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Writing

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

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Leviticus

Clean, Unclean & Up

“The riddles of God are more satisfying than the solutions of man,” wrote Chesterton. Leviticus 11 stands as a lovely example of his sentiment. Designations of “clean” and “unclean” first appear in Genesis 7 with no explanation other than “clean” animals being later utilized as acceptable sacrifices to Yahweh (Gen…

by Ben LoveladyAugust 26, 2025
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Biblical Theology

Adam's Dominion from Atoms to Angels

TIME magazine announced this summer that scientists at Colossal Biosciences in Dallas, Texas had resurrected the long extinct dire wolf through gene editing of gray wolves and modern canines. The dire wolf is a relative of modern wolves, though it’s unclear exactly what their relationship with them is, whether they…

by Jackson WatersAugust 21, 2025
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Baptism

Sprinkling for Everyone: Practicing Biblical Baptisms 

Through my years of pastoring in a Presbyterian context, I’ve had many conversations about the propriety of paedo-baptism versus credo-baptism. From time to time, a congregant will become convinced that paedo-baptism is the biblical practice. But baptism by sprinkling? Never! “That’s not in the Bible,” they’ll say. “The Bible clearly…

by Lyndon JostAugust 19, 2025
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The Problem of the All-Controlling Heart

I have written a book on this and related issues, especially as addressed in Proverbs. If you want to see these thoughts further developed (which is new material based on my reflections on Proverbs), check out Solomon Says . Is asking God for a new heart always right or sometimes…

by Mark HorneAugust 13, 2025
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A Plea for Biblical Scholars

In the Abolition of Man C.S. Lewis utilized a common English textbook to explain the unacknowledged and self-contradictory philosophy undergirding much of the humanities departments in his day. I am no Jack Lewis. But perhaps this essay might prod one of my intellectual betters to take on a similar task…

by Zach MccartneyAugust 5, 2025
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Christian Nationalism

Notes on Christian Nationalism: Origins and Fault Lines

This primer on Christian nationalism grew mainly out of discussions on X. The term “Christian nationalism,” as I use it here, has become something of an umbrella term for conservative/traditional Protestants who want to see Christian influence on national life and culture. Obviously, some see problems with the label –…

by Rich LuskAugust 4, 2025

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History

Male Muse

In a NYT review of Arthur Phillips’s latest, Kate Christensen comments, “The male muse is an unaccountably rare thing in art, with the exception of the men who inspired the likes of Auden and O’Hara — that is, men who were as sexualized and fetishized as their female counter parts,…

April 10, 2009
History

We Were Never Modern

Carl Becker ( The Heavenly City of the Eighteenth-Century Philosophers ) writes that though the Philosophes were devoted to reason, “a skeptical lot, atheists in effect if not by profession, addicted to science and the scientific method, always ready to crush the infamous, valiant defenders of liberty, equality, fraternity, freedom…

April 10, 2009
History

House of gods

In an article on Constantine’s church-building, Gregory Alexander repeats a commonplace about the difference between pagan and Christian places of worship: “The temple is a house for the god; the church is a gathering place for communal worship.” Yes, but: Jesus says He’ll be there in our gathering, so the…

April 9, 2009
History

Freeman on Persecution

Freeman’s colossal misconceptions come out on every page. Under that patient persecution by the Romans, some Christians saw the light and offered sacrifice, but others “resisted to the point of martyrdom.” Not that it mattered much; they were eager to die, since they preferred “their reward in heaven . .…

April 8, 2009
History

Freeman’s distortions

Two instances of Freeman’s distortions (these from The Closing of the Western Mind ). First, he has a couple of pictures of the Riace warrior statue from Delphi, which “represents man at his most heroic, almost a god in his own right.” On the facing page he says “By the…

April 8, 2009
History

Christ and Caesar

Charles Freeman notes that the sarcophagus of the Roman aristocrat Junius Bassus depicts Jesus “entering Jerusalem as if he was an emperor entering a city, and above this image he is shown sitting in glory on an imperial throne set above a representation of heaven.” He cites Sabine MacCormack’s comment…

April 8, 2009

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