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Writing

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

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Poetry

The Donkey

G.K. Chesterton assumes a surprising and memorable perspective from which to view the events of Palm Sunday (Matthew 21:1-11) The Donkey by: G.K. Chesterton When fishes flew and forests walked And figs grew upon thorn, Some moment when the moon was blood Then surely I was born. With monstrous head…

by Arthur KayApril 14, 2022
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Hermeneutics

The Tree, the Cross, and the Supper

There is a common biblical principle: you must give back what you steal. In the Bible, restitution is repayment with interest. If you rob someone of their money, you have to pay back double what you stole. A thief must pay back fourfold if he steals a sheep, and if…

by Kyle LammottApril 12, 2022
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Isaiah

The King’s Cure

Identifying Isaiah’s suffering servant with the promised Messiah is unthinkable for a Jew because it combines the offices of humble priest and victorious king. While it is frustrating that Jews refuse to see the sufferings of Christ in Isaiah 53, the reluctance of Christians to interpret the passage in its…

by Mike BullApril 5, 2022
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How to Worship

When Our Men Sing Again

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! Psalm 150:6 (ESV) The command to praise God is pervasive throughout Scripture. In the verse above the Spirit calls all things with breath to praise the Lord. Song is also clearly featured all throughout Scripture and is a featured…

by Grant Van BrimmerMarch 29, 2022
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Culture

The Transgender Bait and Switch

“Gender is a social construct.” That’s shocking to people who have assumed that gender and sex were synonyms but at least since I was in college, in the ‘80s, we were taught that “gender” refers to the forms, the customs, the traditions that our culture teaches us to define what…

by John CarpenterMarch 22, 2022
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Biblical Studies

Israel, Judah, and the Narrative Flow of the Bible

In Genesis 49, Jacob prophesies about (blesses and curses?) his twelve sons. The first three of them don’t fare well. Jacob recalls Reuben’s offense of taking his concubine (Genesis 35:22) and the murderous violence of Simeon’s and Levi against the Canaanite inhabitants of the city of Shechem (Genesis 34). He…

by Mark HorneMarch 17, 2022

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Science

Pawan Sinha

The November 22 Science News reports on the work of Pawan Sinha, a neuroscientist at MIT who has observed the effects of cataract surgery on youngsters born blind. One of the interesting findings is that correcting the cataracts does not immediately mean that the children are capable of what we…

December 2, 2003
Literature

Sir Gawain and Courtly Love

Another student on Sir Gawain suggests that it represents a sort of Platonized protest against courtly love. Gawain lies passively in bed while the woman tries to seduce him, yielding only a chaste kiss. And his great fault was his love of physical, earthly life. A very plausible thesis.

December 1, 2003
Literature

Sir Gawain’s Three Temptations

Another student suggests that the three temptations at the center of Sir Gawain show that Gawain is a Christ figure, tempted in bed as Jesus was tempted in the wilderness. Perhaps the analogies could be pressed, but it looks doubtful. Gawain as a Christ figure is less obvious than Gawain…

December 1, 2003
Literature

Sir Gawain’s Three Temptations

Another student suggests that the three temptations at the center of Sir Gawain show that Gawain is a Christ figure, tempted in bed as Jesus was tempted in the wilderness. Perhaps the analogies could be pressed, but it looks doubtful. Gawain as a Christ figure is less obvious than Gawain…

December 1, 2003
Literature

Sir Gawain and the Green Girdle

A student paper on Sir Gawain and the Green Knight suggests that in accepting the green girdle from the lady of the castle, Sir Gawain is changing his “lady” from the Virgin Mary to the green lady. That works at several levels: Sir Gawain has Mary’s portrait on the inside…

December 1, 2003

Food and Culture

A recent discussion concerning food and culture with some friends provokes the following thoughts: One of the points of the discussion was whether or not high quality food, attention to artistry in making food, is a product of Christian culture. When I cited France to illustrate that good food can…

December 1, 2003

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