Sisyphus Just Keeps Rolling Along: A Review of Scott Yenor’s “The Recovery of Family Life”
We’ve been going through a sexual revolution for a while now, and things have certainly changed—standards have been overturned—but is this progress?
Some limits find their origins in human society—we can call them “positive law”, or perhaps, “social convention”, but whatever we call them, we can change them because we made them up. But there are other limits—limits that are simply in the nature of things. And those are the limits that we can’t change. While that... Continue Reading
Book Review—Therefore the Truth I Speak: Scottish Theology 1500–1700
Macleod’s new book on Scottish Christianity also addresses timeless concerns like the authority of Scripture, justification by faith alone, and what faithful Christian witness looks like.
Donald Macleod’s beautiful new book, Therefore the Truth I Speak, is an engaging look at Scottish theology that mines the past and brings it into the present. Part church history, part historical theology, this book introduces some fascinating figures and events. Biographical Sketch of the Author Donald Macleod was Principal of the Free Church of... Continue Reading
An Exhaustive Exegetical Extravaganza
This new book exhibits that same kind of comprehensive and precise approach to the two opening chapters of Scripture.
In the Beginning was a delight to read – personally it brought me back to many of the OT lectures I enjoyed from Dr. Van Dam in my seminary years. While I found it enjoyable, there may be others who will find it tough-going at times. It’s not highly technical, but in places Van Dam does... Continue Reading
Finding the Right Hills to Die On: A Book Review
Avoiding sectarianism and minimalism is not about avoiding disagreements altogether—it’s about understanding when and how we ought to disagree.
A bulk of the book is dedicated to “performing” theological triage—particularly in the chapters dedicated to second-and-third-rank issues. Drawing on his journey through various theological positions, Ortlund models what it means to define the faith from a posture of humility. Gavin Ortlund wants to make you a better boxer—or at least help you pick... Continue Reading
Three Questions for Discerning Our Motives in Prayer
Discerning our motives in prayer isn’t always cut-and-dried. As justified sinners, we should always be suspicious of our sinful hearts.
Praying for God’s glory means letting His sovereign wisdom decide what to do with your prayers and your life. It means keeping our focus on Him and on His glory over our own. “Prayer is not a convenient device for imposing our will upon God, or for bending his will to ours, but the prescribed... Continue Reading
Examining America’s Political Pulpit
Book Review—When Sorrow Comes: The Power of Sermons from Pearl Harbor to Black Lives Matter
Matthes argues for the power of the pulpit—or what she labels “sermonic influence” on political and cultural life. Such an influence, she demonstrates, has proven especially notable during times of national crisis: it is here that Protestant sermons have resonated with the greatest force. In her new book, When Sorrow Comes: The Power of Sermons... Continue Reading
Robin DiAngelo’s Fragile Narrative
This summer, DiAngelo released her newest work, "Nice Racism." It didn’t sell.
The deep irony of DiAngelo’s work is that she demands exquisite sensitivity from everyone in all social interactions, but her own gross insensitivity is displayed on virtually every page. For many people, 2020 was a nightmare that refused to end. For Robin DiAngelo, it was a very good year. In the aftermath of the George... Continue Reading
American Protestants and Conservative Politics: A Q&A with Dr. Gillis J. Harp
Some will be surprised at how Christian conservatives in early American history look very different from conservatives of the past 20 years.
One is a major change in the understanding of what constituted authentic conservatism. This transformation occurred during the final couple decades of the 19th century. Political scientist Clinton Rossiter referred to it as the “Great Train Robbery” of American intellectual history wherein leading conservatives switched to embrace classical liberal ideas of economic laissez-faire. Editor’s... Continue Reading
Is “White Fragility” a Helpful Resource for Christians?
Those who want to see the end of racism and to experience true reconciliation will find themselves farther from it if they heed DiAngelo.
It is ultimately hopeless. DiAngelo’s book ends with a vision for a better world, but it’s actually not much of an improvement. The world she would lead us into would still be defined by race, still be broken by white supremacy, still be scarred by whiteness, still see the deepest divisions between black and white.... Continue Reading
Review: ‘Our Comfort in Dying: Civil War Sermons by R. L. Dabney’
12 manuscript of unpublished Dabney sermons were found, apparently undisturbed since the 1880s or 1890s, by which time Dabney had completed the writing out of the sermon texts.
Realizing these sermons were of great value especially to students of Dabney’s preaching, Union seminary digitized the 12 sermons and placed them on their website. In early 2020, Jonathan Peters, an administrative assistant at Harford Christian School, in Darlington, Maryland – and a costumed Gettysburg tour guide – encountered the army sermons while studying the... Continue Reading
