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Pray Hell Suffers
Read more: Pray Hell SuffersWe should pray that those in hell suffer to the uttermost. Dante’s Inferno provides a glimpse into the historical theology of hell in a particular medieval iteration. One of Dante’s many points is that God’s judgment precipitates in the idea of contrapasso–the punishment resembles or contrasts with the sin itself. The main idea with contrapasso is the φύσιν (physin), or…
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How Not to Seminar Well
Read more: How Not to Seminar WellThe best way to learn how to seminar well is to learn what not to do and, in desperation, avoid those things. Here is a list to help those who may be seminar instructors or participants alike engage in a thoughtful, provocative, and effective seminar. First, we must ask ourselves “what is our goal?” This…
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Charlottesville, Nashville, and Calvary
Read more: Charlottesville, Nashville, and CalvaryWhere to begin… Charlottesville The world knows of the American embarrassment that is the recent happenings in Charlottesville, Virginia. Neo-Nazis and white supremacists incited violence surrounding the profanely displayed statue of Confederate General and beater of freed slaves, Robert E. Lee. Gen. Lee’s brutality should be condemned along with the then-institution of chattel slavery. However, certain…
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How to Argue from the Bible Poorly
Read more: How to Argue from the Bible PoorlyLately, I have noticed a particular bent in conservative evangelical circles toward a special type of biblicism. This biblicism is characterized by a style of argumentation that loosely takes after the preaching of early modern preachers in their common (or plain) sense hermeneutic. The arguer cites chapter and verse as a premise in the argument…
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Our Evil God
Read more: Our Evil GodEvil things happen in this world, and yet God is still somehow sovereign. This is perhaps the hardest part of Christian theology to accept and understand. How is God sovereign over the persecution of Christians around the world, over the acts of ISIS, over world hunger and poverty, or over smaller evils like my own depression,…
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The Eternally Incarnate Word
Read more: The Eternally Incarnate WordTheology is the church speaking Jesus Christ to itself. Before I risk heresy in nuancing a fundamental doctrine, it is helpful to remind myself that the economy of God’s revelation in Jesus Christ as the crucified and resurrected Lord, along with the Bible’s perfect witness to that revelation, serve as our perfect guide regarding theological…
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Depression, Anxiety, and Theology
Read more: Depression, Anxiety, and TheologyI am a Christian who struggles with depression, anxiety, and chronic pain, and Jesus Christ has something to do with it. To reconcile the resurrection of Jesus Christ with the persistent rebellion of my body and mind is an absurd thing. It has become abundantly clear that I cannot understand the whys and hows of…
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The Word and Their Words: How to Listen to Speeches Theologically
Read more: The Word and Their Words: How to Listen to Speeches TheologicallyTheology and language are inseparable. Theology is speech about God, and this speech is linguistic and therefore culturally defined. Languages, particularly those of civilizations with imperial and colonial histories, are the words of the most affluent and well-to-do. (This is why words like ‘suwanne’ and ‘purdy’ are not found in the OED). Words of conquered…
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The Deadly Implications of Reading Scripture
Read more: The Deadly Implications of Reading ScriptureReading scripture has deadly implications. “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before…
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Jesus Is Coming Soon
Read more: Jesus Is Coming SoonJesus is coming soon. This is the Bible’s continual answer to the question of when our Lord will return to judge the wicked and vindicate the righteous. The Book of Revelation is part of an apocalyptic tradition that followed the exile of the Jewish people. Apocalyptic literature is often political in its form and theological…