Blog posts

Cultural Task #1: Crucify Our Incipient Darwinism

By Joseph Sunde One of the long-running mistakes of the church has been its various confinements of cultural engagement to particular spheres (e.g. churchplace ministry) or selective “uses” (e.g. evangelistic conversion). But even if we manage to broaden the scope of our stewardship — recognizing that God has called us to pursue truth, goodness,… Read More

The God Who Makes Himself Known Through Vocation

By Ray Nothstine It was Blaise Pascal who noted that, “Jesus Christ is the end of all, and the center to which all tends.” Whether we are conscious of it or not, our vocation and work plays a part in revealing His glory. Christ comes to meet us in our vocation and circumstances. Cyril of Jerusalem declared: The Savior comes in various forms to… Read More

The Halo Effect: The Economic Value of the Local Church

By Joseph Sunde As church attendance continues to decline across the West, many have lamented the spiritual and social side effects, namely a weakening of civil society and the fabric of community life. What’s less discussed, however, is the economic impact of such a decline. In a new study published by Cardus, Dr. Michael Wood Daly of the… Read More

Of Coins, Sheep, and Men: The Work and Prayer of Finding the Lost

By Jordan Ballor One of the most famous stories from the Bible is that of “The Prodigal Son,” a tale that has resonated with parents across times and cultures. The basic plot of the story is straightforward: a rebellious youth sets off from home in search of worldly pleasures, and having wasted his father’s money and reputation, eventually… Read More

C.S. Lewis on Vocation in the Economy of Wisdom

By Joseph Sunde In Abraham Kuyper’s newly translated Scholarship, he addresses students of Free University in Amsterdam, asking, “What should be the goal of university study and the goal of living and working in the sacred domain of scholarship?” Though he observes similarities with other forms of labor — between teacher and farmer, professor… Read More

The Monk as Merchant: Economic Wisdom from a Desert Hermit

By Dylan Pahman Before Max Weber ever conducted his study of the “Protestant ethic” of hard work and commerce as a matter of one’s election before God, there was the ascetic ethic of the ancient Church. A story from the Sayings of the Desert Fathers illustrates this ascetic business ethic well: A brother said to Abba Pistamon: “What am I to do… Read More