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Writing

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

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Interview

The Way My Story Goes: Interview with Singer-Songwriter Jamie Soles

Jamie Soles is the reason I know my way around a guitar. When my guitar teacher put the sheet music for Eine Kleine Nachtmusick in my fourteen-year-old hands, I balked. He gave me “Foggy Mountain Breakdown.” I learned half of it. At home, I ignored my teacher’s instructions and tugged…

by Christian LeithartMarch 12, 2019
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Epistemology

The Mother’s Smile: Integrative Beauty

This is a tough era for mothers. Regard for mothers, while it is always booming in some circles, is decidedly lacking in the prevailing winds of the milieu. In high demand by contrast is contribution to the work force, being a consumer, and basic economic survival, often as a solitary…

by Esther Lightcap MeekMarch 5, 2019
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Epistemology

Seeking Integration in a Fragmented World: D.C. Schindler: Are You Open to the Heart of Things?

After the dark quiet of the year’s beginning, I return now to pick up the threads of my reflection on integration. This is my own personal inquiry, and for me it is no academic exercise but rather the forefront of my personal quest for the real. My hope is that…

by Esther Lightcap MeekFebruary 26, 2019
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Chiasm

The Chiastic Structure of Lord of the Rings

The chiastic structure of The Hobbit we considered in the previous essay is highly suggestive of what might lie in store for The Lord of the Rings saga. It is undoubtedly the case that J. R. R. Tolkien was a literary craftsman. It may even be the case he is…

by Kelly KerrFebruary 19, 2019
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Chiasm

The Chiastic Structure of the Hobbit

Structure plays an important part of any literary work, whether poetry or prose. It adds to the beauty and depth of the work and allows insight to be gained about what the author is trying to communicate. The question that concerns us here is whether or not there exists an…

by Kelly KerrFebruary 5, 2019
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Movies

Learning the Language of Arrival

Can we learn to communicate from an outside intelligence? Spoiler Alert! If you have not yet seen the movie, this article may provide you with a great deal more information than you wished to know at this point. Since the 1999 film The Matrix received careful scrutiny on many fronts…

by Eric RobinsonJanuary 29, 2019

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Reformation

Social Sources of Reformation

J ames Davison Hunter calls attention to the urban setting of the Reformation ( To Change the World , 65): “During the sixteenth century, international commerce expanded dramatically. In Eastern Europe and in France, growing revenues accrued to the benefit of the aristocracy who, in turn, used their wealth to…

November 18, 2016
Middle Ages

Preaching to Kings

E arly medieval evangelists had theological reasons for targeting their evangelistic efforts to kings. Kings were heads of political bodies; convert the head, convert the body. In a summary of the Carolingian Renaissance, James Hunter ( To Change the World , 59) offers a more pragmatic reason for the tactic:…

November 18, 2016

Girard’s Achievement

G il Bailie notes in his recently published God’s Gamble (25, 27) that modern thinkers have often pointed to the similarities between gospel and myth as evidence against the uniqueness of Christian faith: “The anthropological discovery of the paschal structure in extant remnants of archaic religion appeared to present a…

November 18, 2016

Natural gessa

I n a critique of Locke’s theory of consent (and more extreme varieties), Stephen RL Clark ( Civil Peace and Sacred Order ) invokes the ancient Irish system of gessa (s. geis ). These are obligations placed “chiefly on great chieftains and warriors, to do or forbear, with the mythological…

November 18, 2016

African Emigration?

A frican immigrants to the US are preparing to leave in the wake of Trump’s victory, reports Quartz . Though not specifically a target of Trump’s assaults on immigrants, they feel they are not welcome. That would be unfortunate, since Africans are among the most educated and qualified immigrants in…

November 18, 2016

Rumination

I n his Not Bread Alone , Nathan MacDonald cites the letter to Aristeas, which includes an early Christian attempt to explain the food laws of Leviticus and Deuteronomy. For Aristeas, the food laws were instructive to human beings. Clean animals ruminate; they encourage us to keep things in memory.…

November 18, 2016

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