By: David Beavis on March 8, 2023
An A.I. Malfunction or Accurate Reflection “Like any other shiny new toy, A.I. is ultimately a mirror. And it will reflect back exactly who we are. From the best of us, to the worst of us.” This statement was made by comedian John Oliver in last week’s showing of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.[1]…
By: Andy Hale on March 8, 2023
The debate over postmodernism and modernism feels like it was decided years ago, like when I was a wee lad in college. However, there has been a resurgence of conversation around these issues. Stephen Hick’s book, Explaining Postmodernism: Skepticism and Socialism from Rousseau to Foucault, has seen a revival in the zeitgeist. A professor of philosophy…
By: Roy Gruber on March 8, 2023
Stephen Hicks is a Canadian-American philosopher who teaches at Rockford University and directs the Center for Ethics and Entrepreneurship.[1] His book, Explaining Postmodernism covers that broad topic in a polemic tone. Hicks states his central thesis on the Contents page: “The failure of epistemology made postmodernism possible, and the failure of socialism made postmodernism necessary.”[2]…
By: Eric Basye on March 8, 2023
What is postmodernism? In his book, Explaining Postmodernism, Stephen Hicks, a Canadian-American professor at Rockford University, seeks to answer this question. In a review of Hicks’ book, Steven Sanders states, Postmodernism rejects, or is deeply suspicious of, truth, objectivity, and progress, and is characterized by a distinctive anti-science, anti-capitalist mentality. Postmodernists are united by both…
By: Cathy Glei on March 7, 2023
Okay. . . confession time everyone. When you read the title, Steal Like an Artist, did the word “steal” entice you to read more? Or for a quick minute did you wonder if you were being led on a path to breaking a commandment? Confession, I wanted to read more. The book convinced me that…
By: Greg McMullen on March 7, 2023
I have a teenage daughter that likes to speak into my life. She often shares what she learned in high school with us and how messed up the world is. She will often make suggestions in how we should do things, or even at our church. Recently she informed me that if I would not…
By: Kally Elliott on March 7, 2023
“Pretend to be making something until you actually make something.”[1] That’s exactly what I’m doing in this doctoral program. I am pretending that I am writing a dissertation on mental health and the Church. Maybe in a couple of years and some change I will actually have written it! “Fake it until you make it”[2]…
By: Russell Chun on March 7, 2023
Because I am surrounded by articulate and erudite people[1], and because I want to write the story I want to read (p.47). Here is a portion of my “idea” that will be an endpoint in my NPO. Drum roll please, “Ladies and Gentlemen, I introduce you to Interlinkt!” What is Interlinkt you wonder? Well it…
By: Scott Dickie on March 7, 2023
It feels a little ‘tone deaf’ for me to write yet another boring blog post about a book that is seeking to stimulate creativity (and justify the means through which we all become creative: theft). So…here are a few somewhat random thoughts with creative titles stimulated by the somewhat random book, “Steal Like an Artist.”…
By: Kristy Newport on March 6, 2023
Is the Bible gender biased? Are there examples in the Bible which confirm that God does not have a bias among the sexes? I have struggled with these questions and have found hope ultimately in the example Jesus gave in how he treated both sexes when he walked the earth. Reading Pragya Agarwal’s book Sway:…
By: Shonell Dillon on March 6, 2023
Unraveling Unconscious Bias Pragya Agarwal After reading for some time, I turned the book over and noticed that there was a sticker on it that said DC public library. I thought how in the heck did I get a library book? I admit I am a bit cheap when it comes to books that I…
By: Jennifer Vernam on March 6, 2023
Austin Kleon’s Steal Like an Artist[1] was a fun read. It was not the most intellectual content we have had this term, but I am thankful for a week that did not require a lot of what I call “thick” reading. A review I found describes the book this way: “It’s just filled with quotes…
By: Tim Clark on March 6, 2023
For academic, professional, and personal reasons this school year has been moving at breakneck speed for me; so fast at times that I’m often afraid I can’t keep up. I genuinely enjoy reading, but lately I’ve felt like I’m reading to save my life—like the bus in the movie Speed, if I let my pace…
By: Jean de Dieu Ndahiriwe on March 5, 2023
As I looked at Polanyi’s work, I saw a troubled sojourner struggling to live a life of impact in a world that is so rapidly changing. Karl Polanyi’s Great Transformation: The Political and Economic Origins of Our Time is a source of great insights that can help us see more details of the complexity of…
By: Noel Liemam on March 5, 2023
During my carpentry apprenticeship years, I heard the phrase so many as it was repeated to us (the newly hired or apprentices), “cut once, so measure twice.” When you heard something repeat and repeat so many times, it becomes annoying, but it becomes part of you. In my first year as an carpentry apprentice, I…
By: Laura Fleetwood on March 5, 2023
Why are you charging a fee for a guided prayer session? Talking to God should be free.” That message appeared in my DMs after I invited my social media followers to an online guided prayer session I was conducting. In spite of more than 30 people happily paying for the online experience, I never offered…
By: Henry Gwani on March 4, 2023
The Practice of Adaptive Leadership: Tools and Tactics for Changing your Organization and the World is about possibility, yet not a baseless or pie-in-the-sky sort. But one grounded in a realistic kind of possibility which demands working hard to lead in a fast-changing environment. Drawing from a total of more than 60 years of leadership…
By: Caleb Lu on March 4, 2023
“Do you know ____?” I had a conversation with an old acquaintance that was about 45 minutes of this question in some for or another as they ran through a list of the connections they had made during their time in ministry. It reminded me of conversations around lunch tables at large Evangelical conferences centered…
By: Denise Johnson on March 4, 2023
There are few things I love more than sitting in the back corner of a meeting. It ranks right up there with sitting in a café in the center of a busy square or mall. Both situations provide an optimal view of the people and how they interact with the world around them. It is…
By: Jana Dluehosh on March 3, 2023
Have you ever heard of the concept of Cow trails? When looking at a field where cows often graze you’ll begin to notice trails that there is no longer growth possible. This is because Cows take the path of least resistance. Day after day they follow this easy trail because it requires less work. “That…
