakland shared a comment that I thought was particularly apt: I suggest meeting your major professors early in your career - your first semester - and asking them to mentor you and/or let you do research with them. The early you can get your feet wet with research the better. I also suggest reading the primary literature in your field as soon as possible. Meeting your professors and starting research early are both very important (I have stories I could … [Read more...] about Reading Lists and Primary Literature
Week in Review (Updated)
[Editor's note: This is a new weekly feature from your blog contributors. Each week, we'll be posting articles, books, news, etc., that Tom, Mike, and the ESN community have been pondering. If you have a book or article you'd like us to add to next week's Review, add it in the comments or send it to either Mike or Tom. Thanks!] The Harvard disadvantage - The Boston Globe takes a very personal look at students from poor backgrounds at Harvard and their struggles to fit in with the children of privilege. In the … [Read more...] about Week in Review (Updated)
Body and Spirit
W.H. Auden has long been one of my favorite poets, and, over at Books & Culture, Alan Jacobs has reviewed volume 3 of the complete prose of Auden, edited by Edward Mendelson. It's an excellent appreciation of Auden's view of the role of the poet in a community and the intellectual legwork that Auden put into understanding the role of a Christian poet after he returned to the church in 1940. … [Read more...] about Body and Spirit