Now there is an answer, thanks to a big, new experiment from economists at West Point, who randomly banned computers from some sections of a popular economics course this past year at the military academy. One-third of the sections could use laptops . . . Continue reading →
Academic Stuff
Zwingli On Sacramentarians And Infant Baptism (1529)
Others, like the sacramentarians, (those are justly called sacramentarians, who attribute to the sacraments what they do not contain, and by high-sounding but false and made-up promises, lead men away from simple trust in the one God to belief in the power . . . Continue reading →
Why Studying Western Civ Matters
…learning about Western culture isn’t simply about undertaking a cohesive study of the history, philosophy, literature, and arts that have enormously influenced the world in which we all live. It is also about learning how to express ideas effectively, how to separate . . . Continue reading →
In Praise Of (Renaissance) Humanism
In article 10 he defined the literal sense just as most traditional evangelical and Reformed interpreters would: the sense intended by the author. This is an important correction to the late-modern subjectivist move to elevate the reader and his subjective experience of the text over authorial intent. Thomas represents a broad classical and Christian consensus about how to regard authors and texts. Augustine had argued that reading a text according to the author’s intent was an act of charity, a way to love one’s neighbor as one’s self. Continue reading →
Muller On The History Of The Exegesis Of Hosea 6:7
Adam in Hosea 6:7: generic or specific? An example of a different order is the exegesis of Hosea 6:7, where the medieval tradition had rested unquestioningly on the Vulgate rendering, “ipsi autem sicut Adam transgressi sunt pactum.” The text indicated, as virtually . . . Continue reading →
Office Hours: Stephen Nichols On Christian Education In The Late Modern Age
One might not know it to look at them now but it was orthodox Christians who built some of the greatest educational institutions in the world. The universities in Paris and Oxford were founded by Christians who believed the historic Christian faith. . . . Continue reading →
Polanus On The Covenant Of Works With Adam And Israel
God’s covenant is a bargain which God hath made with men, in which God promises to men some good, and requires of them again, that they perform those things which he commands. And that covenant is either eternal or temporal. The eternal . . . Continue reading →
Pentecostalism Is Not New
Montanism was a second-century movement whose leader Montanus claimed to receive direct revelation from God. In addition, two of his “prophetesses,” Priscilla and Maximilla also claimed to receive such revelation. Such revelations were often accompanied by strange behavior. When Montanus had these . . . Continue reading →
EchoZoe Interview On The Trinity
Each new year Andy Olson does an episode of EchoZoe on an essential Christian doctrine and the doctrine of the Trinity certainly fits. The Athanasian Creed begins with these words: “Whosoever will be saved: before all things it is necessary that he . . . Continue reading →
Taking Notes By Hand Is Better
What drives this paradoxical finding? Mueller and Oppenheimer postulate that taking notes by hand requires different types of cognitive processing than taking notes on a laptop, and these different processes have consequences for learning. Writing by hand is slower and more cumbersome . . . Continue reading →
Nicole On Phase Two: Opposition To Amyraut Builds
In 1641, Amyraut took the pen to defend Calvin’s view of reprobation, which had been severely criticized in an anonymous work. In this volume, titled Doctrinae J. Calvini de Absoluto Reprobationis Decreto Defensio, Amyraut took occasion to reassert covertly his main positions . . . Continue reading →
Studying the Heidelberg Catechism In Latin
We understandably think of the Heidelberg Catechism (1563) as a German-language catechism. Its first translation, however, was into Latin as the Catechesis Palatinae. This was important because, when the catechism was published relatively few people in the world spoke or read German. . . . Continue reading →
Declining Resilience Among College Students?
A year ago I received an invitation from the head of Counseling Services at a major university to join faculty and administrators for discussions about how to deal with the decline in resilience among students. At the first meeting, we learned that . . . Continue reading →
Tertullian: We Share Everything Except Our Wives
One in mind and soul, we do not hesitate to share our earthly goods with one another. All things are common among us but our wives. —Tertullian, “The Apology,” cap. 39 in Latin Christianity: Its Founder, Tertullian, ed. Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson, . . . Continue reading →
University Encourages New Best Practices: Gender Neutral Pronouns
Source (HT: YaYa University)
How Greek Letters Were Written In The 16th Century
The Lord’s Day In Eclipse
The earliest reason given for celebrating Sunday is that it is the day of the resurrection (Ep. of Barnabas, 15.9), but in the Jewish understanding of the week the first day commemorated creation and this idea was taken over even by Gentile . . . Continue reading →
The Constantinian Turn Was Definitive
The conversion of Constantine marks a watershed in the patristic period. In the second and third centuries the Church was a relatively private community, suffering from time to time the threats and the actuality of imperial persecution and looking for the end . . . Continue reading →
Ambrose: Psalms Unite The Church
Psalms are song by emperors; the common people rejoice in them. Each man does his utmost in singing what will be a blessing to all. Psalms are sung in the home and rehearsed on the streets. The psalm is learned without labor . . . Continue reading →
Eusebius: The Command To Sing Psalms Is Universal
…the command to sing psalms in the name of the Lord was obeyed by everyone in every place: for the command to sing psalms is in force in all Churches which exist among the nations, not only for the Greeks but also . . . Continue reading →