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3 min read Why I'm Writing

Why this? Why now? (An Intro)

I didn’t want to enter the culture wars—but I can’t stay silent either. This blog is my attempt at quiet resistance: to follow Jesus faithfully in an age of outrage, fear, and empire. Why a pen name? Why now? Here’s the story.
Why this? Why now? (An Intro)

Welcome to Letters from the Western March. I want to explain what this is and why I'm doing it.

Those who know me know I'm not one for being aggressive, divisive, or flippant. But I've been thinking a lot about what's happening in our country and world. While many of my concerns touch politics, my convictions are not primarily political. They're spiritual.

2025 feels like a year of outrage. Everyone seems angry at everyone else. What used to be private is now on full display. We're learning who people really are and how compartmentalized many lives have become. I've seen Christians whose politics and online behavior seem untouched by Jesus' teachings. I wholeheartedly disagree with that divide.

This blog isn't about converting your political opinions to mine. In fact, I'll probably avoid sharing them outright, though you may deduce where I stand. What I will write about is what it looks like to follow Jesus on the narrow path in 21st-century America. I started this blog because I don't want to be another loud voice in the culture wars, but I can't stay silent anymore. I see people I love caught up in anger, hatred, and fear, when Jesus calls us to quiet resistance by being formed into the image of our Lord.

That means exploring:

  • How Christians live faithfully under empire (yes, America is one, following in the footsteps of Babylon, Persia, Rome, the Caliphates, the Mongols, and the British Empire).
  • Honest reflection on my evangelical upbringing and where I believe the Church has lost the plot.
  • What happens when faith and fear get tangled, and Jesus gets co-opted by power.

About the Pen Name

Let's name the elephant in the room. This blog is being sent to people who saw a Facebook post and messaged that you were interested in hearing more of my thoughts, but you don't see my name anywhere on this site.

I chose to write under a pen name, R.A. Fen, not out of fear, but out of discernment. Free speech may be a cornerstone of democracy, but it is not guaranteed forever. In real time, we are watching the erosion of due process, habeas corpus, and punishment of dissent. Today I can write freely. That may not be true in a few years if unchecked power continues to grow.

I have responsibilities to my family and my calling, so I'm choosing to write with a layer of distance. I can't go back in the future and remove my name from my writing, so I'm choosing to do that from the beginning. If you want to know the story behind the name, feel free to ask me in person. I'd love to tell you.

Please feel free to share these posts online with anyone who might be interested, but please don't tag my personal profile or say, "This is my pastor." You're welcome to say you know the author, but I'd appreciate your help protecting this space.

I'm not afraid, but I'm not naïve either. Most dictators around the world were elected before they rewrote the rules. Our nation is not as exceptional as we've been taught. I love this country enough to critique it. And I believe with all my heart that Jesus is King, not Caesar.

My plan is to post weekly, likely on Fridays. I also have the ability to send out email newsletters of my posts, so if you want to stay up to date, subscribe! Please be gracious as I begin. And if you ever want to talk about what I'm writing, you know where to find me.

With love and conviction,

R.A. Fen

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