The current nationalist fervor could actually be a sign of nation-states’ weakness, a gasp that belies a lack of confidence in it as a form of government that can adequately represent a people and govern them fairly.

Few would have estimated 70 years ago, let alone one thousand, that this week would arrive. On Monday, May 14, Israel celebrated the seventieth anniversary of becoming a nation. In light of this remarkable and unlikely reality, Christians are faced with the task of celebrating and interpreting this event against the backdrop of the last 70 years.

By turning to cultural anthropology and other methods for encountering the ancient world, Brown humanized not just Augustine but also ancient Christianity itself. Getting into the early Christian’s skin and trying to understand the world through the eyes of those who lived in it, Brown established empathy as a scholarly tool.

Francis P. Miller claims the church cannot stand by and optimistically assume that the state will pursue justice without the assistance of a religious ethic.