Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). The famous definition of faith with which the eleventh chapter of Hebrews opens has received a number of different interpretations. The crux of the problem is the interpretation of the words translated in…
This essay is an exploration of one element of the final of the four Gospels, the Gospel of John. My thesis is that the Gospel of John answers the issue of "friendship" being a homoerotic category. It challenges the "Greek Way of Love and Friendship" 1 It is indeed the…
"And I also way to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades shall not overpower it" (Matthew 16:18). Matthew 16:13ff. has historically been one of the most oft-cited passages of Scripture. Throughout the Middle Ages, it was used…
Matthew 8-9 records three clusters of miracles, interspersed with snatches of Jesus’ teaching about various aspects of discipleship. Just as the Sermon on the Mount displays the authority of Jesus’ Word in teaching, these chapters display the authority of Jesus’ Word over sickness, uncleanness, the creation, demons, and death. In…
The association of women and wells in the Scriptures has long been noted by theologians, a symbolism closely connected to marriage which begins in Genesis and climaxes in Revelation. There is a lesson drawn in the water of wells that I’d like to explore, but before that I must trace…
Of course, since the Israelites had agriculture, Solomon was not paleolithic as that term is used today. But "paleo" is simply a prefix meaning old or previous , the opposite of "neo." In that sense, I wonder if we might understand Solomon better if we interpret his statements and riddles…
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The notion that the church is an “extension” of the incarnation has been a source of controversy. For many, especially Protestant theologians, the notion seems to blur the necessary distinction between Head and body, Husband and bride, Lord and servants. If the church is an extension of the incarnation, the…
Those who come through the great tribulation need white robes. Their own robes aren’t white, and their own blood isn’t enough to wash them. But once they have shed their blood and been washed in the blood of the Lamb, their robes are white enough to pass inspection in the…
Temple University Sociologist Amanda Czerniawski is interested in how fatness functions in contemporary culture, and especially in contemporary understanding of beauty. Considering herself a vivacious, attractive plus-size woman, and with some acting experience under her belt, she decided to become an under-cover sociologist in the plus-size modeling world. Her forthcoming…
Two linguists - Jack Grieve of Aston University and blogging linguist Mark Lieberman - have been sifting through millions of tweets trying to uncover the “geography of filler words,” Quartz reports . Their results show a clear preference for “um” in the Plains States and the central Midwest. “Uh” is…
Some reflections on the judgment scene from Matthew 25 over at the Trinity House site .
The angels who receive trumpets are identified as “the seven angels who stand before Yahweh.” The phrasing suggests that they have already been identified somewhere, somehow. Where? The angels who perform various actions in Revelation are the twenty-four elders that were identified at the beginning of the book. These are…
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