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Writing

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

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City

The City of Cain

Not long ago, I heard these statistics about New York City: New York City is in $100 billion in debt. 20% of all NYC residents are on food stamps, which cost $250 million a month. 5% of NYC population are on disability, costing $252 million a month. Other assistance costs…

by Richard BledsoeJune 25, 2020
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Empire

Twenty-Five Theses on Empire

1. All political power is ambivalent. Vertical violence of “the state” tends to limit horizontal and contested power between people and between tribes. “The State” brings new oppression, but also a measure of new peace and unity. 2. All political formations are ambiguous like this: a strong family conquers weaker…

by John MilbankJune 23, 2020
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Coronavirus

Virtual Gnosticism and the Church – some disturbing thoughts about Covid19

Gnosticism by any other name would smell the same. But does the church have much of a theological sense of smell, these days, when it comes to the seductions of virtuality in our worshipping communities? Social isolation during a global pandemic makes good public health sense, but whether church should…

by Paul TysonJune 16, 2020
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American Culture

The Priorities of Priests and Protests

It is a remarkable thing, you know, this thing called priority. Just a few weeks ago, religious leaders were boldly asserting in their high-dollar online videos that it was too dangerous to return to worship and that we needed to listen to our political and health leaders. "They are the…

by Uri BritoJune 15, 2020
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James

Anger, Riots, Violence, & Justice: How the Epistle of James Came to be Written

Somewhere in the city of Jerusalem on a rooftop just a few years after the ascension of Jesus and the outpouring of the Spirit on Pentecost. . . ". . . and just when are you guys going to live up to your ‘Sons of Thunder’ reputation? Huh? A lot…

by Jeff MeyersJune 9, 2020
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Proverbs

Lady Wisdom Eve

In my book, Solomon Says: Directives for Young Men ( Amazon , Kindle ) I mention that Solomon portrays wisdom as a woman. But I don’t ask (or answer!) why he did so. Solomon uses the figure of Lady Wisdom without apology or explanation: Wisdom cries aloud in the street,…

by Mark HorneJune 2, 2020

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Baptismal Meditation, July 25

Rom 6:1-4 Today, we?ve looked at several passages in Romans that display Paul?s interest in the redemption of the body. For Paul, salvation is ultimately about the resurrection and transfiguration of our bodies into bodies of glory, and in the present our salvation is about submitting to a new authority…

July 25, 2004

Exhortation, July 25

Our chief goal in organizing the worship of God is to conform to Scriptural patterns of worship. When we look at the whole biblical teaching on worship, we learn that worship is basically covenant renewal, and we also learn that many features of traditional liturgical worship are grounded in Scripture.…

July 25, 2004

Resurrection of the Body

It is traditional, and true, to say that the resurrection of the body is still future. What Paul calls the “redemption of our body” (Rom 8) has not occurred; and what he describes as the springing up of a plant from the seed of the dead body (1 Cor 15)…

July 25, 2004
Literature

Boy of Tears: Coriolanus

INTRODUCTION Coriolanus is the last of Shakespeare’s great tragedies, and has often been criticized as an inferior piece of work. There have been exceptions: T. S. Eliot said that Coriolanus was one Shakespeare’s most accomplished artistic successes. And in recent years, the critical evaluation has been shifting. Still, the play…

July 22, 2004
Literature

Shakespeare and Rome

Following is a set of notes for a lecture given at the Biblical Horizons conference, July 21. I will deliver the same lecture as part of a series on Shakespeare’s Classical World at the NSA Summer Institute next week. Shakespeare’s Classical World INTRODUCTION There are a variety of ways to…

July 21, 2004

Sermon Outline, July 25

Present Your Bodies, Romans 12:1-21 INTRODUCTION As we’ve seen in previous sermons in this seriees, “spiritual” worship is not disembodied worship. Throughout Scripture, worship involves various uses of the body. These gestures, postures, and movements are an important part of our worship. As we worship with our bodies on the…

July 20, 2004

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