Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
Many contemporary thought leaders have spoken intriguingly about a future without Jesus or, to be more precise, a future in which the transcendent truths of the Christian faith hold little or no sway over society. More to the point, these thought leaders often pose as anthropologists who find Christianity dehumanizing…
Jeffery Bishop’s magisterial The Anticipatory Corpse concludes with a question: “Might it not be that only theology can save medicine?” 1 To that question I want to give not merely a general affirmation, but a particular affirmation. Not only can “only theology save medicine” but, in fact, only a biblical…
John Ahern recently made the case on this site for having shorter hymnals. “ I believe hymnals should be shorter than they are ”, he says. “ Much shorter. 100 hymns at most. ” Swap hymnal for “repertoire”, or “hymns” for “worship songs” and it all still applies. A big…
The Psalter is the hymnbook of the church. For too long, the psalter has taken a far-secondary place in the worship of God's people. And when psalms are sung, they are often changed drastically from what the Spirit gave us. In this course, Paul Buckley and Brian Moats will explore…
The Theopolis Institute is pleased to announce that Dr. Trevor Laurence is the winner of the 2021 James B. Jordan Prize for outstanding work in biblical theology. Dr. Laurence receives this award for his 2020 Exeter dissertation, “Cursing With God: The Imprecatory Psalms and the Ethics of Christian Prayer.” Laurence…
In late 2013 two nearly simultaneous events happened in evangelicaldom: Mark Driscoll was publicly accused of “plagiarism” and Ergun Caner was hired as the president of a Christian college. The first appears to be the first domino that would lead eventually to Driscoll resigning as the pastor of Mars Hill…
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To ordain is, in Hebrew, to “fill the hand.” Though in some passages the phrase describes priestly or quasi-priestly ministry, it normally refers to the rite of ordination itself. By the rite, Yahweh “fills their hands in order to priest” (Numbers 3:3) or “fills his hand in order to put…
In the third of his 2001 Stob Lectures, published as Common Objects of Love , Oliver O'Donovan explores the modern phenomenon of "publicity," the distinctly modern proliferation of images and information through advertising, news media, and entertainment. Publicity didn't exist in the ancient world. Kings had messengers and spies, but…
Exodus 29 lays out the instructions for the ordination rite for Aaron and his sons. Leviticus 8 describes the actual event of the ordination, and is organized by the eight-fold repetition of the clause, “as Yahweh commanded Moses” (Leviticus 8:4, 5, 9, 13, 17, 21, 29, 36), which effectively divides…
As soon as our kids could speak, we taught them little gestures of civility. Say "thank you" and "please." Don't hide your face when an adult talks to you. Say "Yes sir" and "Yes ma'am," not ironically or grudgingly, but respectfully. I don't think I ever told my boys, "Don't…
David Martin (1929-2019) was a secularization skeptic. He acknowledged that modern societies typically undergo a process of "differentiation," in which various sectors of social and political life free themselves from the oversight of religious authority. He acknowledged that in many modern societies religious institutions and values are "marginalized." But he…
Aaron the priest is dressed in holy garments of glory and beauty (Exodus 28:2). So are his sons: They have tunics, sashes, and caps “for glory and for beauty” (Exodus 28:40). Yahweh pours glory on the head of Aaron, but it runs down on his beard, down to the skirts…
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