Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
I revisited Athanasius’s On the Incarnation in light of Advent this year. A particular passage struck me with a question that I hadn’t considered before. When addressing Adam’s fall, Athanasius says this: “If then there were only the offense and not the consequence of corruption, repentance would have been fine.…
There is much wisdom for kings in the first letter of Paul to the Church in Corinth. As I am preaching through this letter, this is one of the major themes that stands out. That is the theme of the reign of the Christian as we live in union with…
1 The title should not be a surprise to anyone who believes the Bible to be true. According to the Bible, any and every faith and religion that does not conform to the Gospel of Christ are not only false, but ultimately inspired by false spirits. Though Jeffrey Niehaus is…
Names are weighty things, a fact repeatedly evidenced in the biblical narrative. There are several occasions when the names mothers or fathers chose for their children, and the reasons for which the names were chosen, are given extended attention in the text. Much of Genesis 29 and 30, for instance,…
Growing up, I was crestfallen about any Christmas that fell on Sunday. Christmas on Sunday meant going to church when I’d rather lollygag around the Christmas tree in my pajamas, playing with new toys. Christmas on Sunday was a drag. If I still felt that way, I know what I’d…
Growing up in the church in Southern America, there was an oft-used category for leaders in the church. It was a category which was used to justify a variety of rules and restrictions on church leaders. Leaders were to be “above reproach” and that meant not drinking in public or…
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W e Americans pride ourselves on our religious freedom absolutism. Officially, the U.S. permits all religious expression and prohibits none. In reality, the situation is more complicated, since the scope of “religious expression” has to be negotiated by American courts. Polygamy isn’t protected religious practice, for instance, and a Presidential…
T he Sam Wanamker Playhouse, a Jacobean theater in the Globe complex in London, seats 340 in three tiers, tightly crowded on backless benches. During performances, the stage is lit by candles burning from six chandeliers. Actors enter and exit within inches of the audience. During Othello a few weeks…
T he Mail & Guardian Africa reports on Zimbabwean pastor Evan Mawarire, who has inspired a nationwide resistance to Robert Mugabe and now faces sedition charges. In April 2016, Mawarire “draped Zimbabwe’s flag over his shoulders, logged on to Facebook and delivered a passionate appeal to his fellow countrymen. He…
The Chronicler's account of the completion of the house of the Lord (2 Chronicles 5-7) is arranged in a fairly neat chiasm. A. Solomon finishes ( shalam ) work, 2 Chronicles 5:1 B. Solomon celebrates the feast in the seventh month, 5:2 C. Levites take ark into the house, with…
Terrence Malick has been on a filmmaking tear, most recently releasing Song to Song . He's back, but that hasn't dulled his skepticism about the film industry. Brett McCracken sees Malick's earlier Knight of Cups as, in part, a reflection of Malick's “complicated relationship with Hollywood”: “Malick’s critique of Hollywood,…
Karol Berger argues ( A Theory of Art ) that Lyotard's famed distinction of modern and postmodern is “far too stark.” In fact we aren't faced with a simple choice “between a belief in universal history grasped by an all-explaining meta-narrative and a belief in a plurality of equally valid…
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