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As the field of linguistics advances, it is vital that we bring those advances over to our study of the Hebrew Bible so that we can have the clearest and most accurate comprehension of the text as possible. Over the past twenty years, the fields of pragmatics and generative linguistics have shown that complementizers, like … Read more
The benefit of hindsight—historical observation and related reflection—provides opportunities for assessing and revising our thought and practice today. Hermeneutical hindsight is no exception. What have we learned from Nicaea, hermeneutically? What assumptions, authorities, crises, and criteria informed and shaped the Creed’s substance, scope, and stability? Which hermeneutical concerns fueled the Creed’s defenders and opponents? What … Read more
This paper investigates a possible theological influence of Irenaeus of Lyons upon the Creed formulated at the Council of Nicaea. The most obvious starting point for such a study is with the Irenaean rule of faith (regula fidei). The relationship of this second-century expression of faith to the Creed of 325 is a fascinating one. … Read more
This paper aims to propose a lyrical theology methodological analysis for contemporary praise and worship music (CPWM) from within its own theological framework. Others have written on the history of CPWM as well as conducted analytical research ethnographic and quantitative research into worship experiences and songwriting. Still others have critiqued CWM for its continuationist or … Read more
Brent Strawn, in The Old Testament is Dying, utilizes a linguistic analogy to describe the Old Testament as a dying language, undergoing various stages of pidginization and creolization. I apply his pidgin and creole language to contemporary worship music, the American evangelical corpus (henceforth AEC), to assess the shift in conceptual worship language in the … Read more
While Hosea 11:10-11 identifies the “roaring lion” as Yahweh, the prophet’s use of the Balaam Oracles in verses 10–11 evokes the promise of a new exodus led forth by the roaring lion of Judah (e.g., Gen 49:9; Num 24:9). The paradigm of the Exodus from Egypt serves as the pattern, or type, for the promised … Read more
The expectation that YHWH will accomplish justice for his people thereby vindicating their belief in him and their renunciation of human vengeance is a frequent element of the biblical storyline. The texts that call for God’s justice, however, do not always allow such a mundane portrayal of God’s justice. The imprecatory psalms provide a challenging … Read more
In this paper, I trace the development of modern theology, arguing that its quest for certainty stems from a deeper desire for emotional safety and security. The thesis is that behind the dominant epistemological strategies of modern theology lies an often-unacknowledged affective impulse: the desire to feel safe in an unstable world. By highlighting this … Read more
If the Modernity of the 19th and 20th Centuries, initiated by the Enlightenment in the late 17th and 18th Centuries, produced the philosophical and cultural tsunamis that currently threaten the church in the West, postmodernity is debris left as the waters have receded. Common to modern and post-modernistic ethical systems, to varying degrees, is the … Read more
The stone tablets given to Moses on Mount Sinai were emblematic of the covenant relationship between YHWH and the Israelites. As such, they were placed within the ark of the covenant, which resided within the inner sanctum of the sanctuary. An alternative view of the tablets has gained particular prominence in recent years, which contests … Read more