Today’s Advent devotional: Christ is our foundation, not our experiences.
Behind the Story
Our Spanish editorial director Giselle Seidel shares about the challenges of doing translation for CT articles: Translation is much more than looking up a series of words in a bilingual dictionary. Each language has its own idioms, connotations, and grammar logic. Spanish has the added peculiarity of being spoken in more than 20 countries, with vast differences in its use within local communities. (If you want to end up with more questions than answers, ask a group of Spanish speakers from different countries, "How do you say cake?")
When I translate into Spanish, I have to make sure I use the most universal words to communicate well with Spanish-speaking people wherever they are. But some sentences are especially hard to translate.
I remember a review on John Piper’s book Providence. Those of us who are familiar with Piper’s sermons know that he loves to say that God "sees to it" that this or that happens. For the article, the reviewer quoted, "Whatever verb I use to describe God’s relation to human choices, I always mean a kind of divine ‘seeing to it’ (providence) that never means God sins, or that man is not accountable for his choices."
I would love to tell you how I translated this into Spanish, but if you don’t speak the language, my explanation would not help. But I can tell you that CT’s translation team had an extensive conversation about all the different angles included in the meaning of those seemingly innocent three words. And the few of us who tackled the translation of this article made sure our readers received a clear idea with (more than three) words they would understand.
Paid Content
Have you noticed more young faces sitting around you at church on Sundays? If so, you’re not alone — across the country, Gen Z and Millennials are leading a church resurgence. Gloo and Barna have conducted research that reveals younger generations are now attending church more regularly than older ones.
To reach these generations, churches must find ways to engage young people where they spend most of their time: online. Gloo is in the center of this conversation, building technology that helps churches understand their congregations and connect with them effectively. Learn more about how Gloo can help you more effectively connect with your congregation.
December 8, 1691: English Puritan minister Richard Baxter dies in London. One of England's most renowned preachers and author of nearly 200 works (including several hymns), he was known as a peacemaker who sought unity among Protestants.
God may clothe the birds and the lilies, but he doesn’t seem that interested in our careers. At least, that’s how I’ve felt at times. Perhaps you’ve felt this way…
This piece was adapted from CT’s books newsletter. Subscribe here. Andrew Ross Sorkin, 1929: Inside the Greatest Crash in Wall Street History—and How It Shattered a Nation (Viking, 2025) In…
Many Christians wrestle with whether to include Santa Claus legends in their holiday traditions. Printmaker Ned Bustard offers the church tradition and history of Saint Nicholas as a winsome middle…
CT in 1963 covered one of American history’s tumultuous years. When President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, editors in the magazine’s Washington, DC, office collected religious leaders’ comments…
in the magazine
As we enter the holiday season, we consider how the places to which we belong shape us—and how we can be the face of welcome in a broken world. In this issue, you’ll read about how a monastery on Patmos offers quiet in a world of noise and, from Ann Voskamp, how God’s will is a place to find home. Read about modern missions terminology in our roundtable feature and about an astrophysicist’s thoughts on the Incarnation. Be sure to linger over Andy Olsen’s reported feature "An American Deportation" as we consider Christian responses to immigration policies. May we practice hospitality wherever we find ourselves.
Get the most recent headlines and stories from Christianity Today delivered to your inbox daily.
Delivered free via email to subscribers weekly. Sign up for this newsletter.
You are currently subscribed as npy7hz0ktx@nie.podam.pl. Sign up to more newsletters like this. Manage your email preferences or unsubscribe.
Christianity Today is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
"Christianity Today" and "CT" are the registered trademarks of Christianity Today International.
