It depends, of course, upon who is being or deemed “bellicose” doesn’t it? John Muether has a helpful meditation on this question in the latest issue of the Nicotine Theological Journal (“thus think, and smoke tobacco”—Ralph Erskine (1685-1752; in “Smoking Spiritualized“). The issue also contains a lovely address given by my friend and colleague, David VanDrunen on “Bearing One Another’s Burdens” (from the Westminster Seminary California Thirtieth Anniversary celebration). This issue also contains a helpfully provocative essay by Robert W. Patterson on the weakening of Presbyterian polity and the implications of such a development. There are other reasons to read this and every issue of the NTJ but these are few that occurred to me today as I finished NTJ 14.1 (Winter) 2010.
Rev. VanDrunen recently preached at my church on that very topic! 🙂