Bill Muehlenberg's CultureWatch

A review of The Marriage Problem: How our Culture has Weakened Families. By James Q. Wilson.

Apr 5, 2003

Harper Collins, 2002.

Marriage is a problem, argues Wilson. That is, it is in a problematic state. Marriage is good for societies, for individuals, and especially for children. But the Western world is quickly moving away from marriage. As a

A review of Christianity on Trial: Arguments Against Anti-Religious Bigotry. By Vincent Carroll and David Shiflett.

Mar 18, 2003

Encounter Books, 2002.

As the Western world grows increasingly secular, the attacks on religion in general and Christianity in particular become ever more shrill and pronounced. Christianity especially has long been the object of ridicule, criticism and ostracism. Of course

How Not to Think Bioethically

Feb 28, 2003

The Victorian Government has recently issued a draft code on reproductive technology, stem cells and embryo research. It has been written by the Stem Cell Code of Practice Working Group. The document is entitled, “Draft Code of Ethical Practice for

A review of Three Approaches to Abortion. By Peter Kreeft.

Feb 25, 2003

Ignatius Press, 2002.

This is not the first book the well-known and prolific American philosopher has written on the subject of abortion. In 1983 he wrote The Unaborted Socrates: A Dramatic Debate on the Issues Surrounding Abortion (Inter-Varsity Press). Indeed,

A review of Life’s Worth: The Case against Assisted Suicide. By Arthur Dyck.

Feb 24, 2003

Eerdmans, 2002.

“There is a solid moral and practical basis for the laws against assisted suicide that now exist,” argues the author. This brief volume (110 pages) seeks to make that case.

In this book, Dyck, a Population Ethics professor

Questionable Legal Advice for Young People

Feb 21, 2003

A new taxpayer-funded booklet put out by the Victorian Government for young people has attracted widespread criticism. The 62-page booklet, entitled Am I Old Enough?, is meant to be a guidebook on the law for Victorian young people. Over 225,000

A review of The Letters to the Thessalonians. By Gene Green.

Feb 6, 2003

Eerdmans, 2002.

While there have been a number of good commentaries produced on Thessalonians over the years, there have been no quite recent works of substance. Somewhat older evangelical standards include Morris (NIC, 1959), Bruce (WBC, 1982), and Wanamaker (NIGTC,

A review of Introducing the New Testament: Its Literature and Theology. Paul Achtemeier, Joel Green And Marianne Meye Thompson.

Feb 5, 2003

Eerdmans, 2001.

There have been a number of helpful New Testament introductions written for the Evangelical community, including the older volume by Guthrie and the newer work by Carson, Moo and Morris. And there have been many fine NT theologies

A review of Human Cloning and Human Dignity. Edited by Leon Kass.

Feb 4, 2003

PublicAffairs, 2002.

As in Australia and other Western nations, the United States has been involved in a lengthy and divisive debate concerning the new reproductive technologies. More specifically, it has been debating the moral, social and scientific merits of human

Faith Under Fire

Jan 28, 2003

When I was a new Christian, reading through the New Testament for the first time, I was quite fascinated with – and frightened by – the various gospel accounts of forthcoming persecution. Passages such as John 16:2-4 and Mark

The Family: Worth Standing Up For

Jan 15, 2003

The family is the first and most important institution created by God. It precedes the state and all other divinely ordained institutions. Because of its central importance in the divine scheme, it is no wonder that it should be under

A review of Alsorts.

Jan 9, 2003

In mid-2002 a pro-homosexual booklet was distributed to every secondary school in Victoria. The 72-page booklet, Alsorts, cost some $80,000 to produce and distribute. The book is jointly published by the Alternative Lifestyle Organisation (ALSO Foundation) and Deakin University.

Time For a Rethink on the AIFS

Dec 4, 2002

The Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS), which was established as part of the Family Law Act 1975, began operations in 1980. It was meant, according to its original charter, to “promote marital and family stability,” among other things. Indeed,

Reflections on Peter Singer

Dec 3, 2002

An interesting article/interview with Peter Singer appeared in the December 1 Sunday Age. Entitled, “In a softer light,” the sympathetic article tried to portray the bioethicist, animal libber and pro-abortionist as perhaps becoming a bit softer in his old

Faith is Not Dead Yet

Dec 3, 2002

The Melbourne Age’s regular anti-religion writer, Pamela Bone has issued another salvo against faith. Entitled “The most dangerous force in the world,” (Nov. 30), the militant secularist again wages war against those who think differently than her. She undoubtedly believes

A review of Answering Islam, updated and revised. By Norman Geisler and Abdul Saleeb.

Nov 21, 2002

Baker Books, 1993, 2002.

Norman Geisler is one of America’s leading Christian apologists. He is also one of the most prolific, with well over sixty titles to his name. In this volume he teams up with a former Muslim to

A review of How to Win the Culture War. By Peter Kreeft.

Nov 19, 2002

InterVarsity Press, 2002.

Peter Kreeft is a respected philosophy professor at Boston College. He has written many influential books, and is in many ways a Catholic version of C.S. Lewis. That is, he is an indefatigable apologist for the Christian

A review of Militant Islam Reaches America. By Daniel Pipes.

Nov 19, 2002

Norton, 2002.

In this volume Middle East expert Daniel Pipes looks at the changing world since September 11. While some of the essays here were penned before that tragedy, all deal with the rise of Muslim militancy, and how the

A review of Rethinking Peter Singer. Edited by Gordon Preece.

Nov 15, 2002

InterVarsity Press, 2002.

“Since neither a newborn human infant nor a fish is a person, the wrongness of killing such beings is not as great as the wrongness of killing a person.”

“…regarding a newborn infant as not having the

CultureWatch

Bill Muehlenberg's commentary on issues of the day...

Latest Articles

A review of The Marriage Problem: How our Culture has Weakened Families. By James Q. Wilson.

A review of Christianity on Trial: Arguments Against Anti-Religious Bigotry. By Vincent Carroll and David Shiflett.

How Not to Think Bioethically

A review of Three Approaches to Abortion. By Peter Kreeft.

A review of Life’s Worth: The Case against Assisted Suicide. By Arthur Dyck.

Questionable Legal Advice for Young People

A review of The Letters to the Thessalonians. By Gene Green.

A review of Introducing the New Testament: Its Literature and Theology. Paul Achtemeier, Joel Green And Marianne Meye Thompson.

A review of Human Cloning and Human Dignity. Edited by Leon Kass.

Faith Under Fire

The Family: Worth Standing Up For

A review of Alsorts.

Time For a Rethink on the AIFS

Reflections on Peter Singer

Faith is Not Dead Yet

A review of Answering Islam, updated and revised. By Norman Geisler and Abdul Saleeb.

A review of How to Win the Culture War. By Peter Kreeft.

A review of Militant Islam Reaches America. By Daniel Pipes.

A review of Rethinking Peter Singer. Edited by Gordon Preece.

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