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American Culture

Gerazim and Ebal

Place names become fraught with meaning by association with people and events. The name “Wittenberg” calls to mind Luther and the Reformation for Protestants and Catholics alike. Geneva has a wider range of associations, but the Reformation Wall, with its four main statues of William Farel, John Calvin, Theodore Beza,…

by Ralph Allan SmithFebruary 16, 2017
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Art

Tomboys and Totems

“…a mystery without a solution, a horror story without savagery, a nightmare in which all the watches stop at noonday…” The Bestial Gardens of Men Then they will say to the mountains, “Fall on us!” and to the hills, “Cover us!” (Luke 23:30) The following lines by Edgar Allan Poe,…

by Mike BullFebruary 14, 2017
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Biblical Studies

The Structure and Typology of the Bathsheba Incident

2 Samuel 11-12, which record David’s sin with Bathsheba and its aftermath, is structured chiastically: This arrangement highlights several things about the episode. It reinforces what is obvious from even a casual reading, that the transition in the story occurs with Nathan’s confrontation of David’s sin and David’s confession. Up…

by James B. JordanFebruary 8, 2017
bestiary
Anthropology

Anthropomorphism and Christian Humanism

Medieval bestiaries are packed with quaintly inaccurate information about animals, birds, and other created things. Foxes and snakes are devilish critters; stags, pelicans and elephants are Christlike in their various ways. Of course, the medievals picked this up from the Bible, where bestiary observations are fairly common. “Go to the…

by Peter LeithartFebruary 2, 2017
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Beer

The End of Beerocracy

What do Reformational Catholicism and craft beer have in common? The question seems to beg for a punchline. Better yet, it would be pretty good clickbait for an article on Katharina von Bora’s “spirited” contribution that helped spark the Protestant Reformation. Well, this is no joke and I am certainly…

by John CrawfordJanuary 31, 2017
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Pastoral Ministry

Calvin and Pastoral Care

Suffering Defined Suffering happens. We witness it all around us and experience it in our lives. It often comes from forces beyond our control. Suffering is inscrutable; it strikes unexpectedly, on a bright summer day or a cold winter night. We lament and are bewildered by suffering. But we are…

by Uri BritoJanuary 26, 2017

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Tarantino

New York Press critic Armond White has offered the most incisive summary of Tarantino’s work and influence: “QT made sadism hip and sent it ‘round the world.” In another piece on Tarantino, White points (less convincingly, but still interestingly) to “QT’s” play with race: “Tarantino is the first white filmmaker…

November 16, 2004

Buttiglione and Europe

The European Parliament’s opposition to the nomination of philosopher Rocco Buttiglione for the position of justice minister on the European Commission is noteworthy for a number of reasons. As Christopher Caldwell points out in the Novemeber 15 issue of The Weekly Standard , this is the first time that the…

November 16, 2004

Eucharistic Meditation, November 14

Revelation 19:7 The beginning of Solomon?s sin was intermarriage, marriage to unbelieving, pagan, idolatrous wives and concubines. As I noted in the sermon, there are consistent warnings about this throughout the Scriptures, from Genesis to Deuteronomy to Kings to Ezra-Nehemiah to Corinthians. Everywhere Scripture warns that we must not cleave…

November 15, 2004

Exhortation, November 14

Scripture has a lot to say about the blessings of old age. ?The gray head,?Ethe Proverb says, ?is a crown of glory; it is found in the way of righteousness.?E According to another Proverb, the elderly have another crown: ?Grandchildren are the crown of old men.?E The Psalmist says that…

November 14, 2004

Sacrifice and Worship

INTRODUCTION Last week, we looked at some NT texts that used the ?ceremonial law?Eof the Levitical system as a guide for the life and worship of the church. It?s clear that the apostles did not believe that the ?ceremonial law?Eis ?merely typological,?Efulfilled in Jesus?Edeath and resurrection, but with no further…

November 14, 2004

Successful Disobedience

Jonah obeyed God’s commission, and preached successfully to Nineveh. They all repented in sackcloth. Earlier, though, Jonah DISOBEYED God’s commission, and preached successfully to the sailors on the ship. They all feared Yahweh and sacrificed and took vows. It appears that disobedient evangelism is as effective as obedient evangelism. Or,…

November 13, 2004

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