Biblical Symbolism (Part One)
(Copyright 01-29-2025) by Richard T. Ritenbaugh (Charlotte, North Carolina) Many people who profess Christianity feel they understand the Bible. Tens of thousands of books, commentaries, Bible dictionaries, and prophetic writings explain and re-explain it by thesis, exegesis, and endless debate. However, how much do the authors of these works truly understand? If the Bible is so […]
Cogitations on Christmas
(Copyright 12-19-2024) by Richard T. Ritenbaugh & David C. Grabbe (Charlotte, North Carolina) Christmas ContradictionsAn anonymous quotation that makes the rounds on the Internet every year runs, “Christmas is weird. What other time of year do you sit in front of a dead tree and eat candy out of your socks?” Though it may induce a […]
The Ever-Deepening Culture of Death
(Copyright 12-11-2024) by Richard T. Ritenbaugh (Charlotte, North Carolina) The phrase “culture of death” entered mainstream discourse in 1995 after the publication of Pope John Paul II’s encyclical, Evangelium Vitae (“The Gospel of Life”). In it, he wrote about issues like abortion, euthanasia, and assisted suicide and the moral implications of such practices on society. He argued […]
A Telling Juxtaposition
(Copyright 11-27-2024) by Richard T. Ritenbaugh (Charlotte, North Carolina) “The most effectual means of securing the continuance of our civil and religious liberties is always to remember with reverence and gratitude the Source from which they flow.”—John Jay The fourth Thursday in November, the holiday Americans call Thanksgiving Day, is always followed by an unofficial […]
Halloween
(Copyright 2021) by Richard T. Ritenbaugh (Charlotte, North Carolina) Each year, as the last day of October nears, members of God’s church begin making plans to avoid Halloween. Some plan a trip to the local mall to do some shopping, even though the malls teem with kids and their parents trick-or-treating. Others hope to escape […]
What Happened at En Dor?
(Copyright 10-30-2024) by Richard T. Ritenbaugh (Charlotte, North Carolina) Human beings are a superstitious lot, and those who claim Christianity as their religion are no exception. Things that go bump in the night scare Christians and pagans equally. Some branches of Christianity seem to have a morbid fascination with the otherworldly, and this reality probably […]
Israel’s Long War
(Copyright 2023) by Richard T. Ritenbaugh (Charlotte, North Carolina) I The early-morning Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023—a Sabbath day as well as the Eighth Day (see Leviticus 23:36, 39)—shocked the world. Beginning with a barrage of at least 3,000 rockets, militants crossed into Israeli territory via both ground and aerial (paragliding) units. The stunning attack, which overcame […]
The Pragmatic Japanese
(Copyright 2021) by Richard T. Ritenbaugh (Charlotte, North Carolina) Most neighborhoods in suburban America are densely packed affairs with houses standing perhaps as little as twenty feet apart. The contractors who build them try to use the space as efficiently as possible, building as many houses per acre as the home-buying public can bear. A […]
New Fractures in the ‘Special Relationship’
(Copyright 2021) by Richard T. Ritenbaugh (Charlotte, North Carolina) For many decades, the United States and Britain have enjoyed what has been called the Special Relationship. While the two countries have quarreled in the past, particularly over the matter of independence, they settled into a mostly cordial association, recognizing their shared language, history, and political […]
The Model Prayer
The Model Prayer (Part One): Introduction(Copyright) by Richard T. Ritenbaugh (Charlotte, North Carolina) Prayer is an intrinsic part of the religion revealed in the pages of Scripture. The Old Testament records many instances of faithful men and women humbly requesting mercy and aid from the God of heaven and earth, whether it is Daniel beseeching God to forgive Israel […]