Melvyn Bragg on William Tyndale: His Genius Matched that of Shakespeare
William Tyndale was burned at the stake for translating the Bible into English. He loaded our language with more phrases than any other writer before or since, says Melvyn Bragg.
For considerable stretches of his short life, Tyndale was hounded across Western Europe by spies and agents from the hypocritical king of England, Henry VIII, the Pope and by the Holy Roman Emperor. It was the Emperor’s net which closed in on him in the end. By then, even to have known Tyndale let alone... Continue Reading
Reformed Church in America (RCA) removes conscience clauses
The clauses provided for conscientious objection to women's ordination
Originally adopted in 1980, the “conscience clauses” were intended to maintain unity and peace despite a diversity of opinion concerning the ordination of women, which had been adopted by the RCA in 1979. (The RCA’s ordained offices are deacon, elder, and minister of Word and sacrament.) On Thursday afternoon, General Synod officially ratified the... Continue Reading
The Prolonged Suicide of the SBC
Scripture not "fun" programs bring people to Christ
The church largely today expects to be entertained, and instead of pastors and Sunday school teachers standing up and trusting the word of God, imploring hearers to listen because of the authority of the book itself, we have watered it down, and have chosen instead to add entertainment to the text in order to feel... Continue Reading
Alan Chambers Apologizes to Gay Community, Exodus International to Shut Down
Exodus International announces plans to close and begin a separate ministry.
Please know that I am deeply sorry. I am sorry for the pain and hurt many of you have experienced. I am sorry that some of you spent years working through the shame and guilt you felt when your attractions didn’t change. I am sorry we promoted sexual orientation change efforts and reparative theories about... Continue Reading
Early Training in God’s Word
A review of Starr Meade's Comforting Hearts, Teaching Minds: a family devotional based on the Heidelberg Catechism.
I’ll just go ahead and sound like the bad Christian here. I often cringe at the thought of family devotions. It’s the combination of talking the kids into it, disciplining their behavior during (which majorly involves the skill to stay on topic), and the cheese-factor of many of the devotions we have tried. Doing family... Continue Reading
Superman Isn’t Jesus, He’s Your Dad
Superman doesn't remind of Jesus; he reminds us of our dad.
My own dad was a superman before I had ever heard of Superman. He was faster than The Flash (no matter how far my head start, he could always beat me in a foot race), stronger than Thor (he could open the lid of any pickle jar with ease), and more powerful than the Incredible... Continue Reading
UK Girl Guides abandon God, pledge to themselves
Instead of orienting around God, the girls now promise to “be true to myself and develop my beliefs.”
“By omitting any explicit mention of God or religion the Guide Association has grasped the opportunity to make itself truly inclusive and relevant to the reality of 21st century Britain,” Stephen Evans, campaigns manager at the National Secular Society told the BBC. The organization deemed pledging to serve the queen still relevant, apparently, though girls... Continue Reading
The Bridge of Persuasion
The only way that we can move toward Christ is if he calls us out of the tomb, and by that call gives us new life.
If we are meant to “connect” the truth of God’s Word with the truth that God is always revealing to all men, then we dare not present the resurrection of Christ, or the existence of God, or any other truth of Scripture as if it were a “maybe.” Any “maybe” has underneath it a standard... Continue Reading
The Reformed Doctrine of Special Revelation
What It Is and What It Isn’t
On any number of disputed issues, Christians will often frame the debate in a way that indicates either an inability or an unwillingness to acknowledge the difference between the Word of God and their own interpretations of that Word. “We believe the Bible and you do not” is the implicit (and sometimes explicit) affirmation. Those... Continue Reading
Geneva College wins temporary shelter from contraceptive mandate
Judge: the federal government “failed to build sufficient lead time” for schools like Geneva to make plans for the mandate.
Federal judges have dismissed lawsuits from other schools like Wheaton College on the grounds they aren’t experiencing immediate harm from the mandate. Judges will likely decide on the merits of the ongoing lawsuits like Geneva’s after the Department of Health and Human Services issues a finalized contraceptive mandate in August. A federal judge granted... Continue Reading