Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
“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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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 –…
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Noemie Emery gives a 14-point analysis of what Palin does for McCain over on the Weekly Standard web site. Number 14 is: “Counter-intuitively, makes the issue of Obama’s light resume more potent than ever. Her lack of experience is no more than his is. And he’s—to use a term from…
What is needed in biblical studies is something analogous to the classicism of French scholars like Vernant, Detienne, Vidal-Naquet, and their followers. They were carefully attentive to the literary riches of classical texts, but were at the same time anthropologists and cultural historians. I see a few moves in this…
After explaining the intrusive gaze of the Roman censor, Shardi asks whether the Romans created an ancient predecessor of Bentham’s panopticon, made famous by Foucault. She recognizes the analogies, but says that the “differences are perhaps more striking than the similarities.” First, in contrast to Bentham’s circular prison, the Roman…
Shadi Bartsch ( Mirror of the Self ) notes that the Romans sometimes regarded the wax death masks of their ancestor ( imagines ) to be their judges: “In his oration Pro Murena , for example, Cicero, as he tried to move the jurors to acquit a newly minted Roman…
Cicero advised his brother, “Take care to employ on every day men of every rank and order and age. For one can conjecture from those very numbers how much strength and opportunity you will have in the assembly . . . . A daily throng to lead you down to…
Medieval legends about Judas appear throughout Europe in many different languages. The standard story is remarkably similar to the story of Oedipus. As summarized by Paull Franklin Baum, the medieval Judas story normally was this: “Judas . . . was the son of Jewish parents living at Jerusalem: his father’s…
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