Religion & Public life • Former Board chair, @oneamericamvmt
Nashville, TN
Joined April 2009
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This hits. I’ve long felt if I accomplish anything worthwhile in small groups it’s affirming and steering folks into o-rthodoxy (+ Bible reading aptitude). Many of them have been in church most their lives & aren’t equipped to recognize orthodoxy v counterfeit.
💯 what Dan says.
Yes. Every Christian should steward their citizenship wisely. I believe every Christian should vote. But the vote doesn’t begin in November every two years. It begins earlier. In primaries. In showing up and choosing the best candidate who matches character and policy. In local elections. In the things you choose to speak out about and those things you choose to be silent about.
If your only framework for politics is two weeks in November, you are not that engaged. You are disengaged.
Matt Hawkins ن retweeted
I’m praying for a renewed CT that embodies the vision and spirit of its original editor in chief, Carl Henry, with application toward the 21st century’s unique challenges. It’s an important institution.
Example of social science forcing survey respondents to split an obvious paradox, resulting in the appearance of polarization when there probably isn’t any.
Matt Hawkins ن retweeted
There’s another version of lust that can be just as deadening to the senses and just as damaging to the soul, and it’s one that we often overlook, something we often justify for being “realistic.”
thegospelcoalition.org/blogs…
Matt Hawkins ن retweeted
As a former police officer and as a pastor, I understand both the purpose and the biblical foundation of capital punishment. It is not merely punishment for a crime; it is also intended to deter others from committing similar acts.
Scripture not only provides justification for capital punishment, but in cases of murder, explicitly calls for it. Genesis 9:6 declares, “Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man his blood shall be shed; for in the image of God He made man.”
Capital punishment, properly administered, is not a rejection of the sanctity of human life. It is an affirmation of it.
But that does not mean executions should become public spectacles.
I oppose the proposed livestreaming of the execution of convicted Fort Hood terrorist Nidal Hasan for two reasons.
First, when we separate capital punishment from its moral foundation, we risk turning an act of justice into what appears to be an act of vengeance. Rather than affirming the sanctity of human life, a public spectacle of death can communicate the opposite message—that human life has little value.
Second, as House Speaker Mike Johnson has warned, broadcasting Hasan’s execution could provide jihadist organizations with a powerful recruiting tool. Rather than deterring future terrorists, it could give them propaganda to inspire more violence.
Nidal Hasan should receive the punishment imposed for his horrific crimes. Justice should be carried out, but it should not become entertainment.
The purpose of capital punishment is to uphold the value of innocent human life, not to make a spectacle of taking the life of the guilty.
In a world where we have pro-choice party vs pro-abortion party, we’re gonna see a lot more folks navigating this brother’s dilemma. 😔
It was easier when it was pro-life vs pro-choice.
The party trends are unavoidable and call for a reimagined, bipartisan prolife strategy.
Matt Hawkins ن retweeted
Great resource. Our churches could use this to help educate people on what it means to be Baptist
Over at the @obunews YouTube account, @M_Y_Emerson and I have begun a series with short explanations of the Baptist Faith & Message 2000. More to come, but we hope this first set serves you and your church!
youtube.com/playlist?list=PL…
A significant aim of just war theology is to retain the humanity and dignity *of those using* force in accordance with the theology.
Matt Hawkins ن retweeted
NEW from me: The National Association of Evangelicals (along with several other religious groups) are now joining the USCCB in condemning Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth’s plans to publicly execute Nidal Malik Hasan, also saying doing so promotes a “culture of death.”
Matt Hawkins ن retweeted
When the US government carries out a just killing- and this is what it is- it should do it soberly and w/ a heaviness. I fear turning it into a spectacle will undermine support for just and careful capital punishment.
I hope this decision will be reversed.
BREAKING: The Pentagon says it will livestream the firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan. apnews.com/article/fort-hood…
Don’t miss the through line of the past decade:
• “Just” locker room talk
• “Owning the [them]”
• Scapegoating: illegal immigrants, legal immigrants, Muslims, Jews, women (almost in that order)
• Rise of “Christian” nationalism +
• abandonment of religious freedom…
1/
• Exuberance for public physical punishment including execution. (Not merely a defense of capital punishment, but a gleeful desire for it)
2/
Matt Hawkins ن retweeted
I’m a university professor, student ministry volunteer, parent, former student pastor, and former young man (relatively speaking).
ISTM that the default mode for many young men—and this has been the case since young men have existed—is to respond to evils in the world and in their own hearts with aggression.
This aggression often takes two forms: zeal and belligerence.
Zeal is a righteous aggression, one that seeks to make wrongs right and fight against evil with the Lord’s goodness and justice as their aim.
Belligerence is a sinful aggression, one that seeks to tear down and destroy in order to bring about one’s own self-grafting views of goodness and justice.
Zeal comes with maturity, and young men are often simply not mature enough yet to grasp the difference. They many times look to older men for an example.
It’s always been particularly frustrating to me when older men stoke the fires of belligerence in younger men. But it’s incumbent upon older men to (albeit imperfectly) embody and teach young men zeal without belligerence.
This includes how we speak about the gospel, how we speak about others, how we handle difficult situations, how we respond to critique, and how we discuss complicated biblical and cultural issues.
May Paul’s exhortation be true of us:
“Older men are to be self-controlled, worthy of respect, sensible, and sound in faith, love, and endurance. … In the same way, encourage the young men to be self-controlled in everything. Make yourself an example of good works with integrity and dignity in your teaching.” (Titus 1:2, 6-7)
This is exceptionally helpful. 💪🏼
Some of my thoughts on theological retrieval, especially as it is applied to political theology. thegospelcoalition.org/artic…
As a son of a super hostess mother, and a Gen X adult, this feels both super real and tragic.
The share of Americans who say they host friends or family at their home at least monthly has fallen from 42 percent in 1975 to 12 percent in 2026—a 70 percent collapse in a half-century. open.substack.com/pub/derekt…
