“Indifferentism about doctrine makes no heroes of the faith.” Continue reading →
The Canons Of Dork #54 For August 1, 2026
Machen
With D. G. Hart, T. David Gordon, And Presbycast On “A Presbyterian Church For Me”
Here is the audio only version: RESOURCES Subscribe To The Heidelblog! Download the HeidelApp on Apple App Store or Google Play Browse the Heidelshop! The Heidelblog Resource Page Heidelmedia Resources The Ecumenical Creeds The Reformed Confessions The Heidelberg Catechism The Heidelberg Catechism: . . . Continue reading →
Machen Resisted Big Eva In His Day
I think the provision of the Foreign Mission Board that utterances of missionaries should not be subject to criticism until formal charges are brought is the most preposterous interference of speech of which I ever heard. The same tactics were pursued by . . . Continue reading →
Horton: Machen Was Confessional, Not Sectarian
Already frail in health, J. Gresham Machen kept his appointment to preach in North Dakota. For someone reared in Machen’s world, the Presbyterian Church was far from being a “little flock,” as Jesus described his church (Luke 12:32). It was powerful in . . . Continue reading →
Bombers And Spies: Avoiding “Nuclear Combat! Toe To Toe With The Russkies!”
In my sixth decade, Cold War spy novels captured me, and I believe I know why. As a child, I was about all things related to war and the military. I say all things, but really my interests were limited to the American . . . Continue reading →
Machen On The Real Defenders Of Freedom
The real defenders of liberty are those who are devoted to it for its own sake, who believe that freedom of speech means not only freedom for those with whom they are agreed but also freedom for those to whom they are . . . Continue reading →
Can Fudging And Provoking Produce Unity?
At the end of the first paragraph of Christianity and Liberalism, the quotable Machen spun out a sentence for the ages, a statement striking rightness: In the sphere of religion, as in other spheres, the things about which men are agreed are apt . . . Continue reading →
Uncle Henry Was A Lib
When one recalls the family ties dating back to Baltimore days and the pleasant contacts of Machen’s early years at Princeton, the violence of van Dyke’s attack is rather overwhelming. These considerations only serve to point up, however, the thoroughness of van . . . Continue reading →
Defenders Of Orthodoxy Are Always Castigated As Mean
As early as 1925, Machenism was a codeword for BIG FAT CHURCH MEANIE-PANTS EXTRORDINAIRE . . . only two years after Christianity and Liberalism was published. It would seem that purveyors of clear and punchy polemic have never gone unpunished in the parlors of the . . . Continue reading →
Of Militants And Moderates
Darryl Hart (as always) has a provocative (in the best sense) article at Old Life.1 His use of the categories “militants” and “moderates” is very useful and helpful. To anticipate a criticism: yes, Reformed people can sometimes be jerks.2 Neither Darryl nor . . . Continue reading →
Machen Rejected Sunday Football But Not On Theocratic Grounds
Machen wrote a letter to a notable politician on April 20, 1933. Just as he saw what was coming with fascism in the 1930s in Europe, so Machen saw the encroaching menace of the National Football League, which held its first championship . . . Continue reading →
Machen On Liberty
In all controversy, however, the great principle of liberty should be preserved. I am old-fashioned in my belief that the Bible is true, but I am equally old-fashioned in my love of freedom. I am opposed to the attack on freedom in whatever . . . Continue reading →
Review: Fundamentalists in the Public Square: Did Fundamentalists Retreat After the 1925 Scopes Trial? By Madison Trammel
As someone who spends a lot of time in the online world, reading a work with a clearly defined goal and supported by real research the author did themselves is unusually refreshing. For that reason alone, I would give this book five . . . Continue reading →
Machen’s Meals
100 years have passed since the publication of J. Gresham Machen’s classic polemic-apologetic book Christianity and Liberalism. The world has changed a lot in the intervening century. The Protestant churches certainly look different, with the mainline (in and for which Machen fought) hurtling . . . Continue reading →
Heidelminicast: Machen On Christianity & Liberalism (81)
This is part 81 in our series from Machen’s Christianity and Liberalism. Continue reading →
Heidelminicast: Machen On Christianity & Liberalism (80)
This is part 80 in our series from Machen’s Christianity and Liberalism. Continue reading →
Heidelminicast: Machen On Christianity & Liberalism (79)
This is part 79 in our series from Machen’s Christianity and Liberalism. Continue reading →
Heidelminicast: Machen On Christianity & Liberalism (78)
This is part 77 in our series from Machen’s Christianity and Liberalism. Continue reading →
Heidelminicast: Machen On Christianity & Liberalism (77)
This is part 77 in our series from Machen’s Christianity and Liberalism. Continue reading →
Heidelminicast: Machen On Christianity & Liberalism (76)
This is part 76 in our series from Machen’s Christianity and Liberalism. Continue reading →