# theologian (blogs) — RSS Amplifier Recent posts from the 3 feeds in the RSS Amplifier directory that cover theologian. Page: Feed: --- ## [Influential Catholic Political Group CatholicVote Accused of Suppressing Israel Reporting After Its Flagship Publication’s Aggressive Reporting On Brutal Mistreatment of West Bank Palestinians](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/influential-catholic-political-group) _2026-08-21 · The Catholic Observer_ But CatholicVote’s leader denied the claim from a former political editor that he had been told to “drastically reduce” Israel coverage, Christopher Hale reports in the newsletter Letters from Leo. ## [U.S. Funding Cuts Fuel Child Recruitment Into Haiti’s Armed Groups](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/us-funding-cuts-fuel-child-recruitment) _2026-08-21 · The Catholic Observer_ “Without USAID support, all you have left is the rule of the ganglord.” -- Journalist Jess DiPierro Obert writes in The New Humanitarian, with reporting supported by the nonprofit Pulitzer Center. ## [After Pope Leo Meets with Lebanese President, Vatican Expresses ‘Serious Concerns’ Over Stalled Lebanon Agreement](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/after-pope-leo-meets-with-lebanese) _2026-08-20 · Gary Gately · The Catholic Observer_ Two months after Lebanon, Israel and the U.S. signed the deal aimed at ending Israel’s military presence in Lebanon and disarming the militant group Hezbollah, peace seems elusive. ## [Wisdom for the Ages: “Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me.”](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/wisdom-for-the-ages-then-they-came) _2026-08-20 · Gary Gately · The Catholic Observer_ -- Martin Niemöller, German theologian ## [A Prayer for the City: In My Hometown of Baltimore, Murders Plunge to Record Low](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/a-prayer-for-the-city-in-my-hometown-b78) _2026-08-20 · The Catholic Observer_ In 2017, I reported for The Guardian on homicides in “Body-more, Murdaland,” which then had twice the per-capita murder rate of Chicago and more total murders than New York City. ## [Catholic Voices: Republican U.S. Rep. Don Bacon shows refugee advocacy doesn’t have to be partisan](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/catholic-voices-republican-us-rep) _2026-08-18 · The Catholic Observer_ Jesuit Refugee Service USA President Kelly Ryan writes in an op-ed. ## [A thought on retributive justice and the Atonement](https://thinkingreed.blog/2026/08/17/a-thought-on-retributive-justice-and-the-atonement/) _2026-08-17 · Lee M. · A Thinking Reed_ The other day I was listening to a podcast of Christian philosopher William Lane Craig defending a version of the “penal substitutionary” account of the Atonement (“PSA” as it’s often referred to). One thing Craig emphasized was that Jesus must take our punishment in order to “satisfy God’s retributive justice.” It occurred to me, however, \[…\] ## [Anxious in Abundance](https://happytheologian.substack.com/p/anxious-in-abundance) _2026-08-15 · Patrick Brothers · The Happy Theologian_ On worry, wealth, and what we owe each other ## [Wisdom for the Ages: "Listening to some of the populist leaders we now have, I am reminded of the 1930s, when some democracies collapsed into dictatorships seemingly overnight."](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/wisdom-for-the-ages-listening-to) _2026-08-15 · The Catholic Observer_ -- Pope Francis, Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future ## [Catholic Voices: The Wolf and the Shepherd - A 3 a.m. Mediation. The vigils can be “a daunting walk through ‘the valley of the shadow of death.'”](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/catholic-voices-the-wolf-and-the-c14) _2026-08-14 · The Catholic Observer_ “Not until my desperation mounts do I look to the shepherd.... to keep my thoughts from running wild,” Catholic theologian and author Timothy P. Schilling writes in Commonweal. ## [Ask the crowd: AI or not (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/lVfRs749CauR) _2026-08-14 · **Sponsored**_ Get a transparent verdict from verified humans via web, RSS, or API. ## [Thousands of U.S. Catholics Demand that Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey Be Excommunicated for Signing Late-Term Abortion Bill Into Law](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/thousands-of-catholics-demand-that) _2026-08-13 · Gary Gately · The Catholic Observer_ Healey pledged to keep abortion safe, legal and accessible in Massachusetts for as long as she remains governor, drawing praise from abortion rights advocates. ## [Conservative Catholics Demand that Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey Be Excommunicated for Signing Late-Term Abortion Bill Into Law](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/conservative-catholics-demand-that) _2026-08-13 · Gary Gately · The Catholic Observer_ Healey pledged to keep abortion safe, legal and accessible in Massachusetts for as long as she remains governor, drawing praise from abortion rights advocates. ## [Incarnation anyway](https://thinkingreed.blog/2026/08/12/incarnation-anyway/) _2026-08-12 · Lee M. · A Thinking Reed_ I was struck recently by a passage from Catholic theologian Karen Kilby in the entry on “evil” in the St Andrews Encyclopaedia of Theology. Kilby is discussing how Christian theology envisions God responding to evil, but notes that not that theologies vary in how central a place they give to the response to evil: Christian theologies \[…\] ## [What we talk about when we talk about God](https://thinkingreed.blog/2026/08/10/what-we-talk-about-when-we-talk-about-god/) _2026-08-10 · Lee M. · A Thinking Reed_ Christopher Insole, If God Is the Answer, What Is the Question? (Oneworld, 2026) Insole is a philosophical theologian in the UK, but this is not your typical philosophy book. He says up front that he doesn’t really think people’s fundamental convictions about God, morality, the meaning of life, politics, etc. are moved by rational argument. \[…\] ## [Michigan Becomes First State to Stop Enforcing Ban On Conversion Talk Therapy](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/michigan-becomes-first-state-to-stop) _2026-08-07 · Gary Gately · The Catholic Observer_ The counseling seeks to help minors struggling with gender dysphoria — discomfort or distress that they feel over their biological sex. ## [Pope Leo Offers Message of Hope for Elderly Who Feel Forgotten, Abandoned](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/pope-leo-offers-message-of-hope-for) _2026-07-26 · Gary Gately · The Catholic Observer_ In his message for the sixth annual World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, the pontiff points to God's promise through Isaiah: "I will never forget you." ## [The Kingdom Looks Like a Weed](https://happytheologian.substack.com/p/the-kingdom-looks-like-a-weed) _2026-07-25 · Patrick Brothers · The Happy Theologian_ On mustard seeds, leaven, and what we’re too quick to pull ## [Nun Speaks Out About ICE Agents Arresting Her As She Walked to Mass In Texas](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/nun-speaks-out-about-ice-agents-arresting) _2026-07-24 · Gary Gately · The Catholic Observer_ Neither DHS nor ICE has commented on the June 28 arrest of Sister Leticia “Letty” Ugboaja, which drew widespread outrage. ## [Vatican Denies Reports of Ex-Jesuit Father Marko Rupnik's Acquittal](https://thecatholicobserver.substack.com/p/vatican-denies-reports-of-ex-jesuit) _2026-07-22 · Gary Gately · The Catholic Observer_ The Holy See Press Office also defended the secrecy of the proceedings against the artist priest accused of abusing more than two dozen women. ## [Still Asking, Differently](https://happytheologian.substack.com/p/still-asking-differently) _2026-06-27 · Patrick Brothers · The Happy Theologian_ On praying the same prayer with a different kind of trust ## [Collect Open Source Legends (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/LL4Fn0VgjnuC) _2026-06-27 · **Sponsored**_ Open-licensed art, limited foil trading packs, and optional on-chain mints. ## [Silence Doesn’t Get the Last Voice](https://happytheologian.substack.com/p/silence-doesnt-get-the-last-voice) _2026-05-30 · Patrick Brothers · The Happy Theologian_ On praying into silence and finding God in the waiting ## [Pentecost and the Reuniting of Humanity](https://happytheologian.substack.com/p/pentecost-and-the-reuniting-of-humanity) _2026-05-23 · The Happy Theologian_ How the Spirit reverses Babel and forms a new people ## [The broken mosaic of truth](https://thinkingreed.blog/2026/05/05/learning-from-other-religions/) _2026-05-05 · Lee M. · A Thinking Reed_ Learning from Other Religions, David Brown (Cambridge University Press, 2024) Arguments about how to understand the relationship among humanity’s various religious traditions have often run in well-worn grooves: Exclusivists hold to the absolute and unique truth of their religion; inclusivists regard the differing faiths as approximations of the one true religion; and pluralists view all \[…\] ## [Philippi Revisited](https://happytheologian.substack.com/p/philippi-revisited) _2026-05-03 · Patrick Brothers · The Happy Theologian_ Humility in a World of Status and Striving ## [At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. (Mark 15:33)](https://happytheologian.substack.com/p/at-noon-darkness-came-over-the-whole) _2026-04-03 · Patrick Brothers · The Happy Theologian_ Crucifixion scene, Barabbas (1961) ## [We all need friends like Daniel had](https://happytheologian.substack.com/p/we-all-need-an-hananiah-mishael-and) _2026-03-31 · Patrick Brothers · The Happy Theologian_ Faithful companionship in moments when life suddenly changes ## [Don’t Blame Bible Prophecy for a War with Iran](https://happytheologian.substack.com/p/dont-blame-bible-prophecy-for-a-war-20f) _2026-03-03 · Patrick Brothers · The Happy Theologian_ Commentary from Russell Moore ## [Keith Ward: An appreciation](https://thinkingreed.blog/2026/02/19/keith-ward-an-appreciation/) _2026-02-19 · Lee M. · A Thinking Reed_ As longtime readers are aware (if there are any of you left!), Anglican philosopher-theologian Keith Ward has been a big influence here at ATR. I think the first book of his I read was What the Bible Really Teaches, which at the time was extremely helpful to me by articulating a theology that was open \[…\] ## [Is love always uncontrolling?](https://thinkingreed.blog/2026/02/02/is-love-always-uncontrolling/) _2026-02-02 · Lee M. · A Thinking Reed_ I recently re-read Thomas Jay Oord’s 2015 book The Uncontrolling Love of God, which made a bit of a splash in certain circles when it first came out. While it’s a stimulating read, I found myself once again not fully convinced by the argument. In brief, Oord argues that God cannot — because of the \[…\] ## [It’s a new year, and I'm already tired.](https://happytheologian.substack.com/p/its-a-new-year-and-im-already-tired) _2026-01-12 · Patrick Brothers · The Happy Theologian_ Welcome to The Happy Theologian. ## [Crush Every Threat in Real Time (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/wTJRO1Vggueu) _2026-01-12 · **Sponsored**_ One agent for real-time detection, exposure tracking, and active defense. ## [Consider the beasts](https://thinkingreed.blog/2026/01/12/consider-the-beasts/) _2026-01-12 · Lee M. · A Thinking Reed_ Death Before the Fall: Biblical Literalism and the Problem of Animal Suffering, Ronald E. Osborn (IVP Academic, 2014) Much traditional Christian theology has taught that death and suffering entered the world when Adam and Eve fell into sin. Prior to the fall, many theologians have assumed, the world was free from suffering, sickness and death \[…\] ## [Best Theology Books I Read This Year](https://thinkingreed.blog/2025/12/30/best-theology-books-i-read-this-year/) _2025-12-30 · Lee M. · A Thinking Reed_ Continuing the experiment of dusting off this creaky old blog, here are the best theology books I read this year (not necessarily published this year!): Teresa Morgan, Trust in Atonement: Teresa Morgan is a scholar of classical antiquity as well as New Testament and early Christianity, and she brings this perspective to bear in developing \[…\] ## [The Cross as God’s Word](https://thinkingreed.blog/2025/12/19/the-cross-as-gods-word/) _2025-12-19 · Lee M. · A Thinking Reed_ Adam Hamilton, Why Did Jesus Have to Die? The Meaning of the Crucifixion (Abingdon Press, 2025) Adam Hamilton is the pastor of the Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, KS, one of the largest Methodist churches in the country. He’s also the author of numerous books and bible studies where he’s tried to carve out \[…\]