Calling for a Return to the Doctrinal Ideals and Kingdom Ethics of the First Reformation
One can only sit back in wonder when reading a statement like this:
It is on this basis that Bavinck can say: “There is thus a rich revelation of God even among the heathen—not only in nature but also in their heart and conscience, in their life and history, among their statesmen and artists, their philosophers and reformers.”
Reading this article about Herman Bavinck (1854-1921), I found myself overwhelmed by a flood of thoughts. His influence is profound and growing and yet is this something to celebrate?
The fall of the Assad regime is by all accounts a monumental development in the history of the modern Middle East, and it came rapidly and unexpectedly. Though in some respects the war which began in 2011 has never fully ended, it was assumed that Assad had effectively won and as recently as last year there was talk of trying to bring Syria back into the international community. The war was by all accounts over. The resistance was reduced to a small and contained area. The country was far from healed or duly re-constituted, but the notion that the regime would fall seemed distant at best.
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/reviews/living-wonder/
I rather enjoyed reading this review though I have not decided whether I will pick up Dreher's book. The work in question is Rod Dreher's 'Living in Wonder: Finding Mystery and Meaning in a Secular Age'. I found myself disagreeing with both Dreher and Darville the reviewer, but there's a great deal of food for thought.
https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2024/11/the-new-divide-in-global-anglicanism
This article interested me because it's connected to some of the recent issues I've touched on respecting Anglicanism and how the High Church tradition approaches doctrine and the question of authority.
https://www.str.org/w/will-god-be-in-pain-for-eternity-as-he-watches-people-suffer-in-hell-
I will desist from an extended critique of Greg Koukl and the advice he dispenses on his programme. There are quite a few things that could be said about the other segments of this episode that I found problematic. In fact, I rarely find myself ever agreeing with him about much of anything. But one particular aspect of this show struck me.
I heard Tim Alberta interviewed on Fresh Air back in November of 2023. His interview grabbed my attention as I remain eager to hear Evangelical voices critical of what's been happening to the Church in the Trump era.
And so out of curiosity I picked up his book - The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory: American Evangelicals in An Age of Extremism and was immediately 'pulled in' as they say. It was really a very interesting read and his compilation of reporting narratives and interviews was compelling. During the early stages of the book I became convinced that I would want everyone I knew to read it. But then at some point the book shifted and began to lose its way, leaving me with very mixed feelings.
For more than twenty years I have been fascinated by various similarities between aspects of ancient Greek philosophy and that of ancient India. As one reads of Pythagoras, Plato, some of the pre-Socratics, and the Orphic tradition, one cannot help but notice the striking parallels within the philosophical strains flowing from the Subcontinent. The explanations for this are many but often lacking.
It's been ten years since its release and I finally got around to watching Citizen Four, the Snowden documentary by Laura Poitras. Why did it take me so long? I knew the story and had followed it closely at the time and the film didn't reveal anything new - but it was interesting to see the footage and relive the moment and re-catch the energy and zeitgeist of that time.
I recently finished Frederick Heymann's George of Bohemia: King of Heretics (1965, Princeton University Press). It's a weighty and laborious read but necessary for anyone seeking to understand the history of Hussitism.
Too often Protestants have fallen prey to 'successionist' thinking or rather tying the idea of succession to some kind of institutional or genealogical pedigree. The apostolic succession (if we want to call it that) is located not in a group, tribe, geographic location, or institutional/ecclesiastical continuity but in the doctrine of the apostles. Those who recognize and obey the Christ-granted oracular authority of the apostles or New Testament writers are the heirs of the apostles.
For obvious reasons this article on Waldensian Historiography captured my attention and I was thinking of Philip Schaff long before his name emerged in the article.
Romanticism took on many hues during the 19th century and while American Protestants poured most of their energy into crafting the narrative about the Mayflower Pilgrims or Pilgrim Fathers, they were not alone. Hostility to Roman Catholicism generated other historical debates over Church History and Protestants from the US and the UK, to France and beyond wanted a piece of the Waldensians.
I've been unable to find the source for the quote but there's a statement made by someone in the 18th or 19th century about how the civilisational clash is between Rome and Geneva. The point being, the Geneva in question is not the Geneva of Calvin but of Rousseau and Voltaire. In other words Geneva represents not the Reformation but the Enlightenment.
https://credomag.com/article/natural-theology-and-van-til/
Classical Theology in this case is in reference to Aristotelian-driven Scholastic Theology and Thomism. This group (Credo Magazine) represents the Thomist revival in Reformed theology. It's sort of ironic that all of this is starting to really take off after the 2017 death of RC Sproul who championed it - but didn't live to see it.
That said, the issues are complicated as there are also strong Scholastic tendencies and tensions within Van Tillian circles as the commitment to Confessionalism is retained. The advocates of 'Classical Theology' have a point in that the Scholastic ethos was dominant at the time the confessions were produced in the 17th century.
The world is in turmoil and at such a degree and tempo that it's almost impossible to keep up with events. I could post multiple articles a day and it would not suffice. We are in a rather intense news cycle at present. Many of these issues qualify as mere 'news' and as such are somewhat beyond the purview of this project which among other things seeks to contextualize the Church in the world we live in today and explain how history, events, and ideas are impacting the Church for good and evil. Given the failures of Church leaders and in many cases their capitulation to the world, or in other cases their heresy and their corruption, I believe this task is important even if few will hear it.
Where to go to church? What is one to do in these troubling times? There are many articles written about this topic. Some are helpful, others less so. We could talk about the Reformers criteria regarding the preaching of the Word, administration of sacraments, and (to varying degrees) Church discipline. But these discussions aren't always helpful because on a practical level there are numerous entangling ecclesiastical questions especially regarding worship and polity.
In many cases his interpretation of culture, politics, and geo-politics will leave the American reader confused. Profoundly conservative, his views on economics are not at all in line with the American Right - and certainly not its waxing Libertarian wing. He condemns laissez-faire policies and the utilitarian arguments that capitalism so often resorts to. He understands that 'money creates power' and warns against it - but then still spends the whole of his life chasing after power and relying on alliances with those who possess wealth. I find it remarkable that he clearly understood and accepted the notion that a Christian political order without a regenerate populace would necessarily result in an oppressive system. It's something American Evangelicals largely do not grasp and of course they don't want to hear it as it flies in the face of the narratives about freedom and liberty. Americans can still dream and fantasize in a way never afforded to the claustrophobic ordering of nations in Europe.
I recently finished reading James Bratt's 2013 work - Abraham Kuyper: Modern Calvinist, Christian Democrat. I cannot recommend it enough. It was an excellent work, well done, and at times even something of a page turner. While some American readers might struggle at times with the dynamics of 19th century European politics, enough is explained that I think most will be able to persevere through it.
https://americanreformer.org/2023/03/the-case-for-the-laws-first-table/
In this case the American Reformer's Timon Cline is appealing to the example and legacy of George Gillespie (1613-1648) who during the course of his short life and near its conclusion helped to draft the Westminster Confession of Faith - the standard upheld by historic Presbyterianism.
Various news stories continue to emerge suggesting that kids lack self-control when it comes to social media and viewing videos, especially on platforms like TikTok. Experts speaks of an obsessive behaviour that needs to be curbed.
Dolezal's admission of mutabilist language being present in the text and his resort to nonliteral, accommodationist, and anthropomorphic arguments in order to fit the language of Scripture into his theological grid has the potential if not the tendency to generate more problems than it solves. Once again, one is driven to think of the patterns exhibited in historical theology and the role such 'rationalist' systems-driven thinking has played. The road from rationalist scholasticism to theological liberalism is in fact a short one. The dynamics of Scripture don't lend themselves to such rigid constructions and there's a tendency (even a drive) to refine and ultimately compress both Trinitarianism and the hypostatic union into ever monistic and more coherent frameworks. It begins innocently enough, pushing to the edge of orthodoxy. But in another generation it's redefined and in another lost altogether.
After following the Dolezal-Divine Simplicity controversy for some years now, I found this review of his book 'All that is in God' to be helpful. I have been quite open over the years that I'm not a real fan of John Frame. I remember being rather put off by his Worship in Spirit and Truth back in 1996 and yet despite my differences I'm always curious to read his works and see what he has to say. His take is often a bit different and always challenging, even when I think he's wrong.
https://evangelicalfocus.com/multimedia/video/24261/Dan_Strange:_Faith,_work_and_Culture_Wars
There's a lot packed into this 12-minute interview. If you have your eyes and ears open it's rather instructive. But first, consider the context.
The report of this little exchange between Beveridge and Hayek is still relevant. This is all the more the case to me when I consider how the thinking of Hayek, von Mises, Rand, and other godless economists of the Austrian economic and Libertarian school continue to capture the hearts of many Evangelicals.
https://wng.org/opinions/another-cold-war-1714597247
This typifies the kind of material we have come to expect from Littlejohn - misleading and shallow.
He repeatedly begs the question - from fentanyl to Taiwan, to Nixon's 'failures' and Reagan's 'successes', he seems unaware that these assumptions are easily challenged. He simply assumes Right-wing talking points and then tries to dress it up with the trappings of 'Christian Worldview'.
I recently had a nice long chat with an Anglo-Catholic priest and we discussed the issue of authority and how their understanding differs from Rome and its Magisterium, from the models that seek to place Scripture, Reason, and Tradition on par, and Protestant understandings of Sola Scriptura.
I'm hardly the first to muse on the irony of how the Right expressed constant concern over Obama and how the Left made him into a messianic figure. I took it as a fiery expression of zeal for someone that was not George Bush - people have already forgotten how much he was despised near the end of his term. Regardless, whatever happened with Obama surely pales in comparison to the way Trump is viewed by his most devoted followers. And devotion is the correct word as many have crossed the line and for them Trumpism is far more than a political platform or a style - it's a religion.
As reported in a previous piece the Bohemian Brethren who would later become the Moravians were involved in the 1618 Protestant plot to install Frederick V of the Palatinate on the throne of Bohemia. The Habsburgs responded, defeated the Utraquist-led Protestant forces and launched a vicious Counter-Reformation that would almost eradicate Protestantism in Bohemia. Though minor players and a minority within Bohemian Protestantism, the Brethren would suffer severe persecution. The war soon expanded and would become the Thirty Years War enveloping much of Central Europe. After the Habsburgs had scored tremendous victories and seemed poised to win the war - and roll back Magisterial Protestant gains from the previous century, the Swedes invaded under Gustavus Adolphus in 1630 - landing in Pomerania. The tide would quickly turn.
Driving home from a rather High-Church Anglican service, I reflected on the many different understandings of worship and the relationship (if any) between our service and the celestial or heavenly realm.
Eighty years ago today a bomb exploded at the Wolf's Lair in East Prussia killing four men. The intended target, Adolf Hitler survived by a hair's breadth - as by a miracle. Operation Valkyrie, the plot to assassinate the Führer and overthrow his regime had failed.
https://banneroftruth.org/us/resources/articles/2023/the-background-to-the-great-ejection/
For years I simply accepted the narrative surrounding the 1662 Great Ejection. For those unfamiliar with this event, this was after the English Civil War and the reign of the Puritan Parliament. Its failures resulted in the Cromwell dictatorship which effectively ended with his death in 1658.
Recently I discovered a new congregation in the area. It's not really in my area but I decided to make the drive and investigate. There was very little online and I couldn't really find a lot of information about it but the name indicated to me that they were Kingdom Christians. As such I figured they were Anabaptists of some stripe and committed to the kind of Kingdom life and ethics associated with New Testament passages such as the Sermon on the Mount.
https://www.plough.com/en/topics/faith/discipleship/why-i-went-cold-turkey-on-political-theology
This is the story of a man who switched from reading the Scriptures through the lens of politics over to a posture of worship and reflection.
The original nation under the Articles of Confederation wouldn't hold together and so for many the revolution was betrayed by the creation of the Constitution and federalism. Some are aware of this to be sure but the masses of flag wavers are not.