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Writing

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

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Psalms

Reimagining Psalm 23

The Bible depicts Man’s transformation from beas t to priest in and through Jesus Christ. Two sets of people have their garments designed by God in the Torah: Adam and Eve and priests (of which the High Priest’s garments garner most attention). The first garment is beastly, while the second…

by Ben LoveladyApril 19, 2023
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Church Government

The Rise and Dangers of Presbyterialism

I became the pastor of Westminster Bible Church in Bowling Green, Kentucky soon after completing my Ph.D. in church history. On paper, it was the ideal church for me. Even the name, I thought smacked of my preferences: the Westminster Confession with idealistic Biblicism. I didn’t know it had been,…

by John CarpenterApril 11, 2023
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Luke

An Easter Meditation

Why do we believe in the resurrection of Jesus? It itself, it is utterly unbelievable, as the two disciples on the road to Emmaus also concluded (Luke 24:19-24). But why is it so unbelievable? Are there not many stories of a dead man or woman coming back to life? Stories…

by Ralph Allan SmithApril 9, 2023
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Hope

Political Hope in the Negative World (Part 2)

In the first installment of this two-part essay, we provided a rough outline of a thick theological account of Christian hope. We concluded with mention of important critiques of such traditional views on hope, that by orienting Christians to place their ultimate hope in God and the future consummation of…

by James WoodApril 5, 2023
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Hope

Political Hope in the Negative World (Part 1)

Dare we hope in the midst of “ negative world ”? The idea of the “negative world” has recently served as a helpful framework for many to come to terms with the fact that Western societies (particularly the United States) are aggressively turning against their Christian roots and moral values.…

by James WoodMarch 28, 2023
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Biblical Studies

Luke’s Gospel of Seven

In his prologue, Luke tells us that his gospel history is an “orderly account” (1:3). Although generally chronological, time is not the only or the main organizing principle for his history. To argue for Luke’s main theme would take up too much space, but instead I want to explore one…

by Ryan HandermannMarch 24, 2023

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Taking Ceremonies Seriously

P opular cliche is that Lutherans and Anglicans are high-church, Reformed lower. Lutherans and Anglicans are sacramentally-minded, Reformed less so. Lutherans and Anglicans take liturgy serious; Reformed do not. There's reason to think this isn't right. In fact, there are reasons to think that the opposite is the case. Consider…

March 9, 2017

Preject, Subject, Traject, Object

I n a fascinating article on “the structure of significant lives,” Norman Fiering summarizes Eugen Rosenstock-Huessy's description of the development of Freud and the psychoanalytic movement. Each involves a different sort of time, and a different “grammar”—a different verbal mood and a different declension for Freud and his followers. Like…

March 8, 2017

Bowling Leagues and Community

A ccording to John Milbank (“Politics of time”), “libertarianism insists that the future lies with the isolated ‘reflective' individual manipulating a plethora of life-choices” but also “claims that civil society is sound and that new forms of community are emerging: sport associations, women's support networks, single-issue groups, etc.” Milbank is…

March 7, 2017

Chosen Son, Choosing Father

A t the end of 1 Chronicles, David delivers a series of speeches to the qahal (assembly) of Israel, the officers and princes of his court and bureaucracy (on 1 Chronicles 28–29 generally, see here ). The qahal consists of the “princes” ( sar is used 6x) and warriors (…

March 7, 2017

Leviticus Is My Life

M y youngest son, Smith, is reading through the Bible this year. He's getting bogged down in Leviticus. I tell him, Leviticus is my life. I've studied Leviticus more intensely and over a longer stretch of time than any other book of the Bible, and it's shaped by understanding of…

March 6, 2017

Of Teenagers and Humans

I n a New Yorker profile of filmmaker Kenneth Lonergan ( Manchester By the Sea ), Rebecca Mead calls attention to Lonergan's interest in depicting the lives of teens, manifest especially in his film Margaret . In Margaret , the lead character, named Lisa, not Margaret, “is, at different points,…

March 3, 2017

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