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

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Biblical Studies

The Impracticality of Application

I have never heard anyone say that the Bible is impractical, but I have heard people, after an in depth exegesis of a passage, ask for the practical application. Offer a class on childrearing, marriage, finance and the church members flock to it; offer a course on Leviticus, the visions…

by Remy WilkinsJuly 4, 2017
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Biblical Theology

Stones and Fruit: Divination and Procreation – (Part One)

Stones External and Internal The modern practice of dismantling the Bible into a shambles of documents authored in response to disparate historical events rather than viewing it as a unified testimony inspired by God is a surefire way to miss what is actually going on in the text. This failure…

by Mike BullJune 29, 2017
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The Tragedy of Asa

King Asa of Judah made a strong start, purging the land of idols, altars, and images, and winning a war against the ginormous Cushite army led by Zerach. It all unraveled in his final years. From his thirty-fifth year to the forty-first year, when his reign came to an end,…

by Peter LeithartJune 27, 2017
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Romans

Justified by the King

What appears to be Paul’s first recorded statement on justification comes in Acts 13, in a sermon at Pisidian Antioch. It's can serve as a summary of Paul's letter to the Romans, and throws some important light on the themes of that letter. Paul begins his sermon with a quick…

by Peter LeithartJune 22, 2017
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Literature

Biblical Allusion and the Meaning of Othello, (Part 2)

Iago as Tempter The answer to our first question — whether or not Othello is really great tragedy — has already pointed the way to the answer for the second question — Was Othello a noble Moor or a fool? The two questions, of course, are necessarily related. The fall…

by Ralph Allan SmithJune 20, 2017
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Theopolis News

Adam McIntosh Completes the Certificate Program

When Adam McIntosh was ordained as Pastor of Saint David’s Church (CREC) in Houston on June 11, 2017, it was the culmination of decades of preparation. Adam is the product of two continents and three Christian traditions. Born in Paducah, Kentucky, he lived his early years partly in Jericho, where…

by Peter LeithartJune 17, 2017

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Baptismal meditation

Isaiah 11:9: The earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. I finished Sunday School earlier today, where I gave an overview of the last chapters of Revelation. On Tuesday, my final graduate and undergraduate classes will both be on Revelation. Last…

April 28, 2013

Exhortation

Things are changing and all the changes will be great blessings so long as you don’t let the demands of the moment distract you from being the church. Look at this new phase as a fresh opportunity to live up to our name – Trinity Reformed Church. God is Love,…

April 28, 2013
History

Society of Yertles

In an essay on marriage and the construction of reality , Peter Berger and Hansfried Kellner observe how the modern “crystallization” of the public/private divide has affected the pursuit of identity and reputation: “It would . . . seem that large numbers of people i our society are quite content…

April 27, 2013

Sacramental cause

Thomas ( ST III, 60, 1) is interestingly careful in the way he deals with the notion that sacraments are causes. He asks whether sacraments are signs, and his first objection is grammatical: Sacramentum comes from sacrando , which means “sacring,” and, on analogy with medicando , it refers to…

April 26, 2013

Determined sacraments

Thomas asks ( ST III, 60, 5) whether the sensible thing of the sacraments is a “determinate” something. Do we have to use specific things, or may we substitute at will? His answer is that sacramental elements are determinate, and his reasoning has to do with the nature of sacramental…

April 26, 2013

Punishing bad killers

In the current issue of The Weekly Standard , Jon A. Shields gives a searing summary of the trial of Kermit Gosnell. He admits, “the liberal position on killing abortion survivors makes a bizarre kind of moral sense,” and then adds: “After all, what is the moral difference between killing…

April 26, 2013

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