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

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Epistemology

A Cheer for the Mystics

Mystical theologians are often unguarded, extreme, un-nuanced, pressing to the edges of heresy, sometimes beyond. Still, the mystics are worthy of study. Why? Many reasons. Unlike some late medieval and post-Reformation dogmaticians, mystical theologians are often instinctively and richly Trinitarian. Historical-critical approaches to Scripture left mystical theologians virtually untouched; mystics…

by Peter LeithartSeptember 2, 2013
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Literature

Shadow and Substance in Shakespeare's Venice

Portia of Belmont is a “lady richly left,” as Bassanio says of her in the first Act of The Merchant of Venice . Plus, she’s beautiful and wise. Suitors clamber to Belmont in hope. Her father knew it would be so, and in his will set up a fairy-tale test…

by Peter LeithartAugust 28, 2013
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Liturgy

Liturgy Traps

[fve]http://vimeo.com/72195198[/fve]

by James B. JordanAugust 26, 2013
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Deuteronomy

Victory Food

In the nature of the case, “the” Christian meditation on Deuteronomy 14:1-21 cannot be written. Meditation offers too many possibilities, opens too many doors. There is not one and only one correct set of associations for a Christian to consider when thinking of Deuteronomy 14:1-21. We could, for example, consider…

by Ralph Allan SmithAugust 21, 2013
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Romans

David's Sin and Israel's Salvation, Part I

Having retold the story of the cumulative sin of Israel leading to the great atonement on the cross, Paul then reemphasizes that, just as both Jew and Gentiles were locked into sin and judgment, now they are both justified by faith: Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded.…

by Mark HorneAugust 20, 2013
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Deuteronomy

You are what you eat

Deuteronomy 14 is full of allusions to events of Israel’s history and other portions of Scripture. What would an Israelite learn by mediation on these allusions? The answer, I believe, is at least fourfold. Faith, Worship, War For the ancient Israelite first hearing Moses’ sermon, or perhaps hearing it read…

by Ralph Allan SmithAugust 15, 2013

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Obama’s Prize

The announcement of Obama’s Peace Prize was greeted with gasps, but on reflection it makes sense.  Obama is, after all, our first Scandinavian President.

October 9, 2009
Theology

“Religious” language

Turner corrects a widespread misunderstanding of the Pseudo-Dionysian view of religious language.  For the pseudo-Denys (Turner’s designation), everything comes from God and thus “every creature retains within it a trace of its divine source, every creature in some way reflects, or is in some way an image or ‘similitude’ of,…

October 4, 2009

Creation and Trinity

Denys Turner ( Eros and Allegory: Medieval Exegesis of the Song of Songs (Cistercian Studies Series) ) has the best summary I’ve read of the problems the doctrine of creation poses for any form of Platonism. First, Platonism has difficulty explaining how anything can exist other than God: “For the…

October 3, 2009
History

Secularization

The folks at First Things published an article of mine on secularization in their “On the Square” space yesterday, September 30.

October 1, 2009
Biblical Studies

Totus Christus

Mike Bull is an graphic designer in the wonderfully named Katoomba, New South Wales, who writes about the Bible. He’s produced a massive “biblical theology of the whole Christ” entitled Totus Christus .  There are a lot of juicy details here, but the overall scheme is to follow the heptamerous…

September 29, 2009

Structure of Leviticus 16

In a 1996 article, Angel Manuel Rodriguez offers a close structural analysis of the day of coverings rite in Leviticus 16. Overall, he finds that the chapter is a chiasm: “Yahweh said to Moses” ——- “And Yahweh said to Moses” |A Aaron should not go into most holy place any time…

September 29, 2009

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