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Writing

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

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John

Jesus is the Way to the Tree of Life

When Jesus says in the farewell discourse that his disciples know the way to where He is going, Thomas replies: “We do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus answers Thomas, but He gives Thomas more than he asked : “I am the way,…

by Josh JensenMay 24, 2023
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Luke

Beware of the Infection of Hypocrisy

Through the pandemic we learned a lot about infections, how to catch them, what’s contagious, how to protect yourself from getting the infection. I learned a lot of new terms, like “social distancing,” “ppe” (personal protective equipment), N95 masks, and so on. We’ve seen that people are willing to go…

by John CarpenterMay 16, 2023
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Biblical Theology

Noah: Man of the Soil

In Genesis 9:20, Noah is called “a man of the soil”. This phrase is a bit of a shock in the Hebrew; though it’s made up of two very common words - 'ish is “man” and 'adamah is “soil” or “ground” - these two words are never used together before…

by Donald LinnemeyerMay 9, 2023
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Literature

Twelfth Night

Harold Bloom’s discussion of Twelfth Night in his Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human is, as would be expected, insightful. It displays his deep love of poetry, and includes some truly eloquent descriptions of Orsino: “that sublimely outrageous lover of love” and “amiable erotic lunacy.” Bloom is worth reading just…

by Ralph Allan SmithMay 4, 2023
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James

A Quadrigatic Reading on Marian Intercession

There have been times when Evangelicals, in an attempt to be clear about the errors of Rome and Constantinople concerning Mary, have been so denigrating of the mother of our Lord that they sounded more like cut and pasted lines from the Babylonian Talmud than they did disciples of Mary’s…

by Garrett SoucyMay 2, 2023
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Theology

Awe and the Sensus Divinitatus

Awe is the phenomena experienced when one looks up and lights upon the height, majesty, and mystery of the California Redwoods. It appears the trees pierce heaven itself. Among these giant organisms are the Sequoia–while they are shorter in form, they reserve a width that spans an automobile. These trees…

by Charles JacobiApril 25, 2023

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American PoliticsAmerican Religion

The "Mabelized" Church

This essay was first published in the May 1991 issue of First Things. Though Evangelical Protestants have become more liturgically attuned than they were in 1991, I think the article is still relevant . Exploring the influence of televangelism on American religion in his book The Struggle for America’s Soul…

May 16, 2022
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American CultureLiterature

Violence as Poetry

Paul and Jane Sinclair, protagonists of J.G. Ballard’s 2000 novel Super-Cannes , move from England to the French Riviera to live at a new high-tech business park, Eden-Olympia (!), after Jane’s friend and former lover, Dr. David Greenwood, goes on a killing spree that ends with suicide. Jane, a pediatrician,…

May 9, 2022
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Abortion

Abortion and the Horde

In a discussion of the Ten Words ( Systematic Theology, II ) argues that the "second table" applies to all polities. I have doubts about the "second table" notion, and also about the plausibility of separating the last six words from the first four. Still, Jenson has some penetrating things…

May 3, 2022
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EpistemologyLiturgy

Epistemology of Elfland

We're delighted to announce that Esther Meek will speak about feasting at the Theopolis Feast on the evening of July 19, 2022 (register here ). In anticipation, I'm re-posting a review of one of her books . At the heart of Esther Lightcap Meek’s splendid ​Little Manual for Knowing is…

May 2, 2022
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American CultureAnxiety

Safetyism Is Unsafe

During the second half of the twentieth century, concentrated efforts were made to make the world safer for children, drivers, and vulnerable people. All fifty states passed safety belt laws. Sharp objects were removed from homes and day care facilities. Toys and playgrounds became softer. It worked. Death rates for…

April 25, 2022
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Creation

All Very Good

History isn’t added to creation. Creation isn’t a stable backdrop to the action on stage. It’s not as if God first makes an immobile set of things and structures and then kicks them into gear. Quite the opposite. The first thing God speaks into being – the only thing He…

April 18, 2022

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