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July 2026

July 07, 2026

Christmas in July: Candles in the Darkness Release

It’s book release month for the Advent devotional that my husband and colleague Adam and...

January 2026

January 20, 2026

Yancey, Gregory, and Theology amidst Sin

It was recently revealed in a Christianity Today article that Philip Yancey is “retiring from...

November 2025

November 18, 2025

Learning Patience: On Art and Liturgical Seasons

Western society has an odd relationship with patience. While most would claim patience is a...

November 04, 2025

Trondenes Kirke: The Northernmost Medieval Church

It’s a stunning stone church, painted white and towering over the surrounding landscape, with the...

August 2025

August 05, 2025

What Do You Do With a Palimpsest?

As our guide walked with us out of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, he started...

June 2025

June 17, 2025

Ancient Church Discipline: On Sin and Rehabilitation

Moral failings in the church are not a new phenomenon—to read the pages of Christian...

May 2025

May 20, 2025

Nicene Worship: Then and Now

I had the privilege of attending a conference in Rome on the Council of Nicaea...

January 2025

January 07, 2025

Lessons from Remembering “The Mary We Forgot”

For me, the days off around the holidays traditionally include many things: more baked goods...

November 2024

November 19, 2024

Mothers of the Church: Egeria

In my first semester of grad school, I took a Latin reading seminar. Surprisingly, we...

July 2024

July 19, 2024

Pastors Complaining About Church Attendance: A Tradition

I’m old enough to remember going to Sunday evening services at my Baptist church growing...

July 05, 2024

Does Being Modern Impoverish Worship?

I was recently on a trip where we visited many Buddhist and Hindu temples. None...

April 2024

April 20, 2024

United Methodist General Conference 2024: What to Look For

Two of the largest Protestant denominations in the US are holding international meetings in April

November 2023

November 10, 2023

Still Adventist? Why Retain Denominational Identities

While as a Christian historian I frequently interact with people who are wrestling with their...

August 2023

August 28, 2023

Megachurch Pastor Canvasses The Frankfurt School

(Before I begin, I'd like to note that my last article has proven prescient: in...

July 2023

July 12, 2023

On Saying Goodbye to a Beloved Church

On Sunday, July 2, 2023, we attended service for the last time in our beloved...

November 2022

November 07, 2022

The Other Evangelicals: An Interview with Dr. Isaac Sharp

Isaac, thank you for taking the time to talk with me today. It’s so good...

July 2021

July 29, 2021

Why One Ancient Megachurch Pastor Would Like You to Get the Vaccine

Today's post is another guest feature from my wife, Nadya Williams, professor of ancient history...

July 01, 2021

Evangelical Social Concern May Depend on Recovering a Theology of the Church

Why have white evangelicals had a hard time embracing the call for social justice? In...

April 2021

April 15, 2021

The Cost of Staying Silent

It was more than a decade ago, but I still remember that moment vividly. It...

March 2021

March 31, 2021

Lessons in Leadership from the Long 2020

It’s been a long year. Literally. Historians divide eras by cultural moments rather than strict...

January 2021

January 07, 2021

Jemar Tisby’s How to Fight Racism

Jemar Tisby has a new book out this week, How to Fight Racism. Is it...

July 2020

July 22, 2020

When Harry Met Sally at Church: Can Christian Men and Women Be Friends?

In the classic romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally, Harry famously asserted, “Men and women...

January 2020

January 02, 2020

Don’t Ruin the Story!

On the fourth Sunday of Advent, I attended worship at a mainline Protestant church. The...

August 2019

August 21, 2019

Creating a “Rule of Life”: Habits for the New Semester

I am obsessed with habits. Particularly the spiritual formation potential of habits. I don’t remember...

July 2019

July 30, 2019

How Church History (Re)taught Me the Value of Old Hymns – and Vice Versa

Guest blogger Emily Wenneborg considers how "old hymns and the history of Christianity can work...

January 2019

January 23, 2019

Christians Must Face The Reality Of Rape Culture

I am so pleased to welcome guest blogger Leslie Hahner, PhD, to The Anxious Bench...

October 2018

October 10, 2018

Further Thoughts from CFH 2018: Historians and the Church

Three more reflections from the 2018 meeting of the Conference on Faith and History consider...

October 03, 2018

My First Sermon: The Faith of a Woman

I teach and research sermons. Two weeks ago, on September 11, I had the privilege...

September 2018

September 12, 2018

Before Evangelicals Believed in Family Values

That evangelicals are pro-family is one of the ironies of American religious history

August 2018

August 08, 2018

Here We Go Again: Willow Creek and Pastoral Accountability

I was sitting on a picnic bench outside of the Navajo Nation capital when I...