Jason
Andy Crouch on the secular gospel of Steve Jobs. And while it’s only been a week since Jobs’ death, and the elegies and remembrances are still rolling in, some have begun looking at the darker side of Steve Jobs’ legacy.

Why do we trust the judgment of natural scientists (e.g., physicists) more than the judgment of social scientists (e.g., economists)?

Alex Knapp on the “unnecessary conflict between evangelicalism and science”.

Does technology make it too easy to make beautiful-looking movies and TV shows?

I never thought I’d want a cookbook until I found out about this cookbook inspired by George R.R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” series.

Erin N.
One evangelical leader argues that Mormonism is not a cult.

Kirk
Someone stole an entire bridge in Pennsylvania.

G.K. Chesterton’s Orthodoxy is my favorite book ever, so I was quite happy to come across yet another wonderful and insightful synopsis.

Notes on the return of one of the weirdest, brilliantest and most sensitivest folk-rocker in our little square of history, Ryan Adams.

Classy article on why men ought to get dressed up when they go out on the town.

Loved this blogger’s thoughts on the practical inadequacy of social Darwinism: “I reject the idea that humans are no more than animals.  I reject it, reject it, reject it.”

Drew
I wrote a review of The Binding of Isaac for Paste Magazine–its a game about child abuse. Also, Pat Gann interviewed Edmund McMillen, the creator of the game on his podcast (the interview can be found at the 45th minute).

If you are wondering what the Occupy Wallstreet protesters are upset about, here is an article you should read. This one is worth looking at too.

Game Church has posted a Christian Defense of Video Games.

Avatar for CAPC Writers

CAPC Writers

We are the staff and writers of Christ and Pop Culture. Sort of like the Borg Collective, but way less monotone and intimidating.
Twitter Facebook

4 Comments

  1. Erin, I found the article on Mormonism interesting. I do agree that the word “cult” is hard to apply here. Early Christianity was viewed as a “cult”.

    It’s more accurate to view Mormonism as a non-Christian religion. The polytheism is very troubling, among many other issues. What makes communication with Mormons difficult is that we use the same words and names, and yet mean entirely different things by them. This is very much like the use of “Allah” by Arab Muslims and Christians. Same name, totally different concept of person.

  2. RE the natural science vs social science thing: Really, it’s just about how much chaos is in the system you’re trying to describe and how abstract it is.

    We trust financial advisors more than we trust meteorologists because it’s easier to reliably predict how to shore up your financial state than it is to predict what it’s gonna be like in Long Beach next Wednesday. The reason? There’s more chaos in the natural system described (the weather) than there is in the constructed system described (how not to exceed your income).

    On the other hand, it may be easier to predict next Wednesday’s weather than it will be to predict next Wednesday’s stock market. The stock market, while a construct, introduces a lot of chaos into the system and pushes reliable predictability to the edge of credulity.

  3. Chris,

    I agree with you, but I thought the reasoning of that article was fairly awful. He pretty much said that Jehovah’s Witnesses were a cult, but not Mormons? Mormonism is at least as awful as JW’s, if not more so. And why isn’t Mormonism a cult? Because they have a nice school and Ph.D’s? That’s kind of weird.

    As long as Mormons keep pretending like they are a Christian religion, I think it is still safe to say that they are a theological cult.

  4. That’s a good point, Brad, and I think it brings up the question of what we mean by “cult.” We’ve really deviated from the older meaning of “a system of religious practices” to mean something a little more sinister. Most people think of a group that uses manipulation to coerce members into staying “in the group” and creates a mindset of unthinking adherence. I’ve not seen that evidenced in Mormonism to any extreme degree (social pressure, yes).

    I also noticed that he seemed to be validating Mormonism by listing scholarly adherents. Islam also has many scholarly adherents. Within Christianity we have many scholars who have abandoned the Gospel. That only proves that the simple message of salvation through the blood of Jesus confounds worldly wisdom. It doesn’t justify false teaching.

Comments are now closed for this article.