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

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Apologetics

A Sabbath Conversation: How Old is the Earth?

As Adam and Eve walked to the center of the Garden of Eden to meet with the LORD on their first Sabbath they conversed about the origin and age of the earth. Adam: You know, honey, we spent a lot of time yesterday making preparations for our house, and we…

by Jeff MeyersOctober 3, 1997
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Biblical Horizons

Psalms for Exile: The Narrative Progression in the Fifth Book of the Psalter

Some of our forefathers believed in reading/singing the psalms in order. Today, when the psalms are even used at all, they tend to be used randomly, though sometimes tied to a church calendar or to the pastor’s sermon. The Bible does not bind us to any particular practice, but there…

by James B. JordanSeptember 4, 1997
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Biblical Chronology

The Anthropomorphic Days of C. John Collins, Part 2

Dr. Collins begins his essay with a brief statement of the Day Age view and then a brief statement of the Six Day view, focussing on the challenge to that view posed by modern "science." He ends this discussion by writing: "Two crucial points are at stake here: first, the…

by James B. JordanSeptember 4, 1997
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Biblical Horizons

Paperweights and the Puzzles of Secularism

In his The Construction of Social Reality , Berkeley philosopher John Searle puzzles over the ontology of the products of human construction. Certain things – granite, platypi, weeping willows – occur naturally; while other realities – stone walls, zoos and parks, Chase Manhattan Bank – exist only as products of…

by Peter LeithartAugust 27, 1997
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Biblical Chronology

The Anthropomorphic Days of C. John Collins, Part 1

In the journal Presbyterion 20 (1994):109-130, published by Covenant Theological Seminary, Dr. C. John Collins sets forth a revision of the Day Age approach in his essay, "How Old Is the Earth? Anthropomorphic Days in Genesis 1:1–2:3." Dr. Collins’s essay has been widely accepted in evangelical Presbyterian circles as an…

by James B. JordanAugust 4, 1997
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Biblical Horizons

The Sin of Ham and the Curse of Canaan, Part 3 (An Exposition of Genesis 9:20-27)

The Righteousness of Shem and Japheth As noted above, the action of Shem and Japheth was purely symbolic. They did not need to cover Noah with a garment, for he was already covered by the tent. Their action was a symbolic affirmation of Noah’s authority, a symbolic rejection of Ham’s…

by James B. JordanAugust 4, 1997

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Abortion and crime

Steven Levitt, an economist at the University of Chicago, argues that various factors have contributed to the surprising decline in crime rates during and since the 1990s, but among these is the legalization of abortion. According to the reviewer in TNR, “After abortion was legalized, a number of likely criminals…

July 31, 2005
History

Ancient slavery

S.S. Bartchy offers this important summary of the differences between ancient and American slavery: “Central features that distinguish 1st century slavery from that later practiced in the New World are the following: racial factors played no role; education was greatly encouraged (some slaves were better educated than their owners) and…

July 30, 2005
Philosophy

Essence/Existence

Marion points to Husserl’s suggestion that essence and existence are not really different principles but rather “two modes of being in two modes of self-givenness.” This is attractive, and perhaps not incompatible with the Thomistic tradition that sees the distinction of essence/existence as a key feature of created being -…

July 28, 2005
Philosophy

The Reduction

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (online) provides this helpful summary of Merleau-Ponty’s notion of phenomenological reduction: “The transformation of the object of perception into the thought of the object of perception, that is to say, the attempt to reconstitute the world in immanence, is pursued not only by analytic reflection;…

July 28, 2005

Holy Kiss

Gordon Smith quotes this from Cyril of Jerusalem: “You must not suppose that this is the usual kind of kiss which ordinary friends exchange when they meet in the street. This kiss is different. By it souls are united with one another and receive a pledge of the mutual forgiveness…

July 28, 2005

Holy Meal

Gordon Smith’s A Holy Meal , just out from Baker, is the latest (to my knowledge) in a small stream of books on sacramental theology coming from Reformed and evangelical presses. It’s a heartening sign. Smith’s book examines the Eucharist as remembrance, communion, forgiveness, covenant-renewal, nourishment, anticipation, and thanksgiving, and…

July 28, 2005

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