In response to Jason Stellman’s monday post the question has arisen as to what should be required for membership in a confessional Reformed (e.g., Three Forms) or Presbyterian (Westminster Standards) congregation. The argument has been made that, in American Presbyterian churches, the . . . Continue reading →
American Christianity
Clark Pinnock Dies at Age 73; Was God Surprised?
Too soon? Bad taste? Perhaps but so is suggesting that God might have a body (see Most Moved Mover) and that the future is “genuinely open” to God. As soon as I read of Pinnock’s death in Christianity Today the first thing . . . Continue reading →
Anne Rice is Right (and Wrong)
I understand why Anne Rice has renounced (HT: Aquila Report) the visible, institutional church. She’s a modern and she’s an American. She might also have some “authority issues” (she was born “Howard Allen O’Brien“) but I digress. Yes, she’s Romanist but she’s . . . Continue reading →
Audio Resources: The Presbyterian and Reformed Family Tree
Ever wonder whence the split Ps and broken Rs come? Here’s a great interview with WSC’s Darryl Hart on the Presbyterian and Reformed family tree.
Horton: To Be or Not to Be? Reformed Christianity And American Evangelicalism
Somewhere along the way, however, the evangel became increasingly separated from evangelism; the message became subservient to the methods. Today, it is taken for granted by many that those most concerned about doctrine are least interested in reaching the lost (or, as . . . Continue reading →
The Presbyterian Guardian is Back (Link Corrected)
Well, the back issues are now available online (HT: Josh Martin)
Neither Abyss Nor Eschaton
David Hall analyzes the just past PCA GA. I found it helpful.
Hegel in the PCA?
It seems like a dialectic. It’s almost a minimalist definition of “Reformed” and Darryl has some interesting analysis of it.
EPC Moves Toward the Mainline and the Mainline Moves Toward the Drain
Recovering the Reformed Confession I described the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (along with the CRC) as a part of the “borderline” (as distinct from the mainline and the sideline). At the time, the CRC appeared to be moving toward the mainline (which trajectory . . . Continue reading →
Ergun Caner, the Legacy of Revivalism, and Show Biz
UPDATE 28 JUNE 2010 CT takes a similar approach to the Caner story. Since this post appeared, Caner has been removed from his position as Dean but remains a faculty member at Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary. Original Post 30 May 2010 Ergun . . . Continue reading →
The Anti-Canonical Spirit Of American Religion
A canon is a rule, a measure, an objective standard by which things are measured. A canon is also a limit. Americans have never been particularly fond of limits. We are a busy, restless people always pushing the boundaries. Every school child . . . Continue reading →
The Problem with Churches and "Social Justice"
Darryl explains.
Idols of the Heartland? The Megachurch Background of American Idol
The LA Times has a story chronicling an interesting connection between some evangelical megachurches and contestants on American Idol (HT: Bill J.).
"Sectarians" v "Relevants" in the PCA and the Strategic Plan
“Nowhere has the disagreements between the “sectarians” and the “relevants” been more evident than in the discussions regarding the Regulative Principle of Worship, women in diaconal ministry, and the cultural mandate of the Church. The Metro New York Presbytery of the PCA, . . . Continue reading →
Second and Third Thoughts on Edwards
Few figures are as electrifying and divisive in the study of American religious history as Jonathan Edwards. To many he is and can be only St Jonathan, the paradigm of theology, piety, and practice. To others the story is more complicated. It . . . Continue reading →
Church Bells and Bible Studies (UPDATED)
Update 26 April 2010 A federal court has ruled that the city ordinance restricting church bells is an unconstitutional abridgment of religious speech. Now that the principle is established, perhaps the congregation will accommodate itself to its neighbors and moderate the number . . . Continue reading →
Hart Brings Machen to the Mainline in Omaha (Link Corrected)
It’s been long enough since the fundamentalist-modernist controversy that much of evangelicalism has coalesced or become indistinguishable from the old liberalism. The old lines between “liberals” and “conservatives” are fuzzy. Many in the mainline are unaware of the sideline or of the . . . Continue reading →
Evangelicals and Gnostics Together?
Gnosticism is perhaps the most ancient heresy of all. It posits a radical spirit-matter dualism, matter/creation as the result of a demi-urge, a hierarchy of being and deities, it denies the OT, the God of the OT, and the humanity of Jesus. . . . Continue reading →
Horton Comments on Warren at DGM
Nail, meet hammer.
Careful How You Vote in Moscow
Or you may face church discipline. You might want to keep this in mind if you’re thinking about attending or joining the Confederation of Reformed Evangelicals.