Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
Revelation 1: 7 states the theme of Revelation. It is a self-standing verse, beginning and ending with “Amen” (the “Amen” at the end of verse 6 should be taken as the beginning of the statement in verse 7). A double Amen as a double witness, and it becomes a threefold…
For many young people with safe and easy lives, the most heartfelt prayers often concern relationships with the opposite sex. I used to be embarrassed by this, since I felt a little panty-waisted praying for “wisdom” about “that girl” while reading: Be merciful to me, O God, for man would…
I’d like to start by thanking Peter for taking the time to read and review The Slavery of Death and for letting me share a few thoughts about some the questions and concerns he had about the book. Let me start with a confession. Interdisciplinary work is a scary thing…
The extension of rights to the Jews was one of the great achievements of the French Revolution, and in Out of Revolution: Autobiography of Western Man (219-29) Rosenstock-Huessy moves from a discussion of the resulting Jewish enthusiasm for liberalism to a digression dealing with the relation of Jews and Gentiles…
In two recent books, The Slavery of Death (2014) and Unclean: Meditations on Purity, Hospitality, and Mortality (2011), Richard Beck, a professor of psychology at Abilene Christian University, explores the connections of theology and psychology. Both books examine the overlap between biblical themes and psychological research. The Slavery of Death…
Epiphany is a season of light. The specific event celebrated during Epiphany is the visit of the magi to the Christ child, but the magi were always understood as the firstfruits of the nations. The magi were drawn to the Christ child by a light in the sky, a star…
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During the night before Jacob returns from his sojourn with Laban in Haran, a man confronts him and they wrestle (Genesis 32). Jacob refuses to let the man go and the man touches him in the yerekh - usually translated as “socket of his thigh.” He returns to the land,…
Robert Wuthnow points out ( Boundless Faith , 115-6) that improvements in technology enabled leaders to transcend denominational boundaries: “Communication and travel increased the opportunities to organize transnational ministries in new ways, just as philanthropy and fund-raising techniques did. The earlier denominational boards depended on corresponding secretaries to stay in…
I n an essay in Judgment & Grace in Dixie , Charles Wilson Reagan traces the evolution of Southern civil religion from 1920 to 1980. He argues that over the decades the civil religion of the lost cause “evolved from a public faith celebrating the virtues of a religiously sanctioned…
The ten horns join with the beast in slaughtering the harlot city Babylon. It's a macabre scene, marked by five relentless verbs - hate, desolate, make naked, eat, burn - and by a bizarre sequence of actions. It's a sacrificial sequence. An ascension offering (Leviticus 1) was prepared for offering…
N ancy Ammerman's contribution to Denominationalism is outstanding. She asks what we're studying when we study denominations, and she comes up with three answers: A group of Christian communities defined by a common set of beliefs and practices; an organization; and a cultural profile (evident, for instance, in Episcopalian jokes).…
Nancy Ammerman briefly examines the “shifting terrain” at the close of her essay in Denominationalism . Choice seems to have taken over the religious landscape, displacing ethnic associations, family and upbringing. Many change denominations during their lifetimes; fewer think it important to marry within their denominations. Congregations function independently of…
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