Obs. I. Believers under the new testament have lost nothing, no privilege that was enjoyed by them under the old. Many things they have gained, and those of unspeakable excellency, but they have lost nothing at all. Whatever they had of privilege . . . Continue reading →
Academic Stuff
Resources On Pastoral Education
The internet has created a new world of possibilities for education. Seminaries and theological colleges have seized upon the potential of the internet by offering online courses and online degrees. For older non-traditional students, for those who already have families and other . . . Continue reading →
Is The Doctrine Of Penal Substitutionary Atonement A Late, Western Doctrine?
Recently on Twitter, Tim Keller wrote, The gospel is neither religion nor irreligion it is something else altogether. Religion makes law and moral obedience a means of salvation, while irreligion makes the individual a law to self. The gospel is that Jesus . . . Continue reading →
Why “Distributed” Pastoral Education Is Not The Solution
There are problems with the traditional model for preparing pastors but some of the proposed alternatives are worse. One of those is “Distributed Education” model. The traditional model is that you have 20 professors on campus and all the students have to . . . Continue reading →
Millennial Perfectionism And The Social Media Covenant Of Works
If you are a Millennial, relax. This is not another critique. I do spend a fair bit of time with Millennials, however, and I have observed some interesting trends. One of these observations was reinforced recently in an article by Thomas Curran . . . Continue reading →
Trueman On Education And Gulags
I am over fifty. I no longer care what anyone except my wife thinks about me. That particularly applies to anyone under the age of thirty-five. You should therefore feel free to disagree with me on anything I say because it is . . . Continue reading →
Conspiracy Theories Are Bunk
Henry Ford (1863–1947), founder of the Ford Motor Company, famously said, “History is bunk.” That may be sometimes true. Historians do make mistakes. This is why all histories must be read with a critical eye. Not all theories of history are equally . . . Continue reading →
A Persnickety Point About Doctorates
An academic doctorate, a PhD or its equivalent is an earned degree granted in recognition of the completion of coursework capped off with an original piece of research which meets academic standards and is judged to make a contribution to a field of learning. Typically, in the USA (and elsewhere) it takes about 5 years of full-time study and research to earn a PhD. Along the way a PhD candidate earns at least one MA and (usually) passes some sort of comprehensive examination before beginning the dissertation (or thesis) phase of their program. Continue reading →
Word Of The Day: Anachronism
One of themes that emerged from yesterday’s discussion of Machen’s ugly letter is the problem of anachronism. It has probably three senses and the one most relevant to this discussion is the expectation that earlier figures in history should know what we . . . Continue reading →
Of Calvin, Social Justice, And The Theology Of The Cross
Yesterday (August 13) was the 477th anniversary of a small but symbolic event in Reformation history. On that date in 1541 John Calvin returned to Geneva from Strasbourg, where he had been a happy exile for about three years. On his first . . . Continue reading →
Orwell On The Value Of Good Writing
Now, it is clear that the decline of a language must ultimately have political and economic causes: it is not due simply to the bad influence of this or that individual writer. But an effect can become a cause, reinforcing the original . . . Continue reading →
Cyprian: Baptize Infants (253 AD)
2. But in respect of the case of the infants, which you say ought not to be baptized within the second or third day after their birth, and that the law of ancient circumcision should be regarded, so that you think that . . . Continue reading →
Hippolytus (c. 215 AD): Baptize Infants
3. And they shall put off their clothes. 4. And they shall baptize the little children first. And if they can answer for themselves, let them answer. But if they cannot, let their parents or someone from their family answer for them. . . . Continue reading →
Augustine: Infant Baptism Is The Apostolic And Universal Practice Of The Church
And this is the firm tradition of the universal Church, in respect of the baptism of infants, who certainly are as yet unable “with the heart to believe unto righteousness, and with the mouth to make confession unto salvation,” as the thief . . . Continue reading →
When A Cake Is More Than A Cake
Erik Erickson makes a point this morning that I try to make to my Ancient Church students each year. Words mean things. Some words, spoken in some contexts, mean so much that Christians have been willing to die and have been murdered . . . Continue reading →
Another Canary In Another Educational Coal Mine?
The crest of Duke University, one of the more prestigious universities in the United States, says, “eruditio et religio” (learning and piety). The crest signifies the school’s roots in the early and mid-19th century first as a joint Quaker/Methodist project and later . . . Continue reading →
AGR: With Chris Gordon On Unhitching The Faith From The Holy Old Testament God
Recently Atlanta pastor Andy Stanley argued that Christians should “unhitch” their faith from the Old Testament. He was trying to respond to concerns that people have about difficult episodes in the history of redemption but in so doing he fell into an . . . Continue reading →
Justification In The Earliest Christian Fathers
Perhaps the first post-Apostolic use of the New Testament verb “to justify” (δικαιόω) occurs in 1 Clement, written just after 100 AD to the same Corinthian congregation to whom Paul had written half a century earlier. There is no claim of authorship . . . Continue reading →
New In Print: Calvin—Subtle Sacramentarian Or Loyal Son? John Calvin’s Relationship To Martin Luther
In October of 1545, Heinrich von Wolfenbüttel (1489–1568), the Romanist Duke of Braunschweig-Lüneberg-Wolfenbüttel, in the process of a attempting to recover lands taken from him by the Protestant Schmalkald League (in 1542), was taken captive along with his sons. The Lutheran territories . . . Continue reading →
Where Were The Church And The Truth Between The Fathers And The Reformation?
Johnny Carson was a kid from Nebraska, who hosted The Tonight Show from 1962–92. One of his more famous recurring gags was Carnac the Magnificent, ostensibly a magician—Carson had a magic act as a high school and college student—who was able to . . . Continue reading →