According to Pew Research, if current trends continue then by 2050 there will be nine billion people living on the planet. Approximately three billion will be Christians, three billion will be Muslims, and three billion others will represent various beliefs (both religious and secular).1 Since Christianity and Islam are the two largest (comprising about 55% of the world’s population2) religions in the world people…
It’s one of the fastest growing religions in the world, it’s been around since the seventh century, and it is regularly in the news—often associated with atrocities committed by its most militant members (the Charlie Hebdo shooting and the Boko Haram kidnapping of 300 girls come to mind). How can we understand Islam in the twenty-first century? I appreciate that…
Topping my 2015 to-do list is writing my latest book, which will compare and contrast Jesus Christ with the leaders of other major world religions. I’ll be dedicating much of my time to this project—so to help keep me from being overwhelmed, Reflections will be featuring more guest author articles and editorial interviews in the coming months, all of which…
Like many people, I have been paying careful attention to the religious and political events transpiring in the Middle East for the past several years. As a student of Islam, I am very interested in this religion’s relationship to radical ideologies that foment violence and terrorism. But today I have a question. How many wars or conflicts or political tensions…
Because my philosophy studies have taught me to value reflective thinking, I deliberately make time to think clearly and carefully as I can about issues that I deem important. With this in mind, I’d like to introduce a new segment, entitled Reflective Thinking, to Reflections. At the beginning of each month, I will post an article sharing my ruminations on…
