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“Can Christians and churches be catholic and Reformed?” This is the opening question of Michael Allen and Scott Swain’s celebrated work Reformed Catholicity. In this paper I will argue that Jacobus Arminius is a Reformed Catholic. He viewed himself as a Reformed theologian within the broad tradition of the church catholic. He handled the fathers … 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
In his mature theological anthropology, Augustine notes that a pregnant woman cannot create or alter the nature of the unborn child in her womb because all natures are created by God, the creator of all things who is uncreated. This understanding underscores that since God created Adam and Eve with physical and gender distinctions, gender … Read more
The last few years have witnessed a ‘vibe shift’ in Western culture against radical secularity and in favor of religion, spirituality, and morality. Significant former atheists like Ayaan Hirsi Ali, her husband and award-winning historian Niall Ferguson, and Wikipedia co-founder Larry Sanger, have publicly converted to Christianity. This paper proposes a typology of four emerging … Read more
Thesis statement: Democratic and Republican party platforms reveal different viewpoints on numerous policies, some of which can be evaluated by Scripture. A. Introduction 1. We have freedom to differ here: there is no official “evangelical viewpoint” or “ETS position” We also have freedom to express our views and discuss our differences in a civil and … Read more
As the narrative of church history is summarily rehearsed, the Council of Nicea was fixated in focused opposition to the Christological heresy of Arianism. The Life of Constantine, however, mentions a secondary yet forgotten focus upon Easter (“Quartodeciman”) disputes. The Life boldly claims that the differences were discussed and “resolved by the united judgment of … 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
Despite the theological consensus that the narrative and legal texts of the Book of Exodus deify chosen individuals, this paper demystifies their supposed deification. Discoveries in biblical theology, the ancient Near East, and the history of biblical interpretation warrant serious theological reconsideration of the divine status ascribed to humans in Exodus. This paper presents a … Read more
In the ancient Near East, kings were viewed as having a level of access to the gods not available to ordinary people. In ancient Egypt, for example, this royal privilege is asserted both visually and textually. In countless reliefs, pharaohs are pictured standing beside one or another of the gods – sometimes holding hands with … Read more