Jeffrey Bilbro is an Associate Professor of English at Grove City College. He grew up in the mountainous state of Washington and earned his B.A. in Writing and Literature from George Fox University in Oregon and his Ph.D. in English from Baylor University. His books include Words for Conviviality: Media Technologies and Practices of Hope, Reading the Times: A Literary and Theological Inquiry into the News, Loving God’s Wildness: The Christian Roots of Ecological Ethics in American Literature, Wendell Berry and Higher Education: Cultivating Virtues of Place (written with Jack Baker), and Virtues of Renewal: Wendell Berry’s Sustainable Forms.
Jeffrey Bilbro
Articles by Jeffrey Bilbro
Grimsby, Bureaucracy, and Brave New World
“Left Behind in Grimsby.” Simon Cross narrates the tensions he experienced ministering in a neighborhood where he wasn’t stuck: “There’s a feeling of inadequacy that comes with knowing how little…
Syncretism, Saints, and Childhood
“Against Syncretism, For Christians Building Like Christians.” Jake Meador provides a good summary of and response to Paul Kingsnorth’s recent lecture: “Bucer's measure of judging a Christian society was not…
Dinosaurs, Screens, and Symbols
“Dinner with Dinosaurs.” In a wide-ranging and probing essay, Lauren Spohn considers what kind of narrative we need to motivate human action and guide our technological and cultural project: “It’s…
Voting for a President Won’t Save the Republic
A democracy is not kept by filling in a ballot bubble once every four years. It’s kept by responsibly and virtuously exercising our freedoms in our homes, communities, and institutions…
Boethius, History, and Charm
“Love Letter to America.” A.M. Hickman takes a hard look at America’s many dysfunctions: “Then the realization sinks in like news of a dear old friend’s death: There beneath the…
Ducks, Hitler, and Gridlock
“The Place of Tides by James Rebanks Review—Ducking Out of a Midlife Crisis.” Helen Davies praises Rebanks’s “quietly profound book. It is a story about a still-essential way of living…
2025 Front Porch Republic Student Essay Contest
We're announcing a student essay contest! If you're a student, consider submitting an essay, and if you know any students, encourage them to apply. Students are invited to respond either…
Children, Pawpaws, and Ticks
“Against Killing Children.” In a new essay, Wendell Berry speaks against the violence on which our machine age runs and invites us to imagine an alternative way of relating to…
FPR Conference Ideas?
As we make plans for next year's conference, we're inviting input from Porchers regarding what you might value in upcoming gatherings. Whether you're a regular FPR conference attendee or haven't…
Civility in Grand Rapids
Thanks to all who joined us for a wonderful gathering in Grand Rapids last weekend. On Friday evening, Jeff Polet and Ross Douthat conversed about populism, Lasch, and American presidential…
Berry, MacIntyre, and Screens
“News from the Berry Center.” The Berry Center fall newsletter provides updates on their ongoing work, and Mary Berry’s opening letter serves as a good reminder of their vision for…
Work, Repair, and Reading
“In Defiance of All Powers.” Peter Mommsen introduces Plough’s new issue on Freedom. It looks quite promising, but my physical copy hasn’t arrived yet, so I’m exercising restraint: “as my…
TN BBQ with FPR and DO Friends
Brian Miller (author of Kayaking with Lambs) is hosting a BBQ at his farm outside Philadelphia, TN with some Doomer Optimism friends. They'll be gathering Sept. 28 from 6-10. Guests…
Twenty-Six Theses on Textual Technologies
Language is primarily a relational (rather than a representational) technology. Words articulate our relationships to God, other humans, our environment, and even ourselves.
Cheese, Solidarity, and Tradwives
“How a Vermont Cheesemaker Helps Local Farms Thrive.” The essay up on FPR’s front page right now by Lenny Wells describes some possibilities for small farmers to find a “seam”…
Contaminated Farms, Individualism, and Art
“Twelve Months to Fall Back in Love with America.” Anarchist, hobo, Coast Guardsman, Catholic, Front Porch Republic conference-goer, and now newlywed A.M. Hickman is traveling America with his wife Keturah…
Volunteering, Urban Farms, and Grocery Stores
We’ve now posted the FPR conference schedule. Based on feedback from recent conferences, we've built a bit more elbow room into the schedule to allow for more mingling and discussion.…
Contrary U, New Verse Review, and Vinyl Records
“Captive Users.” Alexander Stern pens a thoughtful review essay that puts Cory Doctorow’s The Internet Con: How to Seize the Means of Computation in conversation with Antón Barba-Kay’s A Web…
Nisbet, Fact-Checking, and Leopold
“Robert Nisbet for the Present Age.” Kirstin Birkhaug describes the experience of teaching Robert Nisbet’s The Present Age and watching her students respond to his analysis of America’s twinned statism…
Wendell Berry, the Pioneer Fire, and Idols
“‘Your Friend, Wendell’: A 90th Birthday Tribute to Wendell Berry.” To mark Wendell Berry’s 90th birthday, The Library of America published a set of reflections by several of the people…
Motherhood, Rural Decline, and Phoenix
I’ll be logging off the internet for a few weeks and thus pausing these Water Dippers. I aim to resume them in early August. In the meantime, make plans to…
Maurin, Partisanship, and Myth
"Ideas and Historical Consequences." Mars Hill Audio released the full version of an old interview with John Lukacs. FPR readers can up for a free FPR affiliate membership at Mars…
Math, Antitrust, and Work
“Computers Can’t Do Math.” David Schaengold has a clear and provocative essay on the differences between computer “thinking” and human thinking: “we can be sure there are world states beyond…
COVID, ChatGPT, and PFAS
“The Cultural Roots of Our Demographic Ennui.” Patrick Brown argues that affluence—what regular FPR contributor John de Graaf labeled “affluenza”—lies behind many of our cultural ills: “A world of creature…