It is even more a distortion when the dogma formulated by the catholic tradition is described as “in its conception and development a work of the Greek spirit on the soil of the gospel.” Indeed, in some ways it is more accurate . . . Continue reading →
Academic Stuff
The Last Work of a Student or the First of a Scholar?
That slogan puzzled me the first few times I heard it, but I think I understand it more clearly now. I was puzzled because the word scholar means “student.” It is a Latin word derived from the noun schola, or school. A scholar is . . . Continue reading →
Beeke And Pederson: Baxter’s Doctrines Of The Decrees, Atonement, And Justification Were Not Reformed
Baxter’s writings are a strange theological mix. He was one of a few Puritans whose doctrines of God’s decrees, atonement, and justification were anything but Reformed. Though he generally structured his theology along Reformed lines of thought, he frequently leaned towards Arminian . . . Continue reading →
Why Caution About Jonathan Edwards Is In Order
Jonathan Edwards (1703–58) is America’s most famous theologian and perhaps its most famous philosopher too. He is an important and influential figure and worth seeking to understand for these reasons alone. We should think about Edwards for other reasons, however. He is the theologian par . . . Continue reading →
Calvin: Lent Is An Error That Crept Into The Church
For what kind of candour is it that quotes an epistle which scarcely one of the monkish herd would acknowledge to be genuine? Those who have read this silly production know that it speaks only of Lent, and chrism, and tapers, and . . . Continue reading →
Is Nineveh A Model For National Repentance?—Reflections On Modern Political Expectations
There are moments when the moral confusion of our age feels exhausting. As a Christian, I find it difficult not to grieve the normalization of abortion, the distortion of sex and gender, the redefinition of marriage, and the broader erosion of moral . . . Continue reading →
Review: Ramism And The Reformation Of Method: The Franciscan Legacy In Early Modernity By Simon J. G. Burton
Philosophy and the way that we frame issues has always played an important role in expressing the truth. We have an “apparatus” to our thought. We use certain conventions to be able to articulate what we mean even in theology. Whether we . . . Continue reading →
New Translation In Print: Rollock On Romans
Robert Rollock (1555–98) did not live very long but he was a hard-working Scotsman who left his mark on Reformed theology and especially in biblical commentary and the development of Reformed covenant theology. In his introduction to Rollock’s commentary on Ephesians, Casey . . . Continue reading →
Can Baptists Be Catholic? (Part 3)
My Baptist friends give two replies to the claim that they are not truly catholic. First, they appeal to their intent to be catholic. For example, in the introduction to the Second London Confession (1689) they say: “This we did the more abundantly to manifest our consent with both in all the fundamental articles of the Christian religion, as also with many others whose orthodox Confessions have been published to the world on the behalf of the Protestant in diverse nations and cities.” Continue reading →
Can Baptists Be Catholic? (Part 2)
When the ancient church began to use the adjective catholic (universal) to describe her theology, piety, and practice, and to distinguish herself from the Gnostic, Marcionite, and Montanist cults of the second century, the best evidence is that they did not read . . . Continue reading →
Owen Versus Tombes On Infant Baptism
The passages are these:— He was thirty years old when he came up to be baptized. Then, when he had the mature age of a teacher, he came to Jerusalem, so that all would reasonably accept him as a teacher. For he . . . Continue reading →
Can Baptists Be Catholic? (Part 1)
Whether Baptists can be catholic is a serious question that requires a serious answer. Before we proceed, however, we must define our terms. What is catholicity? Our English word catholic is really a Greek word, katholikos (καθολικός), borrowed by English. What does . . . Continue reading →
Ursinus’ Arguments That “This Is My Body” Is A Promise Of Grace Translated With An Introduction
The Heidelberg Reformation Association presents the first ever translation of a brief work on the Lord’s Supper by Zacharias Ursinus and translated by Dr Lee Irons. Continue reading →
Looking For Peter’s Successor
In the last month, we have witnessed the death of one pope and the election of another, and as typically happened, we saw reporters speaking in solemn tones about the unbroken line of succession from Peter to Leo XIV. Also, recent months . . . Continue reading →
Sola Scriptura Fell Out Of The Sky? A Response To Trent Horn
The popular Roman Catholic apologist Trent Horn recently published a video criticizing the Protestant principle of sola scriptura on historical grounds, and arguing that sola scriptura was a novel idea invented by the Protestant Reformers with no basis in the writings of . . . Continue reading →
New Insight Into Olevianus And Ursinus On The Imputation Of Active Obedience
The publication of this new research, completed only in the last month, may surprise some readers, disappoint others, and delight still others but it is important research that changes what we know about the origins and development of the controversy over the . . . Continue reading →
The New Inquisition: Illiberalism In The Modern Academy
Most college students are taught that, in the pre-Enlightenment world, religious zealots persecuted enlightened astronomers for daring to challenge deeply held but ignorant religious beliefs on the basis of early modern science. Whether that story is true as told is immaterial. That . . . Continue reading →
Why Christians Call Mary Theotokos (Part 2)
The great Cappadocian theologian Gregory of Nazianzus (c. 329–c. 90) had addressed the same concerns expressed by the Nestorians decades before proclaiming: If anyone does not believe that holy Mary is Theotokos, he is severed from the Godhead. If any one should . . . Continue reading →
Why Christians Call Mary Theotokos (Part 1)
We, then, following the holy Fathers, all with one consent, teach men to confess one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the same perfect in Deity and also perfect in humanity; truly God and truly man, of a rational soul . . . Continue reading →
Why Does The Council Of Chalcedon Matter?
Dr. R. Scott Clark explains why the Council of Chalcedon matters for our theology today. Continue reading →