Theopolis Logo

Writing

Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.

See all
james-coleman-642705-unsplash
Biblical Studies

The Literary Structure of the Whole Bible

In this essay we will think about how the whole Bible is structured as one Word of God. To begin with, there is only one Bible, not two. While we divide the Bible into Old and New Testaments, that division has no more meaning than divisions into chapters and verse,…

by James B. JordanMay 16, 2019
img_1689
Catholicity

Catholicity and Integrity

How should one badly bruised and inadequate church relate to another? (I am not addressing the blessed possessors of absolutely perfect churches, naturally.) I believe there are three things to bear in mind. First, we must be open to the values in other Christian traditions - even Roman Catholic and…

by James B. JordanMay 14, 2019
screen-shot-2019-05-09-at-2-51-07-pm
Chiasm

Fertile Meaning

The third and sixth day have a second creative act. Note the chiastic arrangement of the material in these special acts and the parallelism between them, see the figure below. The author arranges the description of each day as a chiasm. Each line in the chiasm is mated with a…

by Scott FairbanksMay 9, 2019
29994-adam-and-eve-in-the-garden-of-eden-800w-tn
Biblical Theology

Nakedness and Clothing

Now the two of them were naked, the man and his woman, and they did not sense shame (Genesis 2:25) The nakedness of Adam and Eve requires several comments. First of all, against those who think that nakedness is what God intended for humanity as a permanent estate, we have…

by James B. JordanMay 7, 2019
screenshot-2023-10-27-at-1-23-26-pm
Epistemology

Restoring the “Other” in Mother

I’ve been reflecting on the meaning of integration, and our longing for integration in a fragmented world. I’ve been connecting my own covenant epistemology further with the thought of scientist-philosopher Michael Polanyi, artist Makoto Fujimura, and Classical Christian metaphysician D.C. Schindler. In my last post , and now in this…

by Esther Lightcap MeekApril 30, 2019
sixteen-miles-out-al48tflf4e8-unsplash
Hermeneutics

Go Tell that Vixen!

Luke 13:31-33 is one of the strangest passages in the Gospel of Luke. It begins with a time note that sounds emphatic “At that very hour.” Then, we are told of Pharisees bringing a message that Herod wants to kill Jesus! In His answer, Jesus speaks of a three day…

by Ralph Allan SmithApril 23, 2019

Showing page 79 of 309

See all

Showing page 10 of 43

See all
Global Christianity

The Era of Christian Expansion

Protestants look back longingly to the Reformation as one of the great periods of church history, and it was in many respects. In terms of the global reach of Christianity, though, the sixteenth century was a low point. Since its beginning, Christianity has rarely been confined to so contracted an…

October 5, 2015

The One

Peter Adamson (P hilosophy in the Hellenistic and Roman Worlds ) claims that “A good case can be made for seeing Plotinus as the most in fluential Western philosopher of all time, apart from Plato and Aristotle themselves.” He fused Plato with some of Aristotle's ideas, added Stoic concepts, to…

October 5, 2015

Throne of the Beast

The fifth angel pours out his bowl on the “throne of the beast” (Revelation 16:10-110). There are a lot of beasts in Revelation. Which one is it? The fact that it is in the fifth slot gives us a clue. God created swarming things on earth and in the sea…

October 5, 2015

Mother in Israel

Deborah is the only female judge, and the only judge who does anything close to what we would recognizing as “judging.” She is a prophetess, and holds court sitting under a palm tree between Ramah and Bethel (Judges 4:5). She also does what the other Hebrew judges do - leads…

October 2, 2015
Philosophy

Autonomy or Theonomy

Peter Adamson finds some general trends in his forthcoming study of Philosophy in the Hellenistic and Roman Worlds . Hellenistic philosophy was broadly anti-Platonic, denying the existing of “immaterial entities” and devoted to physicalism. In one of his many moments of whimsy, Adamson suggests that the change is so sudden…

October 2, 2015

Egyptian Bees

The subtitle of Gene Kritsky's forthcoming Tears of Re is “Beekeeping in Ancient Egypt.” The linkage of deity, mourning, and beekeeping is too tantalizing to pass up. The title is based on a myth found in a papyrus from about 300 BC: “The god Re wept and the tears from…

October 2, 2015

Showing page 368 of 2212

Browse by Category

In Medias Res

Your weekly digest for all things Theopolis.

Donate

Theopolis is nearly 100% donor-supported. Consider joining us on our mission.