Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
Standing in the narthex at the font, parents joyfully approach with their newborn child. The pastor asks the parents a series of questions that may include their renunciation of the devil and all his works, their faith in God the Father, Son, and Spirit as explained in the Apostles’ Creed,…
And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, with…
Get the Psalm 30 Translation here Psalm 30 is a song for the dedication of "the house." Since it is by David, the house would seem to be his palace in Jerusalem. The psalm has an ABA structure, with the B structure being an exhortation to the saints, and the…
I once asked a ferryboat captain if steering a ferry was any different than driving, say, a big semi truck. He looked at me like I had just asked whether a bowling ball fell when you dropped it. “It’s completely different,” he said. “On the river, you never stay pointing…
The key scene in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing comes just after the first wedding scene when Claudio tosses Hero aside as a "rotten orange." He has been tricked into thinking that Hero is unfaithful, and that is an affront to his honor. He won't put her away quietly. He…
Medieval Christianity is in the news. That’s exciting for me as I have a PhD in medieval theology and I teach Ancient and Medieval Church History at Covenant Seminary. Thus I have a little “skin in the game,” as the saying goes. Earlier this week our President made some comments…
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Terry Eagleton ( Culture and the Death of God ) observes that culture was once considered the solution to the twentieth century's loss of religion. The ambiguity of “culture” - its “aesthetic” elite meaning and its popular “anthropological” meaning - was exploited to serve political ends. TS Eliot understood that…
Lonny Harrison's forthcoming Archetypes from Underground suggests that Jung, as well as literary treatments of archetypes (Frye), are useful for understanding Dostoevsky's characters, plots, themes, and poetics. Harrison makes a good case for the comparison of Dostoevsky and Jung, noting that they both draw on German Romanticism - especially Schelling…
Like a high priest preparing to cleanse the footstool of Yahweh, Jesus put aside His garments and girded Himself to wash His disciples’ feet (John 13:1-11). The Lord became servant. It was not the first time. He had been the Lordly servant from the beginning, and He would be servant…
Robert Farneti ( Mimetic Politics ) observes that Rene Girard refused to describe his project as theology. Farneti thinks Girard was right: He wasn't writing theology but “a theory of man.” He writes, “Girard's mimetic theory culminates in a radical rejection of theology, in particular of its claims to articulate…
In one section of David Foster Wallace's Infinite Jest , which turned 20 this year, we follow Don Gately, erstwhile expert in breaking and entering (B&E) and addict, to a meeting of a Boston chapter of AA. Wallace gives us several harrowing glimpses into addiction, one of which comes from…
Maps and Meanings by Nancy Wiener and Jo Hirschmann aims to apply insights drawn from the book of Leviticus to contemporary pastoral care. The authors lay out the Levitical mapping of reality, centered on the sanctuary, and then focus on the Levitical category of michutz lamachaneh , “outside the camp,”…
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