Monday, September 14, 2026

It is the 14th of September 2026. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

A very happy Monday to you- if it’s the 14th of September, I must be somewhere in Germany. You can actually check out the daily blog with pictures and videos from my trip at GTItours.org. You can also find information on how you can join me on an upcoming trip to Germany and Switzerland or England and Scotland.

 

2 questions wrapped into one today- Eric in Kimberley, Wisconsin wrote… I mean, I still call it “the Cedars,” but I also refer to my town as El Toro even after it changed renamed “Lake Forest.” Eric wrote:

 

“What are your most frequent sources of inspiration for the Daily Almanac podcast, and how do you keep track of and organize all of your possible ideas for the podcast?”

 

Good question- and one that rolls in every once in a while. And then I got one from John in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada (I love our Canadian listeners- and Peterborough is the home of Max Headroom and Emily Haines of Metric). John is a college student putting together a library and wanted to know which Church History books he should have.

 

Ok- my sources of inspiration are the church history books I read. The trick to this show is to always be reading, and when dates pop up, mark them down. I use my Apple Notes app for everything. I use sites like Today in History from the Concordia Historical Institute, a similar site at Christianity Today, the Christian History Institute, as well as Britannica and Wikipedia. But like any research, you have to triangulate- don’t take one source as infallible. I cross-reference with probably my two most used books- Diarmaid MacCulloch’s Christianity and Justo Gonzales 2 Volume Church History, or, if it’s more recent and American, with the works of Mark Noll, George Marsden, etc…

 

Here’s my trick. Start BROAD. Understand that breadth is going to sacrifice specificity, but that’s ok. I always start my studies with a question: who was that? Why did they do that? Why is… Is there a connection between X and Y? Why does this matter? Would a non-professional care?

 

As I read, I let myself stop every once in a while to ask a question or two… some jump right out of the text; others are questions like “where did they ever learn that?” And then I can jump to the footnotes or endnotes (I am a team footnote forever… I hate flipping to the end of the chapter or book).

 

The internet can be helpful (archive.org has so many older books digitized- I’m reading from that site on my iPad every day), but it’s a mess. I’m sure AI can help with some stuff… but make sure it’s just finding and computing, not interpreting. You’re the “intelligence”; it, like Google or Wikipedia, is just a first step in collecting data and deciding what’s credible, what other sources corroborate, etc… there are also ethical issues with the use of AI for environmental reasons… I’ll let you dig in as you so desire.

 

And I don’t go in with a blank slate; I have my own biases developed over years of reading and studying, but I try not to be overinfluenced by my initial thoughts. In a very early project in my life as a young historian, I went to a movement I was told not to like and that I should try to dismantle it with historical arguments. Luckily, that research dismantled me, and I am thankful for it- even if it’s someone you disagree with- I bet you could learn something from them, even if your research assures you that you won’t be adopting their ideas.

 

Read, stay humble, ask “why does this matter?” In the big scheme of things, and then realize that it’s storytelling, it’s our family story… have fun with it and know that it too will burn someday… the archive deleted, the books gone, your memory will become a ghost. And that’s OK! Do what you can with the talents God has given you and rest assured that it is not to the one who works, but to the one who is credited as righteous… and that’s why we end this show the way we do… more questions- I love the ones that get personal- I’ll be judicious about what I say on air- but don’t fret to ask those questions as church history is done for our sake- it should be personal!

 

 

The Last word for today comes from the daily lectionary and from Hebrews 11:

23 By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict.

24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. 27 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. 28 By faith he kept the Passover and the application of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.

29 By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.

 

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 14th of September 2026 brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man who, as a coffee guy, certainly has a favorite book of the Bible… he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man… sorry, the joke is “Hebrews,” and it’s not particularly clever… I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.