Articles by Carl Trueman

This month, I thought I would use this column to indulge in a little thought experiment. What, I wonder, if the conservative evangelical church world came to be dominated by a symbiotic network of high profile and charismatic leaders (think more Weber than Wimber), media organisations, and big conferences? What if leadership, doctrine, and policy were no longer rooted in the primacy of biblical polity and the local church? What if, in other words, all of this become a function of an Evangelical Industrial Complex? continue

A Truly Divisive PondA Review of Thomas Albert Howard, God and the Atlantic: America, Europe, and the Religious Divide (Oxford University Press, 2013) PB, $29.95One of the most striking differences between the USA, my adopted residence, and the UK, my... continue

I remember the first time I read Augustine. I was a final year undergraduate at Cambridge on the Classical tripos but taking the course, Christian Life and Thought to A.D. 451 from outside my faculty. Those were the days: university courses could actually use the term 'A.D.' to refer to exactly the same start date as 'C.E.' but without risk of being accused of oppressing anybody and thus standing on a line of obvious continuity with every crime against humanity of the last 500 years. A lost age of almost unimaginable Eloi-style innocence, untouched by the Morlockean mindset of political correctness. continue

In last month's article, I argued that Luther remains a useful source for the thoughtful Christian but that the occasional nature of his writings means that he is more easily quoted than correctly understood. Thus, in Part Two, I want to offer some suggestions for further reading. Of course, the literature on Luther is vast and growing every year. Thus, what I highlight here are simply the books which I consider to be the most helpful. Basic to reading Luther is.... reading Luther. One cannot do better than to study the books and pamphlets which he actually wrote. continue

Martin Luther is perhaps the single most important thinker for Protestants. Not that he is the greatest theologian, exegete or even role model. There are other, more qualified candidates for each of those titles. He is, however, the original agenda setter for Protestantism: his focus on justification by faith, his critique of papal authority, and his prioritizing of Word over sacrament have all set basic trajectories for subsequent generations. continue

The cultural and intellectual influence of Augustine of Hippo is indisputable. In his own day, he was bishop of a relatively insignificant town in North Africa but his writings impacted not only the world of his day but the world ever since. His City of God remains a standard text in the history of political theory; his theological writings set much of the agenda for both Catholicism and, later, Protestantism; and his autobiography,Confessions, represented a brilliant fusion of classical culture and Christian theology and, in setting out his life as an internal psychological struggle, was a very early precursor of the modern novel. continue

The Greek historian Herodotus tells the story of an encounter between Croesus, the fantastically wealthy king of Lydia, and the Athenian sage and lawmaker, Solon. Pointing to his wealth and power, Croesus asked Solon if he considered him to be blessed. Solon's laconic response was simple: 'Count no man blessed until he is dead.' Years later, having been stripped of his earthly power and wealth by the Persians, Solon's words came back to haunt the former monarch with something of a vengeance. continue

October is the month in which we typically remember and celebrate the Reformation. While some Protestants have described the Reformation as a tragedy, it would have been a far greater tragedy if it had never happened. Nevertheless, there is in the contemporary evangelical world a tendency to romanticize Luther, to remake him as a modern evangelical. Yes, it is hard for some of us to imagine, but I am sure there are some out there who see Doc Martin as the kind of precursor to those who would think the secret of a successful ministry lies in wearing torn jeans, paying regular visits to the tanning booth and launching an international campaign against librarian-led fashion trends and British dentistry. continue

It was said of John Henry Newman that he was never less alone than when alone. Newman liked the peace and quiet of isolation: it allowed him to read, to think and to write. I confess to some sympathy for Newman on this. I do not like the hyperconnectivity of the current world. As an administrator at Westminster, I had a seminary cell phone. I had to upgrade it to a smartphone last year because Verizon indicated they would no longer support the vintage model I then possessed. I remember that, when I went in to exchange it, the man behind the counter looked at the phone, looked at me and then, choking back the laughter, declared "You're that guy!" Shamed into silence, I nodded mutely and mumbled my mandated request for a smartphone. continue

With the exception of Augustine's Confessions, I am not a big fan of Christian testimonies and autobiographies. Generally, they exhibit one of two problems (sometimes both). The first is the tendency towards a simplistic formula as shaped by the expectations of the specific Christian community to which the author belongs. So experiential Calvinist autobiographers tend to suffer long periods of conviction of sin followed by blessed, if sometimes mystical, assurance. I imagine the current trendy manifestations of reformed hipster theology will probably produce its fair share of people who found that conversion liberated them to watch exactly the same derivative and crass movies they did before, but now with an uncanny, Spirit-filled capacity to spot the redeemer figure in The Dark Knight Rises or The Expendables II. continue