The Theology of Abuse (Part One)
2009-09-10 23:29:00 Hugo, via Facebook, pointed me to today's Washington Post story about a new study on clergy sexual abuse from Baylor University's School of Social Work: One in every 33 women who attend worship services regularly has been the target of sexual advances by a religious leader, a survey released Wednesday says.The study, by Baylor University researchers, found that the problem is so pervasive that it almost certainly involves a wide range of denominations, religious traditions and leaders."It certainly is prevalent, and clearly the problem is more than simply a few charismatic leaders preying on vulnerable followers," said Diana Garland, dean of Baylor's School of Social Work, who co-authored the study.It found that more than two-thirds of the offenders were married to someone else at the time of the advance.... For its study, Baylor used the 2008 General Social Survey, a nationally representative sample of 3,559 respondents, to estimate the prevalence of clergy sexual misconduct. Wo...
By: Reiter's Block
Darkcloud wrote a new blog post: Mystical theology is not sequential or lin
2009-09-10 13:09:00 Darkcloud wrote a new blog post: Mystical theology is not sequential or linearlogical It is 7:48 AM Thursday morning in the flow of existence. The days just flowing by. No one can stop time. Our lives are here and soon forgotten. I got up this morning around 7:03 AM. I see the sun outside the sunroom window. I should mow our lawn today. I should do a lot ...
By: BackBeat
Darkcloud wrote a new blog post: a manual on mystical theology
2009-09-08 15:43:00 Darkcloud wrote a new blog post: a manual on mystical theology It is 10:24 AM Tuesday morning in the flow of existence. I got up this morning a little past 6 o’clock AM. I got up to a dark morning. We are coming to the end of another summer season. I made a pot of coffee and messed with our main computer while drinking a cup ...
Goodbye TNIV, Hello 2011 Updated NIV
2009-09-02 19:44:00 Yesterday, Zondervan Publishing House and Biblica (formerly the International Bible Society) announced plans to revise the NIV in 2011 and discontinue the controversial TNIV. Many conservative evangelicals, and groups like the Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW) openly opposed the gender neutral translation choices of the TNIV. So to hear this coming from Zondervan ...
Darkcloud wrote a new blog post: old diary entries on reading theology
2009-08-29 12:46:00 Darkcloud wrote a new blog post: old diary entries on reading theology Creatio Ex Nihilo It is 10:53 AM Sunday morning. I wandered upstairs and found Carol had gone back to bed. Carol wants to get over her cold before going back to work tomorrow night. This morning my mind has been on reading Theology. I recently bought these theological works for my library— “Reformed Dogmatics: Prolegomena” Volume One by ...
By: BackBeat
Those Five New Points of Calvinism
2009-08-26 18:23:00 Almost everyone reading my blog is familiar with the acrostic TULIP as standing for the five points of Calvinism. Probably most of you know what each point stands for: Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irresistible Grace, Perseverance of the Saints. Then the number goes down as to who knows what each point means. I ...
Marriage, Family Foundations, and De-Constructionism Exchange.
2009-08-21 06:37:00 Short facebook exchange. Thought I’d put it up here for future personal reference. If it may have the additional benefit of helping you with the important question of what is marriage, then I will consider it an additional blessing. Short discussion regarding the De-Construction of Marriage by militant feminist and homosexual ideologies. Leonard Goenaga just got out ...
More on Helping Your Kids with Salvation
2009-08-17 16:30:00 A few days ago, I posted on this question: How do we know our children are saved? After that post, I found a few more resources about this issue. Justin Taylor highlighted a free series of sermons on how children come to Christ. The 6 part sermon series is available for free download. My friend Jamsco of ...
The Witness of Jesus, Paul and John by Larry Helyer ? A Review
2009-08-06 07:28:00 Author: Larry Helyer Publisher: IVP Format: Hardcover Pages: 432 ISBN: 9780830828883 Stars: 4 of 5 My thanks go out to IVP Academic for supplying me with a review copy of this book. When I received The Witness of Jesus, Paul and John: An Exploration in Biblical Theology by Larry Helyer, I noticed the book looked like a college or seminary ...
?The More I Read the Bible the Less Dispensational I Become?
2009-07-29 19:29:00 These words were posted in an article written by John Davis (B.A. , M.Div., Th.M., D.Min.) for Sharper Iron, describing his journey out of dispensationalism. His description of becoming less and less dispensational, fits my story. I’ve taken a similar journey out of dispensationalism. His article is a good read, and the discussion to follow may ...
Problematic Polemic Puritanism
2009-07-29 15:30:00 You know I was stretching to come up with that title! Seriously though, I wanted to highlight D.A. Carson’s recent editorial on polemical theology, in the online (and free) theological journal Themelios (connected with The Gospel Coalition). Carson explains the inevitability of polemics: anyone “contending for a particular theological understanding” is practicing polemical theology. He then ...
Quotes to Note 11: Once Saved, Always Saved?
2009-07-24 21:03:00 I am working on my review of Larry Helyer’s excellent book, The Witness of Jesus, Paul and John: An Exploration in Biblical Theology. I came across a quote that is really good, but doesn’t quite fit into my review. I’ve explained my take on the well-known phrase “Once Saved, Always Saved”, in one of my most ...
Jesus? Radical View of Divorce
2009-07-17 19:10:00 Next to homosexuality the issue that seems to be most contentious for the Christian church is that of divorce. I?ve heard people say, when arguing for Christian tolerance of gays, that in the Bible Jesus never spoke out against homosexuality but he did specifically condemn divorce, a practice widely accepted within (if not a prime ...
By: Sharp Iron
Remembering Calvin on His 500th Birthday
2009-07-10 17:08:00 Today marks 500 years since the birth of John Calvin. Although Luther nailed his 95 theses on the church door in Wittenburg when Calvin was just 8 years old, it is John Calvin who is arguably the most famous (some might say, infamous) of the Reformers. His work in Geneva has an abiding ...
Tired of Waiting for the Beginning of the End Times?
2009-07-01 23:13:00 If you ever get one of these letters then..uh-oh? Dear Floyd; This message has been sent to you by a friend or a relative who has recently disappeared along with millions and millions of people around the world. The reason they chose to send you this letter is because they cared about you and would like ...
By: Sharp Iron
New Testament Text and Translation Commentary by Philip Comfort ? A Review
2009-06-12 00:36:00 Author: Philip W. Comfort Format: Hardcover Page Count: 899 Publisher: Tyndale House Publication Date: 2008 ISBN: 9781414310343 Rating: 5 of 5 stars My thanks go out to Christy Wong at Tyndale House Publishers for supplying me with a review copy of Philip Comfort’s New Testament Text and Translation Commentary. I have always been intrigued by textual criticism and the study of how we ...
Does the Doctrine of Penal Substitutionary Atonement Promote Torture?
2009-05-26 18:33:00 Not for the first time have I been perplexed by the Church’s long affair with torture. Is this just a case in which flawed and sinful men, having taken control of the Church, used brutal and violent means to achieve their own ends? Or is there some warped thread woven into the very fabric of ...
By: Sharp Iron
What I Mean by Preaching :: Desiring God
2009-05-14 08:17:00 Preaching is Expository Exultation. This clip is a good illustration of the importance of preaching. It was from Saturday night’s message. We saw Piper live at the north campus Sunday morning, and the video from that would have been even more passionate! I trust you’ll all enjoy this clip and rejoice ...
Theology - christiansquoting.org.uk
2009-03-31 17:17:00 All my theology is reduced to this narrow compass-- Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.--Archibald Alexander (1772-1851)In the Church of Jesus Christ there can and should be no non-theologians -- Karl BarthThe theologian who has no joy in his work is not a theologian at all. Sulky faces, morose thoughts and boring ways of speaking are intolerable in this science. --Karl Barth (1886-1968) (Quoted in his obituary, _New York Times_ [December 11, 1968])Theology is but our ideas of truth classified and arranged.-- Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887) In "Correct Quotes for DOS," WordStar International, 1991.Wherefore all theology, when separated from Christ, is not only vain and confused, but is also mad, deceitful, and spurious; for, though the philosophers sometimes utter excellent sayings, yet they have nothing but what is short-lived, and even mixed up with wicked and erroneous sentiments. JOHN CALVINA man may be theologically knowing and spiritually ignorant. - STEPHEN CHARN...
By: Christian Quoter
Quotes to Note 7: The Church Spiritually Fulfills OT Penal Execution Laws
2009-02-28 16:43:00 I’ve been enjoying the book Him We Proclaim: Preaching Christ from All the Scriptures by Dennis Johnson (P&R), lately. I hope to finish the book and have a review up by next week. This morning I came across a section that I’ll share in a quote below. I had never thought of the connection ...
Three books on global theology
2009-02-18 03:59:00 William A. Dyrness and Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, eds. Global Dictionary of Theology (IVP 2008), 996 pp.Vinoth Ramachandra, Subverting Global Myths: Theology and the Public Issues Shaping Our World (IVP 2008), 296 pp.Douglas A. Hicks and Mark Valeri, eds. Global Neighbors: Christian Faith and Moral Obligation in Today’s Economy (Eerdmans 2008), 276 pp.For several years now, IVP has been raising the bar for theological and biblical reference works – most notably with their remarkable series of black dictionaries. Their latest offering, the Global Dictionary of Theology, is another exemplary reference work and a first-rate resource for students and teachers of theology. The book provides an up-to-date picture of how theology is being practised today on every continent and in numerous different national and ethnic contexts.Generally speaking, the editors have avoided smaller entries, and have devoted the volume to extended, substantive articles on major themes. In many cases, there a...
What is systematic theology?
2009-01-30 02:25:00 The latest issues of the International Journal of Systematic Theology and Irish Theological Quarterly contain a great pile of essays exploring the nature of systematic theology from Catholic and Protestant perspectives. Interestingly, a couple of the articles refer to Lewis Ayres’ polemical call for “a wider critique of the culture of systematic theology as such, an uncovering of the conditions that make it possible, and a sketch of the sort of theological culture that would enable a deeper and more attentive engagement [with historical sources]” – but none of the articles really attempts to respond to this remarkable challenge. Anyway, here’s a list of the articles, with a few remarks about each one:Nicholas M. Healy, “What Is Systematic Theology?”This is one of the most interesting and stimulating of all the essays. Healy distinguishes between “official theology” (the production of church institutions), “ordinary theology” (the reflection of virtually all bel...
John Updike, 1932-2009: a glance at his theology
2009-01-28 00:53:00 I was very sad to hear that one of my favourite contemporary novelists, John Updike, has died. Updike was deeply influenced by Kierkegaard and Karl Barth; he is the most theological novelist you’ll ever come across. In an early essay, he remarks that, at one time, Barth’s theology was the only thing supporting his life; he used to keep Barth’s Romans commentary beside his bed, to read a few pages at a time. Much of his fiction could be read as an extended reflection on Barth’s dictum: “There is no way from us to God…. The god who stood at the end of some human way would not be God.”Pastors and theologians today could still learn a great deal from Updike’s fiction. Just think of the Lutheran pastor Fritz Kruppenbach in Rabbit, Run (1960), a deeply Barthian minister who utters this thunderous denouncement of pastoral work – in conversation with another minister, he asks: “Do you think this is your job, to meddle in these people’s lives? I know what they teach you...
Why ?Limited Atonement? (part 2)
2009-01-16 16:02:00 I apologize for not picking up my limited atonement series sooner. The holidays plus a couple bouts of illness intervened. I’m not optimistic enough to think in the next few posts I’ll answer all of everyone’s questions on this topic. I’ll still have more research to do and questions of my own, I’m sure. What I ...
Why ?Limited Atonement? (Part 1)
2008-12-16 15:59:00 Recently, a dear brother in Christ posted a lengthy rebuke of limited atonement as a comment on my blog. I promised him a response and thought I’d share the exchange here for the benefit of my readers. Feel free to read his original comment. This is the first part of my response to his concerns. A ...
New Zealand conference: trinitarian theology after Barth
2008-12-05 20:22:00 Next year’s conference on Trinitarian Theology after Barth is now open for registration. The conference will take place in the lovely city of Auckland, 14-15 May 2009. Speakers will include Bruce McCormack, Paul Molnar, John McDowell, Ivor Davidson, Murray Rae, and several others (including myself).You can get a registration form by contacting Myk Habets.
Sai Baba 83. Has Said He Will Rule World
2008-11-22 01:44:00 Incredible (literally) golden opulence abounds - flashily and gaudily - at Sathya Sai Baba's 83rd birthday celebrations in Puttaparthy, Andhra Pradesh, South India. This guru - whom many believe to be the most powerful and wealthy in India's long history of gurus - proclaims that he will first rule India and then the rest of the world - all in his own lifetime.
William Stringfellow: theology at the circus
2008-11-21 14:25:00 Some time ago, a reader here at F&T recommended the work of William Stringfellow – a writer I had never really come across till then. And when Kim Fabricius came to visit recently, he told me that he had also started reading Stringfellow. So this week I finally started reading him too, beginning with the excellent Eerdmans anthology. This is astonishing stuff – Stringfellow’s analysis of the principalities is especially good. I’m also intrigued by his love for the circus (he and his partner Anthony Towne once spent the summer traveling with a circus!). Here’s an excerpt of Stringfellow’s theological reflection on the circus:“The circus is among the few coherent images of the eschatological realm to which people still have ready access and ... the circus thereby affords some elementary insights into the idea of society as a consummate event. This principality, this art, this veritable liturgy, this common enterprise of multifarious creatures called the circus enacts a h...
The Israel of God by O. Palmer Robertson ? A Review
2008-11-10 19:21:00 Author: O. Palmer Robertson Format: Softcover Page Count: 196 Publisher: Presbyterian & Reformed Publication Date: 2000 ISBN: 0875523989 Rating: 5 of 5 stars Like most any American evangelical, how the Bible views the modern state of Israel is a topic that interests me. I’ve grown in my understanding of this issue, even as I’ve evaluated competing theological systems such as dispensationalism ...
Ex-NASA Scientist and Wife Test Sathya Sai Baba?s ?Grace?
2008-11-09 01:48:00 Referring in their talks to Jaani Drucker's rape in an official Sathya Sai Center, they both held that Jaani is not her body. She is only in a dream. Not being her body, but the eternal Atma, Jaani was never raped. All is the Lord's Grace
Rejoicing in God?s Sovereignty
2008-11-06 15:52:00 Last night, John Piper presented the vision and educational philosophy for our church’s new college and seminary. Bethlehem College and Seminary wll remain tethered to the original ideals which have grown strong and proved frutiful over 10 years as The Bethlehem Institute (of Bethlehem Baptist Church). Piper had some interesting things to say contrasting education/persuasion and ...
Art and theology with Edward Knippers
2008-11-06 05:46:00 The series on the paintings of Edward Knippers is now underway over at Theology Forum (including my own post), with plenty of nice pictures to look at. Here are the links so far, with a brief excerpt from each post:First, Edward Knippers discusses his own work in relation to a theology of incarnation and embodiment: “I hope that my cubist-type language suggests a multi-dimensional world quite different from our own as it keeps the eyes in constant motion through transparent overlappings. I have tried to use this visual metaphor to hint at the movement behind the veil – to uphold the truth that for those in Christ there is glory beyond the edges of our comprehension.”Next, Fred Sanders discusses the visual language of Knippers’ work: “Up close, a Knippers painting is a revelation: in your space, in your face, confrontational and aggressive. His pinkish giants don’t stay in a polite middle distance in his images, but crowd the foreground. A room with three or four of them ...
Art and incarnation: the art and theology of Edward Knippers
2008-10-30 22:56:00 Next week, Theology Forum will be hosting a “blog exhibition” showcasing the art of Edward Knippers. Starting Monday, they’ll be posting several pieces of Knippers’ work each day, accompanied by short essays which engage theologically with these paintings.My own essay on “Knippers and the Resurrection of the Body” will be posted on Wednesday. I’m very excited to be contributing to this excellent series – so make sure you stop by next week at Theology Forum, and join the discussion about God, paint, and bodies.
Breaking News: The Bethlehem Institute to Become a College and Seminary
2008-10-30 15:56:00 This is a surprising but encouraging development. For 10 years now, Bethlehem Baptist Church (pastored by John Piper) has offered one of the finest church-based Bible institutes around. The Bethlehem Institute teaches a variety of courses designed for everyone from the average Joe (or Jane) in the church pew to the pre-seminary young person preparing ...
On political theology, Jacob Taubes, and Picasso
2008-10-17 20:21:00 Thanks to Danny for pointing us to the latest issue of the New German Critique, a special issue on political theology. There’s some great stuff here – loads of Schmitt, Benjamin, Agamben, and Taubes. I especially liked Nitzan Lebovic’s excellent article, “The Jerusalem School: The Theopolitical Hour,” which explores “the strange reappearance of Carl Schmitt in the context of German Jewish thought after 1940.” Lebovic focuses on the relationships between Buber, Bergman, Taubes, and the right-wing former terrorist Geulah Cohen: “Political theology was where antinormative critics from the radical Left and the radical Right met, cooperated, and learned from each other before going their separate ways.” The relations between the work of Schmitt and these Jewish thinkers constitutes the necessary background for understanding Agamben’s project.Speaking of Jacob Taubes, I’m very intrigued by this strange character (and his even stranger thought). Right now I’m readin...
Quotes to Note 4: The Bible is Truth
2008-10-14 18:35:00 I subscribe to Table Talk, a monthly devotional published by R.C. Sproul’s Ligonier Ministries. Each month the magazine focuses on a theme, and this month that theme is “The Canonicity of Scripture”. In the openeing column, Burk Parsons, the editor, captures the gist of the issue. The Bible is the Word of God, and canonization ...
Calvinism by Fives
2008-10-10 23:23:00 Calvinism seems to spread by fives: five points, five solas, and I bet we could think of other groups of five. Five Reformation countries (Germany, France, Switzerland, The Netherlands, England). Five key Reformers (Luther, Calvin, Zwingli, Huss, Wycliffe). Okay, I know Huss and Wycliffe came earlier…. As most good Calvinists, I know my ...
Beginning with Moses
2008-10-06 16:12:00 I just added a new blog to my blogroll. Beginning with Moses is an excellent resource for all things Biblical Theology, with an emphasis on redemptive historical hermeneutics. The beginningwithmoses.org website houses lots of articles on various topics, majoring on Biblical Theology, primarily. And the blog provides updates re: new articles on the site, and ...
?World Hindu? by 2030. VHP?s Singhal Reports Sathya Sai Baba Told Him
2008-09-09 01:59:00 One of India’s most powerful Hindu nationalist leaders, Ashok Singhal, who has an international profile in the Hindu world, has just told an assembly of political and religious luminaries in Delhi of a prophecy he says Sathya Sai Baba shared with him. The Organiser, September 14, 2008, reports: “… Shri Singhal also threw light on how ...
Submitting to God?s Will in Marriage ? 1 Pet. 3:1-7 (part 2)
2008-08-20 18:10:00 This is part 2 of an outline from a lesson I gave for my small group, recently. Read part one first. Submitting to God’s Will in Marriage (1 Pet. 3:1-7) – Part 2: The Husband I realize this is a thorny topic for many. I’d like to recommend a couple resources before I continue here. For ...
Submitting to God?s Will in Marriage ? 1 Pet. 3:1-7 (part 1)
2008-08-19 21:14:00 I’m reproducing the outline from a lesson I gave for my small group, recently. I think 1 Peter 3:1-7 is a beautiful passage on marriage that often gets overlooked. Much can be gained from studying just these seven small verses. Submitting to God’s Will in Marriage (1 Pet. 3:1-7) – Part 1: the Wife Introduction The preceding ...
Isaiah 16:10 and the Two-Wine Theory
2008-08-07 20:48:00 I’ve already argued extensively that the Bible condones the moderate use of alcohol. In my recent review of Kenneth Gentry’s God Gave Wine, there was a bit of a debate in the comments. I had loaned out my copy of Gentry’s book, and recently got it back, and so I wanted to advance a few ...
America ? A Pagan Nation?
2008-08-01 19:07:00 In the conclusion to my series on understanding the land promise made to Israel, I made the claim that America is just another secular, pagan nation. I’m not too surprised that someone objected to my claim. The idea that America is a Christian nation is a very common idea, but it is still misguided. Yes, ...
Understanding the Land Promise: Conclusion
2008-07-17 17:47:00 Continuing from part 7…. At last, this series is coming to a close. We’ve explored an understanding of the land promise informed by NT Scripture itself. All believers are Abraham’s heirs, and they inherit the promise that he would be heir of the world (Rom. 4:13-16). Gentile believers can expect to “live long ...
Understanding the Land Promise: Part 7
2008-07-10 02:53:00 Continuing from part 6…. I hope this post concludes my arguments, responses, and all other considerations of the matter – warning: this is a lengthy post!:) I plan to follow up with a concluding post which explains the ramifications for holding my position. Conditionality of the Land (follow up) Before I begin, let me share a passage which ...
Sathya Sai Baba Bans But Permits Foot Touching
2008-07-04 23:42:00 At the Bal Vikas conference in Prashanti Nilayam in 2001, after sixty years of offering what he deems to be his Holy Feet to be touched, Sathya SaiBaba declared that he was not going to allow padnamaskaar to anyone anymore. This is reported on an official Sathya Sai Organization web page at http://www.saibaba.org.hk/step6-.htm). As is ...
Understanding the Land Promise: Part 6
2008-06-29 00:10:00 As is frequently the case, when publishing a series of posts on my blog, I encounter a lot of comments and counterpoints. This can sidetrack me and lead toward my leaving a series unfinished. Of course there are other reasons for my nack for leaving series unfinished…. I do want to interact with some of ...
Understanding the Land Promise: Excursus
2008-06-24 14:31:00 Before continuing with a couple points related more directly to the land promise, and then going on to finish this series, I thought it would be good to address an important side issue. In the comments of part 5, it was again stated that I am wrong for going backward from the New Testament ...
Understanding the Land Promise: Part 5 (Answering Objections)
2008-06-20 14:00:00 –continuing from part 4. I thought that the fifth post would be the last, but Will Dudding brought up some objections in the comments of the last post. This has caused me to dig a little deeper, and in the end has only increased my confidence in this understanding of the land promise. So ...
Understanding the Land Promise: Part 4
2008-06-11 13:48:00 –continuing from part 3. Here is a fourth, and most definitive basis for “spiritualizing” the land promise…. 4) The connection between land and rest To start, read these verses in Hebrews 4. Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. For ... |
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