Not since the Civil War, some thoughtful observers are saying, has our nation been so divided. Never so polarized. Never with so many of its citizens set so bitterly against each other.

I’ve been watching, from an appropriate distance, the collapse of still another marriage. Neither the husband nor the wife thinks there’s any future. They’ve tried hard, they say, and they’ve listened to all sorts of counsel from pastors, therapists, friends, and family. But their motivation has vanished.

Nobody’s ever confused me with “Dear Abby.” In the 33 years I’ve edited this column, nobody’s ever written me asking for advice about courtship, marriage issues, or an intrusive mother-in-law.

But it’s a rare week’s mail that doesn’t bring several appeals for advice of a different kind. What do I think about ABC College? Would I recommend DEF University? What about GHI Seminary? Is the JKL Relief Agency careful in its use of funds? Is the MNO Home for Children a reliable orphanage?

If most of us American evangelicals are still flummoxed by the ethical dilemmas of the 2016 presidential election, we should be studying hard and getting ready. Things could be even more challenging in 2020.

Whenever, in recent times, the conversation among us evangelicals has turned to the so-called LGBTQ community, two themes surface frequently.

“Can you believe,” folks ask repeatedly, “how fast all this has happened?”

And second: “So where is the LGBTQ movement moving next? I can’t see any more taboos for them to cross.”

Both are thoughtful and legitimate questions. But too much focus on the past may have a tendency to obscure what lies ahead. We are what we are; we are what we have become—as repugnant as that reality might be. What are we going to do about it?

Among all the abuses of the democratic process in America, none is more arrogant than the gerrymander. I argued that point here 25 years ago, but the danger is more acute now.

On the face of it, no book focused primarily on the subject of dying holds high promise for becoming a bestseller. Death is hardly the most appealing of all possible topics. And unless the author has actually “been there, and done that,” the book-buying public has reason to be skeptical.

If I tell you as well that this book I want you to read was written by a philosophy and ethics professor at a small college, I realize you may already be turning the page.