Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
Summary In what follows, I will consider the “year-stamps” employed in Scripture, i.e., statements of the form, “Such-and-such an event took place in the Xth year of Y.” In the process, I will suggest some ways in which the Biblical narrative might relate to events in the extra-Biblical world, though…
In the first essay on the parable of the Prodigal Son, I suggested that the problems commentators and others encounter in interpreting Jesus three-part parable are not accidental. These are not just problems in our ignorance of cultural background. They are intentional features of the stories —stories designed to poke…
The story of the Prodigal Son is perhaps the most well-known story in the Bible. As others have observed, it may also be one of the most misunderstood. In two short essays, I will point out features of this story that are commonly neglected, aspects of Jesus’ parable that might…
The parable of Lazarus and the nameless rich man is not an independent story. It is part of a long context that begins in Luke 15:1, where Jesus is eating with tax collectors and sinners and the scribes and Pharisees grumble. In response to their hardheartedness, Jesus tells a three-part…
The Bible is written so that even when a reader cannot pick up on what might be deeper or more detailed aspects of a text, there is virtually always a message to be heard. In the ancient world, where the “reader” of Scripture would likely be a church official facing…
The distinction between garden (or vineyard) and field begins in Genesis 2. This relates to the ordering of the formless world. Plants of the field are contrasted with the garden planted by God in Genesis 2:5&8. Later on, under the Old Covenant the Israelites will be required to keep their…
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1 Chronicles 6:31-38 traces the genealogy of Levite singers backwards from those appointed by David to Jacob. There are some interesting names along the way. Heman the singer’s grandpappy was Samuel son of Elkanah, whom you may remember from 1 Samuel. Further back, Samuel’s great, great . . . .grandpappy…
Rosenstock-Huessy emphasizes the importance of the Chancery for the functioning of English Common Law and the integration of England into the realm of Christendom. Chancery was instituted as a counter-balance, in a sense, to Parliament. During the middle ages, Parliament was dangerous, expensive, and burdensome for the MPs to attend.…
Rosenstock-Huessy’s essay “The Metabolism of Science” shows him at his deconstructive best. He doesn’t analyze postcards, but he does something similar, finding significance in the most marginal of glosses, in the repetitions of a book title, in the handwriting style of a lab worksheet. It’s all very playful, but produces…
Readers interested in Christian political theory might be interested in the De Regno Christi web site (http://deregnochristi.blogspot.com). The site is managed by Bill Chellis, a pastor in the RPCNA, and contributors include Daryl Hart, Richard C. Gamble, and myself.
Readers interested in Christian political theory might be interested in the De Regno Christi web site (http://deregnochristi.blogspot.com). The site is managed by Bill Chellis, a pastor in the RPCNA, and contributors include Daryl Hart, Richard C. Gamble, and myself.
Tolkein captured the feel of Beowulf more accurately than anyone: “Beowulf is not an ‘epic,’ not even a magnified ‘lay.’ No terms borrowed from Greek or other literatures exactly fit: there is no reason why they should. Though if we must have a term, we should choose rather ‘elegy.’ It…
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