Author: the Josh Benner Blog

For every statement about John Wyclif, there is an equal and opposite statement about John Wyclif. There isn’t even universal agreement about how his name is spelled, ranging from Wyclif, to Wycliffe, to Wickliffe, among others. It was the 16th century historian John Bale who first called Wyclif “the Morning Star of the Reformation. ” Wyclif was lauded as the champion of preaching in the vernacular and credited as the first to translate the Bible into English. He seems to sometimes be mythologized into the man who was a precursor to the Protestant Reformation, who started the Lollards. But contemporary scholarship has called these claims into question. As more research has been done into this man, there seems to be debate over his specific contributions. Based on his writings, it is reasonable enough to have a sense of his theology. In many respects, it seems easier to have a sense of Wyclif’s reputation than his concrete accomplishments. (more…)

An 18 year old Georgia man named Steven Fields had $30,000 deposited into his bank account. It was a mistake from a bank teller who meant to deposit the money into the account of…Steven Fields, another man in the same small town with the same name.

What’s interesting to me about this story is that I read comments on various articles and how many people justify what he did: “it was the bank’s fault, they should have to eat the loss.” (more…)

I hear a lot of ideas that I disagree with and think are ridiculous. But I try to be accepting. But then I sometimes see something, and think “I can’t accept this. Are these real people? Who thinks like this?”

On Thursday night, the Associated Students of the University of California Irvine voted to remove the American flag from their “common space.”

I’ve read their resolution and I think it’s trash. They don’t have compelling reasons. In fact, I feel that there are places where it is contradictory and poorly worded. (more…)

Chicago is getting pounded by Winter Storm Linus. I was driving to church today and the roads were terrible. I know that they had been plowed but the snow is falling too fast to keep up with. As the afternoon continues, the city is entering a blizzard warning. It’s definitely the biggest snowstorm I’ve seen in my three years in Chicagoland. (more…)