Cardus makes The Globe

My esteemed protégé and part-time colleague, Rob Joustra, has teamed up with his Cardus colleague Alissa Wilkinson to author Not their parents' conservatism, which appears in today's Globe and Mail, Canada's national newspaper. Definitely must-read material.

Two Kingdoms and Cultural Obedience

In recent decades, many Christians have been drawn to the Reformed understanding of the faith due to its holistic approach to the life in Christ—an emphasis found especially in the neocalvinist revival in the nineteenth-century Netherlands, led by Abraham Kuyper, Herman Bavinck and others. Transplanted to North America in the twentieth century, neocalvinism has led to the establishment of a number of confessionally-based organizations, including a network of Christian day schools, universities, labour unions, think tanks, political movements and farmers' associations. The Kuyperian influence has expanded over the last three decades due to the efforts of, among others, the Center for Public Justice, the Coalition for Christian Outreach, Redeemer University College, the Christian Labour Association of Canada and, of course, Cardus. It is now more common to hear ordinary evangelical Christians speak in terms of all of life belonging to Christ and of grace restoring nature, though they may differ in the practical implications they draw from this basic confession.

However, not all evangelical Christians are necessarily on side of this neocalvinist revival.

Read more here.

WSJ mention

My friends and protégés at Cardus have been mentioned in an article by Jonathan Fitzgerald in today's Wall Street Journal: Winning Not Just Hearts but Minds: "And Comment, a publication of the Canadian Christian think tank Cardus, recently considered Christian perspectives on psychology." This particular issue was put together by my beloved friend and colleague, Russell Kosits, whose office is two doors down from mine at Redeemer. Also mentioned: ". . . and First Things—a traditionally ecumenical publication that recently launched a new section dedicated to evangelicalism." I myself have been privileged to write for the latter since its inauguration a few weeks ago.

An important debate

Comment has just published my article, titled: Religion and democracy: Habermas vs. Flores d'Arcais. From the first paragraph:

Few issues ruffle more feathers, more frequently, than the place of religion in the political realm. According to the reigning modernist framework, rooted either in liberal individualism or in some form of secular collectivism, the state is neutral territory. Here neutrality is defined, not merely as formal indifference to what John Rawls labels the comprehensive doctrines that divide the particular communities comprising the state or nation, but as emptying the public square of every value-laden worldview that resists rational discussion and therefore threatens to divide a polity.

Feel free to read the rest if you are so inclined.

Cardus' coursepack

My good friends at Cardus have come up with something that looks like an invaluable resource for teachers, students and other Christians wishing to know how their faith impacts life. I've not yet seen a copy, but judging from their past work, I hope this gets wide circulation.



We also take note in passing that Cardus is now on youtube. I must admit to being puzzled at some of the so-called related videos shown at the lower right of the screen. Exactly how "Hitler Finds Out Canucks Sign Sundin" and "Original Alex Rios Video 'You are a bum!'" relate to the new Cardus video is not altogether clear.