Ten Commandments Watch Continues
56+ new articles on Roy Moore's 'bama battle
Ted Olsen

Christ via Judaism
"Lauren Winner's spiritual journey is an invaluable—and, to some, unsettling—reminder of where we came from"
Sarah Hinlicky Wilson

Preaching That Connects
Craig Brian Larson

Yancey: Neat! Way Cool! Awesome!
Artists like to have their work admired. That is why we worship.
by Philip Yancey

BOOKS: Aweless
Christopher A. Hall

A Horseless Carriage?
Letter Regarding Issue 8.2
Rachel Schuchardt

When Marriage Brings Suffering
The meaning of marital covenants in bleak seasons.
By David P. Gushee

Divine Theater
God's weightiness in worship.
by Sue A. Rozeboom

Pulling Weeds From Your Field of Dreams
David Hansen

Pulling Weeds from Your Field of Dreams
Dave Hansen

Running Into Reality
Wayne Pohl

Curing Souls: The Forgotten Art
Eugene Peterson

Good News or Old News?
The Via Negativa as Road to Renewal
Mark D. Filiatreau

Perils of the Professionally Holy
Mark Galli

Wind of Terror, Wind of Glory
We cannot know God's majesty without his terrible holiness.
by Daniel Tomberlin

The Pleasure of His Company

Derrida and the Messiah
Brian J. Walsh

Love Your Heavenly Enemy
How are we going to live eternally with those we can't stand now?
Miroslav Volf

Inside Politics: Love the President, Hate the Policy
At Willow Creek conference, President Clinton reviews his moral failures, details his spiritual recovery.
By Corrie Cutrer in South Barrington, Illinois

Exhilarated by Grace
By Harold Myra, Chief Executive Officer

WHAT MAKES INTERESTING PREACHING
How to avoid talking in someone else's sleep.
Stuart Briscoe

PRACTICING THE PRESENCE IN THE PASTORATE
Richard Bridston

Canadian Supreme Court Backs Same-Sex Marriage
Plus: Another religion clash in Egypt, a Baylor bump, and other stories from online sources around the world.
Compiled by Ted Olsen

Weblog (Second Helping): Revenge of the God Billboards
Plus: Britain discusses euthanasia while the Netherlands euthanizes babies, and other stories from online sources around the world.
Compiled by Ted Olsen

The Ecstatic Heresy
Seeking a superficial unity, some denominational leaders opt for feelings over facts.
By Robert Sanders

Atheist No More, Flew Still Rejects Revelation
Plus: LA Times praises Jesus, Eames says ECUSA won't be disciplined, China's Craze Mass, and other stories from online sources around the world.
Compiled by Ted Olsen

Intoxicated with Tomatoes
by John Wilson

Death Sentence For Three Pakistanis Who Attacked Christian Hospital
Plus: Wesley Clark's change of tune on abortion limits, more Ten Commandments disputes, poor clergy criticized, and many other stories from online sources around the world.
Compiled by Ted Olsen

Preaching Through Controversy

So Far, So Near
A graduate of Murree Christian School in Pakistan, the site of a deadly assault by Islamic terrorists in August, reflects on his growing-up years, on what has changed in the interim, and on the beleaguered Christian community in Pakistan
Todd Hertz

In the Word: Stony the Road We Trod
God will hold us up and keep us safe, despite the times we've tripped.
By Marguerite Shuster

Forget Your Bliss
The success of The Purpose-Driven Life reveals a cultural opportunity.
A Christianity Today editorial

Has God Played Fair?
Why did an omniscient God create humankind knowing that people, in every generation, would reject him?
Timothy George

Did God Blind the Secret Service?
Colson speaks on the Watergate burglary, and other important stories from media sources around the world
Ted Olsen

Faith-based Bathing
What role does baptism play in faith and salvation?
Timothy George

Jesusy' Anne Lamott
Chatting with a born-again paradox
Agnieszka Tennant

The Real Gospel
"In a postmodern world in which people see many 'truths' as equally valid, how can you convince someone of the truth of salvation through Christ"
Alister E. McGrath

In the Word: On the Receiving End
What Jesus really meant about becoming like little children.
By Cornelius Plantinga Jr.

HELPING THE SEXUALLY ABUSED
Ways to begin healing the ill-used bodies within the body.
Michael E. Phillips

WHERE DO YOU LOOK FOR ENCOURAGEMENT?
Oswald Chambers

Word Become Flesh
Quotations to Stir Heart and Mind
Compiled by Richard A. Kauffman

Define 'Better'
One person's improvement is another person's degeneration.
An interview with bioethicist C. Ben Mitchell

The Techno Sapiens Are Coming
When God fashioned man and woman, he called his creation very good. Transhumanists say that, by manipulating our bodies with microscopic tools, we can do better. Are we ready for the great debate?
By C. Christopher Hook

Preemptive Prophecy
In the Turkish city of Kars, schoolgirls forced to abandon their headscarves are killing themselves. A poet who is also a journalist is sent to cover the story.
by Laurance Wieder

Kindling Their Vision
Wayne Jacobsen

Tolkien: Man Behind the Myth
At odds with his age, he created another.
Bradley J. Birzer

Challenging the Virtue of the Age
Fred Smith, Sr.

Mapping the Territory

Terror in India
Plus: Southern Baptist exec committee votes to leave world alliance, more on the Baptist minister killed in Iraq, troubles for the Federal Marriage Amendment, and other stories from online sources around the world.
Compiled by Ted Olsen

In the Word: The Grim Shepherd
He visits every living thing, but those with understanding need not be afraid
Haddon Robinson

How God Won When Politics Failed
Learning from the abolitionists during a time of political discouragement.
By Tim Stafford

When God Declares War
The violence of God can only be understood in the shadow of the Cross.
by Daniel G. Reid and Tremper Longman III

The Subversive Pastor
Eugene Peterson

Tom Wright Comments for Everyone
The author of the Christian Origins and the Question of God series is also writing a commentary series for the masses.

Christ's Kingdom and Paradise
What is the difference between the heavenly 'paradise' that Christ promised the thief on the cross and the kingdom of God?
Christopher A. Hall

More Than an Empty Bed
J. Todd Billings

Good News or Old News?
The Via Negativa as Road to Renewal
Mark D. Filiatreau

Wind of Terror, Wind of Glory
We cannot know God's majesty without his terrible holiness.
by Daniel Tomberlin

The Lord Our God Is One
Three Christians trace their roots back to the Hebrew Bible-and encounter God's present-day chosen people.
By Steven Gertz

Living by Law, Looking for Intimacy
What Christians can learn from the debates that divide American Jews. This is the first installment in a five-part series.
Lauren F. Winner

A Passionate Passion
Oberammergau's drama not only survives, it thrives.
By Carol R. Thiessen

This Poor Gray Ember of Creation
Marilynne Robinson's Gilead is a novel to savor
Thomas Gardner

Baptism + Fire
Suffering may build character, but ultimately it's not about us.
By Mark Galli

From Ewww ... to Wow!
What a big difference a small spider made.
By Bethany Torode

Reflections

The Ordination from Above
Becoming a Reverend took one night; experiencing God's power took much longer.
Walter Wangerin

The Place of Public Prayer
John Killinger

Handling the Hard Cases
Roger F. Miller

Keeping Connected to the Power
Jim Cymbala

Angels in the Roil

The Ministry of Marriage

Children and Church Life

Living Abundantly When Resources Are Scarce
Craig Brian Larson

To Illustrate. . .

TO ILLUSTRATE…

Serious Symbolism

What's a Significant Ministry?
Tim Bowman

Finishing Well
After achieving success, early retirees are finding significance in second-career mission assignments.
Christine J. Gardner

Roads to Recovery
Following God On Broken Legs
Reviewed by Cindy Crosby

Cheated by the Affirming Church
Contrary to what some churches teach, it is homosexuality—and not its suppression—that enslaves people like me.
by Anonymous

The Virtue of Vulnerability
It can be hard to trust, but failing to is worse.
Reviewed by Cindy Crosby

Good News or Old News?
The Via Negativa as Road to Renewal
Mark D. Filiatreau

Unfashionably Good
A savory collections of essays by Alan Jacobs.
Reviewed by Lauren F. Winner

Canterbury Crackup
Eschewing church discipline has come back to haunt Anglicans.
A Christianity Today editorial

Vengeance Is Whose?
A new film version of The Count of Monte Cristo emphasizes faith, but with a strange twist.
Todd Hertz

FROM THE EDITOR
Terry C. Muck

A Theology of Sound
Attentive listening.
Craig Mattson

God Among the Doubts

Mourning Until Forgiveness Comes

How to Spend the Day in Prayer
Lorne C. Sanny

The Learning Curve
A Leadership symposium

Furthermore: The Fullness of Time
I'd like life to be a series of pauses like a poem, rather than a fast-paced, page-turner airport novel.
By Marilyn Chandler McEntyre

Wake-up Call
If September 11 was a divine warning, it's God's people who are being warned
Charles Colson

Chicago's Cardinal Issues Warning to Visiting Polish Priest
But measures against anti-Semitic remarks called stupidity and garbage by priest's spokesman.
By Jonathan Luxmoore in Warsaw

Apocalypse Now
Revelation says more about church life today than about how the world will end.
J. NELSON KRAYBILL

Is Growth a Decision?
Eugene Peterson

Faith, Fear, War, Peace
Snapshots of the grim and 'happy' ministry of today's military chaplains.
By Deann Alford

Cultivating Closeness with God
Maxie Dunnam

Luminous Wonder, Heavy Cross
A sense of cosmic awe sustained Johannes Kepler through deep sorrow.
Joseph L. Spradley

Interior Design
16th-century students of anatomy saw the hand of God in the intricacies of the body.
James D. Smith III

No Vein Inquiry
William Harvey founded modern physiology by seeking God's purposes for the body's design.
Emerson T. McMullen

Jonathan Edwards and John Wesley and 300-A Plentiful Harvest
Douglas Sweeney

Wise Beginnings, Surprising Endings
Genesis: the rest of the story
Walter Brueggemann

Lewis Smedes Dead at 81
Theologian and ethicist noted for his writings on forgiveness.
Mark A. Kellner

It's Hard to Hug a Bully
It is easier to repay evil for evil, but then all you've got is evil.
Barbara Brown Taylor

FROM THE EDITOR
Terry C. Muck

Holy Chutzpah

Stranger in a Strange Land-In Rembrandt's Light
John Wilson

Rabbit Trails to God
John Updike has made a career of writing the most theological novels in America
Mark A. Buchanan