I love books. Books have been my faithful companions since childhood. I remember always having a book with me, no matter where I went, even if I was going to a large social gathering, I would take a book in my purse. Actually, especially at large social gatherings, I would take a book with me to avoid talking with people. Yes, I was one of those kids. I’m also second-generation Filipino-American, and my extended family is huge...
Matthew W. Bates. The Birth of the Trinity: Jesus, God, and Spirit in New Testament & Early Christian Interpretation of the Old Testament. Oxford University Press, 2015. 234 pgs. ₤55 (Hardback). ISBN 978-0-19-872956-3. In his recent monograph, The Birth of the Trinity: Jesus, God, and Spirit in New Testament & Early Christian Interpretation of the Old Testament, Matthew W. Bates provides an alternative account of the origins of trinitarian doctrine. His thesis is that, “in...
This fall I started rereading Calvin’s Institutes, which may be my favorite book. When I first seriously engaged with Calvin it was the most theologically formative book I had read (that may still be the case). Once while I was in a conversation with a Ladder Day Saint I quoted Calvin and was then asked “WAIT- you guys are Calvinists?” I thought it was kind of a funny question, but regardless of what you believe...
I was reading Josh Carroll’s post about the disease called “Critiqueomania” and I found that I myself have had rather severe bouts of this plague. Some of these outbreaks have been part of my former angst, but others seemed very well meant. Some were definitely “Critiqueomania,” but there were other times where my criticism was well founded and was not coming from a place of pride or scholarly arrogance. So what do you do if it seems...
It’s 12 am and you are preparing a sermon for tomorrow. It’s 4pm and you are preparing for community group that will take place in your living room in a few hours. You have reached an impasse. You could take the easy route and give that nicely packaged sermon or group discussion that you have memorized. You could also take the easy path and deliver that spiel that you know sounds nice, but you know...
I became what some might call a Calvinist my junior year in High school. Going to a Dutch Reformed private school where I took a “Reformed Perspectives” class certainly aided this process. I had resisted of course. Coming from a Non-denominational Bible church, I had a gut reaction against such notions of predestination and all that depravity and sovereignty talk. However, the day came when my heart was changed and I suddenly found myself agreeing...
Returning from the mailbox, you flip through the stack that is your recent prize. You begin the important task of separating the pertinent letters from the ones that will be quickly discarded without even being read. Postcards and invitations in one stack, ads in another; bills, the things you wish you could throw away, on the right; another pile that is placed closest to the trash belongs to the mis-delivered. A Mr. So-and-So has not...
Fullerton, CA The downtown area of this small Los Angeles suburb is home to over a dozen bars ranging from Mexican cantinas, Irish pubs and average American bars. Every Friday and Saturday evening, the streets swell with college students, business executives, the poor, the rich, and everyone in between. These bars are filled with these people who are much more interested in just crazy cocktails, boozy beverages, or getting hammered drunk. No, these people in these...
Louth, Andrew. Introducing Eastern Orthodox Theology. IVP Academic, 2013. 172 pgs. $16.00 (Paperback) ISBN: 978-0-8308-4045-8 For many years, the go-to book for a first taste of the rich history, liturgy and tradition of Orthodoxy has been Timothy Ware’s The Orthodox Church. For those ready for a new way to wade deeper into what Orthodox Christians believe, Introducing Eastern Orthodox Theology is a very helpful next step that it is perfectly pitched for intellectual Evangelicals who are...
Walton, John H. and D. Brent Sandy. The Lost World of Scripture: Ancient Literary Culture and Biblical Authority. Downer’s Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2013. 320 pgs. $17. Paperback. 978-0-8308-4032-8. In this book about the different understandings of “text” in the ancient and modern worlds, Walton and Sandy suggest that modern readers of the Bible can benefit from an understanding of how oral and written texts functioned differently in the ancient world. In particular, their goal is...
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