Professor of Theology
Dordt University
Justin Ariel Bailey works at the intersection of Christian theology, culture, and ministry. Having served as a pastor in a number of diverse settings, his work as a professor explores the ways that culture shapes the practice of Christian faith, as well as the ways that that Christian faith enables culture care. He holds a PhD in Theology and his research seeks to bridge gaps between church and academy, and the formational spaces where they overlap. He is the host of the In All Things podcast, and writes regularly for their online journal.
His written work has appeared in Christianity Today, The Banner, Fare Forward, and the Reformed Journal, as well as academic publications such as Christian Scholars Review and the International Journal of Public Theology. He is the author of the book Reimagining Apologetics (IVP Academic, 2020) and Interpreting Your World (Baker Academic, 2022).
This short, accessible introduction to the conversation between theology and culture offers a patient, thoughtful, and theologically attuned approach to cultural discernment.
The book explores 5 dimensions of culture – meaning, power, morality, religion, and aesthetics – and shows how each needs the others and all need theology. Each chapter includes distinctive practices for spiritual formation and practical application.
For many Christians, the traditional approach of apologetics has grown stale. In light of the current secular climate, rhetorical strategies that previously served the church and apologists well are no longer effective.
This book seeks to address this dilemma by infusing apologetics with an appeal to the imagination, the aesthetic, and the affective.
Demonstrating that this is possible, it engages with two examples of those who have done apologetics through the imagination: George MacDonald and Marilynne Robinson.
