A Long Time Ago in a Galilee Far, Far Away
The dramatic appeal of Star Wars depends on the fact that there is something to live and die for
“To be fair to Mr. Lucas, conceiving of the mystery of life in a dramatically plausible way is no small task. The poets of old balked at it. And yet like so many of his generation, modern technology has made the path of wonder look so easy, so mundane. Technological advance has fostered the vain... Continue Reading
My Favorite Bible in a Year Reading Plan
Here are the five reasons why I like it so much:
In past years, I’ve used Bibles that apportion the texts out for me. It makes it simple to just open and read without a lot of flipping between texts. However, I find this plan preferable because it allows me to read through the Bible in my own Bible. This fact also meant I can choose... Continue Reading
‘Grandma’ Can’t Hide The Pain Of Poor Choices
Grandma, a new pro-abortion, pro-LGBT film showing in limited release, cannot hide the chaos that marks lifestyles out of step with God’s design.
For all the drama, the artsy Grandma (rated R for language and some drug use) is emotionally arid. It seems writer-director Paul Weitz, who made his directorial debut in 1999 with the raunchy American Pie, put his energy into setting up several not-entirely-inaccurate Christian and traditional-value straw men and knocking them down. But instead of... Continue Reading
The Popes Of Evangelicalism
While social media is new, this anti-confessional and pro-popular leader mindset is not new
“A striking result of the rise of the popular leader was the displacement of the theologian from the place of preeminence in the evangelical movement. The new leaders of the movement were popularizers of the gospel message, revivalists, and Bible conference preachers. This tradition persists today; the theological leadership of the movement is provided by... Continue Reading
Douglas Bond Hit It Out Of The Park In ‘Grace Works!’
Bond wrote ‘Grace Works!’ for real people in real pews, easily digestible yet powerful in its defense of the gospel of grace.
RE Bond deals with current errors creeping into the conservative Reformed denominations, including the mythical “objective covenant”, confusion on the sacraments, and final justification. He does so without naming names, although anyone who has been paying attention to the last 20 years or so can easily fill in the blanks. RE Bond clearly demonstrates the... Continue Reading
The Forgotten History of Black Calvinism and Haunting of American Folk Music
Black Calvinism was at once organizationally dynamic and theologically orthodox
“It has long been a given among historians of religion in the South that Calvinism had little, if any, purchase among the enslaved or their descendants, that the doctrines of predestination were invariably arms of the status quo, and that a sin-obsessed Calvinism was simply inimical to the emancipationist energies coursing through black America in... Continue Reading
Top 10 Books: 21 Categories
If you’re thinking about giving books for gifts, here are my Top 10 books in 21 categories
“Click on the orange title of each Top 10 list and it will take you to brief descriptions of each book and other good books just outside the Top 10.” If you’re thinking about giving books for gifts, here are my Top 10 books in 21 categories. Click on the orange title of each... Continue Reading
Out of Pure Grace
Here are a few excellent and clear Reformation statements on justification from the Formula of Concord (Epitome), article III
We believe, teach, and confess what our righteousness before God is this: God forgives our sins out of pure grace, without any work, merit, or worthiness of ours preceding, present, or following. He presents and credits to us the righteousness of Christ’s obedience [Rom. 5:17-19]. Because of this righteousness, we are received into grace by... Continue Reading
Can ‘Faithful Presence’ Change the World? Some Christian Leaders Aren’t Sure
When I first read James Davison Hunter’s 'To Change the World' a couple months ago, I found his argument compelling
“As the book’s title implies, the idea of faithful presence in particular undergoes serious critique. The authors here largely accept Hunter’s framework for how cultural change actually occurs, but most of them strongly dispute the adequacy of “faithful presence” (Hunter’s definition of it, at least) as a response to the cultural moment in which we... Continue Reading
Peace At The Precipice
Mark Tooley re-creates the last doomed effort to prevent the Civil War
“One of the most dramatic episodes Mark Tooley captures is the news of the earlier than expected arrival of the President-elect in the Willard Hotel. The news is brought in a message to one of Virginia’s leading delegates, James Seddon. Seddon will soon find service in Richmond as the Confederacy’s Secretary of War.” Thucydides... Continue Reading
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