Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
Utopia is often accompanied by such adjectives as impossible, unrealistic, and impractical. In spite of that, it is not so hard to find some renowned people who actually maintain that is a very helpful and practical concept. Zygmunt Bauman ( Socialism: The Active Utopia ) argues that “utopian thinking belongs…
C. S. Lewis was no fan of the cinema. He once described himself as “rather allergic to films” and after attending one he added in a letter to a friend, “Do not worry it shall not become a habit.” But though he was quick to dismiss films, his fruitful discussion…
Noted Catholic patristic scholar, Robert Louis Wilken, delivered the second annual Nevin Lectures at Beeson Divinity School's Hodges Chapel last Friday and Saturday, February 20-21, 2015. Wilken, the Emeritus William R. Kenan, Jr., Professor of the History of Christianity at the University of Virginia, traced the influence of the writings…
I confess that I’m surprised by the number of Christians who are surprised by the popularity of Fifty Shades of Grey . Many are simply bewildered by the buzz the movie has generated. They shouldn’t be. This is the world we live in. More precisely, this is the country we…
The newer perspective on justification by faith advocated in various studies in Pauline Theology by N.T. Wright and others, is now utterly relevant to our historical situation. Such work cannot be merely avant garde theologizing. In Luther’s day, everyone was “in” as regards the Church and the faith. We were…
Over the centuries, Christians have fasted for many reasons. Sometimes, the reasons have been good. The apostles and their churches fasted and prayed before selecting elders or ordaining missionaries. Christians have fasted in mourning for their sins. They have fasted and prayed to combat demons and to plead with God…
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Vancouver, BC, is the most expensive housing market in North America, but, as James Surowiecki reports in the New Yorker , this has little to do with the local economy and everything to do with the globalization of real estate: “A torrent of capital from wealthy people in emerging markets…
The title story in Aidan Carl Mathews 1993 collection, Lipstick on the Host , is a tour de force of character development. The story is told by the protagonist, a saucy 41-year-old Irish schoolteacher named Meggie who has a brief, sad affair with a gynecologist, Antony (without an “h”). Mathews…
In each of the synoptics, Jesus sends out the twelve on a mission, and in each He is said to transform them from mere disciples (followers) to apostles (emissaries) by a grant of authority ( exousia ) over the spirits (Matthew 10: 1; Mark 6:7; Luke 9:1). Not power (…
In a recent sermon on Mark 6, Pastor Rich Lusk pointed out that John the Baptist’s martyrdom fulfills his life as a Nazirite. According to Numbers 6, the Nazirite offers his “head” (often translated “head of hair”) when his vow is completed. John was a Nazirite from the womb, dedicated…
In his recent book on Vincent of Lerins , Thomas Guarino observes that Vincent taught that Scripture is “perfect and sufficient for all matters - indeed, more than sufficient” (93). Vincent is, of course, more famous for his “canon” that provides a touchstone for distinguishing orthodoxy and heresy, and Guarino’s…
Pastoral ministry - in leading liturgy, in counseling, in preaching and teaching, in day-to-day encouragements and exhortations, in discipline - can only be accomplished by faith. That is true in several ways. You have to believe God’s word to dare to do the things ministers are required to do. By…
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