Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
My first title for this series of posts was “Evangelical Sacramental Ecumenism” – not exactly a clickbait title. But those three words, evangelical, sacramental, and ecumenical, say a lot: The centrality of the gospel; a focus on baptism, bread, and wine; and the quest for visible unity among diverse churches.…
I can imagine someone reading the title of this essay and saying to himself, "I have two questions. First, what in the world is “contextualization”?" Second, even before hearing the answer to the first question, he may wonder, "what does baptism have to do with such an awkward and vague…
Deuteronomy 21:18-21 My colleague Ralph Smith has recently written on this passage, here . I entirely agree with Ralph's thrust, which is typological, that the passage is ultimately aimed at the entire nation of Israel itself as the rebellious son. But what I am thinking is from another perspective, perhaps…
In the previous article in this series, I drew attention to the threefold meaning of the Spirit of God descending as a dove on Jesus at His baptism. On a related note, I also argued that 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 and Titus 3:3-7 were parallel passages that addressed the same issues…
The National Anthem protest is misguided. So too the conservative backlash. The Church’s response has been disappointing. I address each in turn. The greatest triumph of the American Civil Rights Movement was its seizing of the moral high ground in American politics. It did so by insisting only on those…
Peter Leithart’s book, The Priesthood of the Plebs: A Theology of Baptism , argues that baptism is parallel to and the fulfillment of the old covenant rite of priestly ordination. But this is not something explicitly stated in the New Testament. Why, then, should we believe it? Leithart shows in…
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S COTUS has spoken. Same-sex marriage is the law of the land. Time to move on. This insistent message comes from leaders in both parties, but Michael Needham, writing at The American Interest , says that “moving on is not so easy for some Americans. Moving on wasn’t an option…
W alter Russell Mead writes that Hillary Clinton's candidacy is the climax of a long progress, the march of the Boomers through the institutions. Unfortunately, she's the triumphant defender of a status quo that many believe to be broken, perhaps beyond repair. Mead is explaining the Trump phenomenon, but his…
T he first portion of 1 Chronicles 8 is structured roughly by two sets of five lists of the descendants of Benjamin. The first group lists the names of sons for Benjamin, and then for succeeding generations of Benjamites: 1. Sons of Benjamin, vv. 1-2 2. Sons of Bela, vv.…
A ndrew Bacevich argues that we are building a “multi-trillion dollar bridge to nowhere” in the Middle East. Coming to the Presidency as the anti-Bush, Obama will end his Presidency with America in Bushian shape throughout the world: “Like Bush, Obama will bequeath to his successor wars he failed to…
P aul the apostle was a Hebrew of the Hebrews from the tribe of Benjamin. That tribal association is significant, introducing a multi-layered typology of apostolic ministry. Paul was originally Saul, the namesake of the first and fallen king of Israel. That a Benjamin Saul would become the leader of…
R od Dreher summarized several reports that many Muslim refugees have converted to Christianity when they arrived in Europe. Harriet Sherwood at The Guardian reports: “At Trinity church in the Berlin suburb of Steglitz, the congregation has grown from 150 two years ago to almost 700, swollen by Muslim converts,…
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