“Even better are jokes that the popes themselves tell,” he said, referring to one time when Pope John XXIII made fun of an archbishop’s growing girth. Asked once how many people worked in the Vatican, John XXIII replied, “about half.” Three priests—a Dominican, a Franciscan and a Jesuit—walk into a bar. According to the Rev.... Continue Reading

“Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason (for I do not trust either in the pope or in councils alone, since it is well known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to... Continue Reading

“We must never judge the fitness of individuals to govern on the basis of where they worship, whether they follow Christ or Moses, whether they are called ‘born again’ or ‘ungodly.’ Where it is right to apply moral values to public life, let all of us avoid the temptation to be self-righteous and absolutely certain... Continue Reading

The church is still a divine creation…The church, and only the church, can make that claim; and the church, and only the church, is regulated in her governance by the explicit teaching of the word of God on the subject. Parachurches…cannot look to scripture for detailed governance structures. I have been asked why I seem... Continue Reading

In a letter to his mother dated February 19, 1921, J. Gresham Machen wrote, “Dr. Warfield’s funeral took place yesterday afternoon at the First Church of Princeton. … It seemed to me that the old Princeton – a great institution it was – died when Dr. Warfield was carried out. “I am thankful for one... Continue Reading

The explosion of conferences and events built around particular pastors’ personalities to gain a following could be evidence of this seduction. As such, many pastors are so caught up in gaining Twitter followers, writing fluffy books, and making a name for themselves as an “author, speaker, teacher, pastor” that they have disqualified themselves to lead... Continue Reading

Envy creates a conflict society in which the evil men are held to be precisely the most successful and advanced members of society. Their crime is their success, their wealth, or their superiority. Envy is justified by many sociologists and social scientists, and envy becomes then a fertile and justified cause of vandalism, rioting, and... Continue Reading

I think you’ll find that though the language sounds similar at times, the beliefs are quite distinctive. Mormons do not understand history, God, man, salvation, heaven, hell, the cross, Jesus, or the Trinity as the canonical Scriptures teach, nor do they agree with the doctrine taught by the holy, catholic, apostolic church over two millennia.... Continue Reading

In a shameless knock-off of the Pyromaniacs’ practice of providing a weekly dose of Spurgeon, here we start a new feature: Presbyterian Profundity, featuring quotations from a bunch of old, dead guys who lived, to quote Spinal Tap on Stonehenge, hundreds of years before the beginning of history. First out of the blocks is B... Continue Reading

Charles Spurgeon was notorious for living a schedule that would kill most human beings. Because of this, we would assume that Spurgeon was a neglectful husband and father. But I would argue that Spurgeon, although away quite often, made regular faithful efforts to love and encourage his wife. The demands on a pastor’s time are... Continue Reading