Archive for May 2023
The Doctrine of Creation Ex Nihilo: Why Does It Matter?
The doctrine of creation is one of the most important doctrines of Christian faith because it so foundational to so many other crucial doctrines. For example, if we have no doctrine of creation, we will have a truncated doctrine of sin and a distorted eschatology. Then again, without a clear doctrine of creation we do…
Read MoreFrancis Turretin: Keep Scholasticism in the Schools
He was in Logick a great Critick Profoundly skill’d in Analytick. He could distinguish, and divide A Hair ’twixt South and South-west side: On either which he would dispute, Confute, change hands, and still confute. – Samuel Butler The last half century has seen a surge of Protestant scholastic studies and ressourcement movements. Writing…
Read MoreThe Psychology of Atheism and Parenting
Sigmund Freud once famously opined that religion was merely the wishful projection of weak people who were looking for their lost father figure. Freud was echoing the earlier theory of Ludwig Feurbach, who made the same claim. In his book, Faith of the Fatherless: A Psychology of Atheism, Paul Vitz turns this thesis on its…
Read MoreNew Credo Podcast! Will the real Luther please stand up?
In episode 3 of this mini-series, Samuel Bierig asks Matthew Barrett, author of the new book The Reformation as Renewal, to introduce us to another side of Martin Luther, that side of Luther often forgotten. Though the oppositional narrative claims Luther radically severed himself from tradition, Barrett shows there’s more to Luther than meets the…
Read MoreWill the real Luther please stand up? Matthew Barrett and Samuel Bierig
In episode 3 of this mini-series, Samuel Bierig asks Matthew Barrett, author of the new book The Reformation as Renewal, to introduce us to another side of Martin Luther, that side of Luther often forgotten. Though the oppositional narrative claims Luther radically severed himself from tradition, Barrett shows there’s more to Luther than meets the…
Read MoreInferno, Canto 9
Dante’s Divine Comedy is a literary masterpiece that continues to captivate readers with its vivid depictions of the afterlife and its profound theological insights. As a work of Christian literature, it offers a unique vision of God’s justice and mercy as it invites readers to contemplate the ultimate destination of human souls. Through complex allegories…
Read MoreWilliam Perkins: The Pastoral Fervor and Spiritual Dynamics of a Reformed Scholastic
The term scholasticism is often used in a derogatory manner to describe theology which is abstract, pedantic, or obscure. While there are theologians (both ancient and modern) who have justifiably earned such a moniker, we must be careful to distinguish between this pejorative usage of the term and its more technical meaning. In brief, the…
Read MoreInferno, Canto 8
Dante’s Divine Comedy is a literary masterpiece that continues to captivate readers with its vivid depictions of the afterlife and its profound theological insights. As a work of Christian literature, it offers a unique vision of God’s justice and mercy as it invites readers to contemplate the ultimate destination of human souls. Through complex allegories…
Read MoreThe First Credo Colloquy: Carl R. Trueman and Matthew Barrett
Welcome to the first Credo Colloquy, an exclusive dialogue between theologians brought to you by Zondervan Academic. In this new series leading theologians engage one another on some of the most important issues in theology facing the church. In this first colloquy, Timothy Gatewood talked to Credo Fellow, Carl R. Trueman, and editor-in-chief, Matthew Barrett.…
Read MoreThe First Credo Colloquy: Carl R. Trueman and Matthew Barrett
Welcome to the first Credo Colloquy, an exclusive dialogue between theologians brought to you by Zondervan Academic. In this new series leading theologians engage one another on some of the most important issues in theology facing the church. In this first colloquy, Timothy Gatewood talked to Credo Fellow, Carl R. Trueman, and editor-in-chief, Matthew Barrett.…
Read MorePodcast Throwback: The Covenant of Redemption
What is the covenant of redemption? Why must the covenant of redemption be intra-Trinitarian? Does the covenant of redemption lead to a social trinitarianism? Does the covenant of redemption span across the Testaments? Why is the covenant of redemption essential to a right understanding of the history of salvation and the application of salvation? In…
Read MoreStephen Charnock: The Clarity of God’s Existence and Providence
If you only read one book about God’s existence, it must be Charnock’s The Existence and Attributes of God. There is renewed interest in a Reformed Scholastic like Stephen Charnock due to a new two-volume edition of that work edited by Mark Jones. This is an important contribution because Charnock interacts with previous thinkers like Plato…
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