John Schmalzbauer

How my mind has changed about campus evangelicalism

Happy 133rd Birthday to theologian Reinhold Niebuhr, author of these famous words:

God, give us grace to accept with serenity
the things that cannot be changed,
Courage to change the things
which should be changed,
and the wisdom to distinguish
the one from the other.

Enjoyed speaking with journalist Cornelia Powers about the world of college chaplaincy.

Excited to be included in this University of Missouri Press volume on religion and health in the Show Me State. My chapter focuses on the response of religious communities to the influenza epidemic of 1918. Other chapters look at cholera and COVID-19. upress.missouri.edu/978082622325...

Register at this link: adultstudents.missouristate.edu/msu62.htm

The actual form is here: dosaforms.missouristate.edu/view.php?id=...

To browse for other free classes (religion courses have the code REL), click here: bearapps.missouristate.edu/StudentRegis...

There is still time to register for free MSU courses in the 62+ program. I'd love to see you in my Religion in America (REL 131) or Religion, Spirituality and Health (REL 348) courses. Registration ends on Friday January 17th, so you still have some time left.

"No one goes to the Christmas Eve service for the sermon. They go for the music. Preaching cannot convey the deep meaning of this night. Only the hymns can do that."
-Reinhold Niebuhr

He visited more than once.

There’s no such thing as a Bonhoeffer moment Dietrich Bonhoeffer didn’t choose to be a martyr. He simply tried, as many others did, to be decent in the face of...

Thank you, @vjbarnett.bsky.social, for this nuanced reflection that gives us a human Bonhoeffer who we can still learn from. www.christiancentury.org/features/the...

RIP, Tony Campolo. I will never forget covering his visit to Wheaton College for the school paper back in 1989. And yes, he spoke with captivating intensity.

Moon over the Mother Road

Organizing for Sustainable Christian Agriculture

I'm privileged to manage a website that curates tools and insights for people interested in understanding the many ways people of faith form communities. It's not just about churches. See, for example, this latest post from our "Fieldnotes" blog: studyingcongregations.org/organizing-f...

"No one goes to the Christmas Eve service for the sermon. They go for the music. Preaching cannot convey the deep meaning of this night. Only the hymns can do that."
-Reinhold Niebuhr

The number of church organists is declining. But a new generation is emerging. Young musicians have taken to the organ at a time when there has been a decline in the number of instruments and in the professionals who play them.

"If young people aren’t as interested in going to church or fewer young people are going to church, we need to think, where are they going and how can we get the organ to them there?" www.washingtonpost.com/religion/202...