No Time

 

It's been a frustrating week. I've been going to work quite early, in part to deal with the heat and often getting home late. I'm exhausted and disappointed that I haven't had time to get to my writing.

I still want to finish the articles on the issues surrounding Kirk Cameron's movie...I've got a couple more parts to finish.

A Few Clarifications Regarding Philosophy and Christian Theology

This is an update/revision of an article originally published in July 2010

For years I grappled internally and with others over theological issues. As time progressed I became convinced most theological debate was basically fruitless due to fundamental differences regarding reason itself, and accepted or assumed thought categories.

We bring this baggage with us when we read the Bible and we run the risk of two extremes.

Kirk Cameron's Monumental Part 5: The Enforcement of Original Intent and The Road to Oligarchy

From the standpoint of non-Sacral Christianity, a composite society is highly desirable and allows for maximum freedom. In the end that's not what we're supposed to spend all of our time and energy looking for, but, if it's a possibility we ought to support it in the civil sphere.

And yet at this point, I cannot in good conscience support the American Establishment in any sense. America's economic and foreign policies promote violence and bloodshed and so like a Christian living in Rome I go about my business, but I will not worship Caesar nor will I support the legions or the machine that empowers the empire.

Unlike many of my ancestors, I wouldn't have supported the Rebellion of 1776, but once the new American state was established I would have been content to live within it.

Kirk Cameron's Monumental Part 4: Common Law, The Puritans, Composite and Monistic Views of Society

Did the Founders belong to a time when a Sacral Christian consensus still reigned? Of course. And yet, they were of many different stripes and persuasions and a jumble of ideas came together in what they produced. The Sacral consensus of the Middle Ages and Reformation was beginning to crumble and the Founders were men of their day. They imbibed (as we all do) from a variety of sources of worldviews, everything from English Common Law to Locke and others.

Interestingly Jefferson detested the famous Blackstone commentaries on English Common Law, which is often something Christian America advocates point to when trying to build their case for the Founders attempting to establish a Christian state. While it may work with someone like John Adams, they won't find an ally in the author of the Declaration of Independence.

Answering Questions #17- Calvin v. The Calvinists, The Renaissance and Reformed Scholasticism, Orthodoxy, Armstrong, Amyraut and Muller…Incomprehensibility and the nature of Theology.

A friend recently sent an email referencing Brian Armstrong’s “Calvinism and the Amyraut Heresy: Protestant Scholasticism and Humanism in Seventeenth-Century France”

I responded………

Kirk Cameron's Monumental Part 3: Foundations of Law, Theonomy, Social Consensus/Contract and The Problem of Democracy

In addition to questions concerning 'rights' and the 'state' and how these concepts are read (by many Christians) back into the Bible, there is the whole question of democracy itself. America is of course a Republic, which by definition has a public or democratic element, and yet foundationally rests in the notion of rule by law. There are many forms of Republicanism, but in the United States we have specifically a form of Democratic Republicanism.

So though we're ruled by law, our legislators (our lawmakers, law proposers, law givers) are selected democratically. These legislators have a dual obligation. They are to forge laws compliant with the 'static' foundational document of the Republic (the Constitution) but they also are to represent the 'dynamic' needs of their constituents, dynamic in that they (the needs of society) change with the cultural and historical context.

Updates 7 July 2012

The following links are to older posts which have been recently revised and updated. Some will be of interest to newer readers.

Two Kingdoms and Separatism

I Remember 

In times of Interdict, the heretics rejoice 

Nominalism versus Thomism? 

Mercersburg and Hegelian Historiography 

How to pastorally deal with the default setting 

The Bereans versus The Gatekeepers

The Real Issue Behind the Pseudo-Isidorean Decretals

Two Kingdoms- Neither Left nor Right on the political spectrum

Kirk Cameron's Monumental Part 2: The Theology of Nationalism and Historical Narrative

Cameron brings along Marshall Foster to help him interpret the monument's symbolism. Foster is a popular 'historian' in these circles. I've listened to him lecture on numerous occasions and find myself rarely agreeing with much of anything he says. Even when gets something correct, it is framed in a misleading or manipulative manner. History has a narrative to it, and it's amazing how it seems to perfectly match the Theonomic Reconstructionist and Christo-American cultural and political agenda.

Providence guides history, but history isn't complete and unless God has specifically laid out a historical narrative, which he hasn't for any nation in the New Testament but the Church...it is a dangerous thing to impose one upon the annals of history. History is messy and complicated and imposing these narratives (like God's hand was on America) on history is a dangerous business, can be self-deceptive, have a tendency to whitewash and mythologize, promote unbiblical pride and bigotry, and can blind people to the evils their nation commits. Assyria was used by God in Isaiah 10, but then Assyria was crushed and punished by God for her wickedness. America and the Americanists would do well to take heed. They think of themselves as a North American Israel...but how do they know they're not an Egypt?

Kirk Cameron's Monumental: Initial Considerations

Dominionism is the idea that says we must seek to transform society and culture. Among the myriad of Christian sects almost everyone would agree that Christianity brings a set of ethics and values to the table, it has something to say regarding human conduct and behaviour.

Protestants in particular have laid an emphasis on the new life, being 'born again' as Jesus says to Nicodemus in John 3. As New Creatures, we approach all ethical tangles differently than the nonbeliever. In addition our entire focus is different, we seek heavenly wisdom, we are to lay up treasure in heaven where are our hearts, our hopes are.

Dominionism says we must go further. Based off their reading of Genesis 1.26-27 they believe we are to subdue the earth. This combined with Paul's injunction to 'bring every thought captive' launches them on what seem to them to be a clear programme to transform all of culture and society. To them this is Kingdom work, this is bringing the Kingdom of God to earth and making it manifest.

Updates

Some recently updated posts from 2010:

Two Kingdom Theology On Guard

Greeks, Turks, and Two Kingdoms

Common Grace Culture

News Commentary 28 June 2012 (2)

 Some musings about the continued fallout....

I heard a commentator today mention that this decision coupled with an Obama re-election will further radicalize the extreme Right. I agree. But what does that mean for Christians who reject Sacralism?

This has already entered the Church and though I'm no fan of Barack Obama, I am not content to sit in a congregation where people are cursing the nation's rulers, engaging in seditious and violent rhetoric and promoting law-breaking and armed resistance. Anyone who has read my writings knows I am no fan of the great lie known as the United States. Nevertheless I am to pray for the peace of this Babylon, not try and overthrow Nebuchadnezzar, Cyrus, Sennacherib, or Caesar.

News Commentary 28 June 2012 (1)

A few thoughts regarding the Supreme Court decision today....what it means for the American Church and what the present social polarization points to in the coming days, months and years.

First a few specific points of consideration....

1.    Romney has been avoiding an in-depth healthcare discussion due to the conservative condemnation of his Massachusetts programme. But now, Evangelicals more than ever will be polarized by the Supreme Court ruling the health reform as Constitutional. They will rally around Romney who has promised to work towards repealing Obama's reform....even though putting the rhetoric into action will be difficult.

A Significant Date in History

28 June 1914 (updated)

First published in 2010

The Imperial Sociopath and Hypocrisy

A Sociopath believes the rules don't apply to him. He is above the standards that other people have to follow.

A sociopath is blind to his own shortcomings. He often critiques others for violating rules that he will violate with abandon. He is either completely blind to his own crimes or in every case makes an excuse, finds a justification for them.

The Reasons for my Criticism of the United States

This post dates from November 2010, but I thought it would be a good time to repost it. There are many new readers to the site and I want to make sure people understand that my criticisms of the United States are not rooted in some kind of Leftist freedom bashing agenda. My statements not only come from years of intense reading and study, but a specific theology...one that informs both my citizenship in the Kingdom of Heaven and the kingdoms of this world.

Here's the original post...

A Strange Sense of Service Part 2

Actually the death toll from American foreign policy is pretty staggering. We condemn others for aggression, when in fact there has been no country since World War II that can compare with the United States in the realm of aggression. And I say this fully conscious of the charges many would bring against the Soviet Union. A very evil government, but in terms of aggression... their actions do not surpass the United States. Not even close.

A Strange Sense of Service Part 1

Some will take this the wrong way, but I want to make a few observations regarding one of the top headlines from the past twelve months. I wrote this at the time but never published it. Almost a year later and with the 4^th of July approaching...it's worth revisiting.

Apparently on 6 August 2011 some thirty American soldiers and eight Afghan soldiers were killed when their helicopter was shot down. This was one of the worst single-incident losses of life for American troops during the Afghan War and the media gave this event a massive amount of attention.

Of course the sheer numbers makes it newsworthy, in addition to the fact that most or all of these Americans were members of the Special Forces.

This single event provides a great example to demonstrate several things.

Answering Questions #16 -Dissecting Stellman's Apostasy

In some recent comments it was mentioned that a PCA (Presbyterian Church in America) pastor recently converted to Roman Catholicism. The PCA is one of the conservative Presbyterian bodies, not to be confused with the PCUSA which is the Mainline and much larger Presbyterian body which abandoned Scripture long ago. The PCA formally broke with the mainline body in 1973.

The pastor in question is Jason Stellman, a pretty strong proponent of the Reformed variety of Two Kingdom theology and certainly someone I would have recommended not long ago. I often visited his website and sometimes commented there.

Sacralist enemies of Two Kingdom theology have tried to find a connection....find a way to show that Two Kingdom theology leads to Rome. It doesn't, in fact the two systems are operating in very different universes. In the past it has actually been Theonomy and various Sacralist positions which have produced converts to Catholicism and it's always been an embarrassing point for them. I almost sense a state of glee at this man's defection.

Apologies and The Gift of Time

 

Once again I wish to extend my apologies to the readers of this weblog. Normally I'm able to produce material at a pretty steady tempo, but the last couple of months have left me exhausted and in terms of time...exasperated.

We've had health issues and other personal situations that have dominated our time. In terms of my business I've been bogged down by time constraints and a lot of hours in the office working on estimates and plans. It's been very frustrating as I've just not been able to use my time the way I would wish. Calculating building materials is not something I'm interested in, but theological, historical and contemporary commentary don't pay the bills.

Returning Soon.....

The last couple of weeks have been too busy. I haven't had any time at all to work on 'blog' matters. God willing I'll be responding to comments and putting up new posts in the next couple of days....

Sorry for disappearing.

A Strange Encounter Part 12

As I looked through the literature I realized he was a member of a local congregation I was well aware of. Faith Baptist Church is part of the Independent Fundamental Baptist tradition. They also run a college and programme for aspiring pastors. These folks proudly fly their flags and believe that they represent the real and genuine America. We see them all the time at the shopping mall. These groups are permeated with legalism rooted in a cultural narrative. (See The Good Old Days)

They almost have a uniform, certainly a look you're supposed to emulate. We have a lot of these groups around here. We have the Wesleyan and Holiness groups which are trying to emulate the pre-1920's look, we have the Amish, and we have the Baptists that seem to view the 1950's culture...America on top of the world...as the golden age.

Ecclesia Part 7: Pragmatics and Conclusion

When the 'licentiate' is 'ordained' we'll stay away. I don't recognize the authority of the presbytery. It, like all denominations are para-church organizations. This 'service' is nothing more than homage, a ceremony to clericalism. We'll stay away, but we'll return the following Sunday and try to keep encouraging others and hopefully be encouraged.

Ecclesia Part 6: Submission and Authority

So why in the world would we once again attend a PCA? Good question. We're not going to become 'members' though we did once before. I worked out a compromise with the elders. This time I'm not inclined to try and work with their system.

Submission versus Oppression

If they want to make a list of who's a member (in the Biblical sense) of course that's fine. If that helps them to govern or pray, no problem. If they want to ask for my testimony every three days and for me to account to them for my actions every week, that's fine. I'll submit to that. If they want me to study out issues with them and if they push for regular attendance, that's fine too. That's not in opposition to Scripture. I will bend over backwards to comply with their requirements, with their supervision, even to the point of being ridiculous.

But when they want me to stand up and take extra-Scriptural vows and to submit to extra-Scriptural standards I won't do that.

A Strange Encounter Part 11

But here in America the lessons are not learned. The man on the bench still thinks Islamic Terrorism is the primary threat. He doesn't understand that his actions and those of his son are only making it worse.

Fear and social polarization have entered and overtaken the acculturated American Church. The Church now seems to function as a socio-political force rather than a manifestation of God's Kingdom. It's all jumbled and confused. As I'm often saying, watch the pronoun usage as you talk to people. The use of 'us' and 'we' is rather telling. One moment they're talking about America, the next moment the Church and no distinction is made...it all runs together. For Christo-Americans they represent the 'real' and 'true' America. Everyone else is an imposter or traitor.

Ecclesia Part 5: Clericalism on Display

The 'pastor' who is really a 'licentiate' is to be ordained shortly. They made it clear the 'service' is under the auspices of the 'presbytery'....viz., the regional body (of ordained men) is coming in to conduct the worship service. Consequently there will be people from the entire regional presbytery present, Teaching and Ruling elders as well as many regular folks from the other regional congregations. But in this case it's not the local congregation's service...it's the presbytery.

The climax will be at the end of the meeting when the newly ordained 'Teaching Elder' will raise his hands and give the benediction. And of course at this point he will cease to be a member of the mother-congregation and instead will be joined to the regional body. Just like that he will be elevated not just to an office, but to the upper tier in the hierarchy.

Ecclesia Part 4: Form Takes Over

Problems Ahead

We're going to have problems. Right now this is just a church plant. They haven't granted it 'formal' congregational status. The leader is a 'licentiate'...another office they've created out of thin air. Since he's not ordained there's no Lord's Supper as of yet.

I have no problem with ordination. Timothy had the hands of the Presbytery (local not regional) laid on him. 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 outline the office of Bishop. They have the authority to teach and the people are to submit to him, but Presbyterianism doing something more with this and the whole membership system.

Ecclesia Part 3: The Need For Church, and my personal frustrations with the state of the Church and Presbyterians in particular

What is a Church?

We're surrounded by buildings with steeples that claim to be Churches or to house them. It always astonishes me how the possession of a building with a sign out front grants legitimacy to a Church. For many this is the mark of the Church. For many the building is the Church.

The question must be wrestled with...what is a Church? Just because a bunch of people get together and call themselves a Church does not make it so. I've talked about this before and will do so again. But for now, I'll simply say a group that does not faithfully preach and adhere to the Bible with some understanding of what the Bible is cannot be called a Church.

Ecclesia Part 2: Membership

The Membership Debacle

Many Churches practice 'membership' wherein they wish for local congregants to bind themselves to the congregation and agree to adhere to certain doctrinal statements and to be under the authority of the leadership. In many Churches a little ceremony or ritual has also been created to go along with this process.

Whether it is admitted or not, everyone and every congregation adheres to some sort of creed. We all believe something and even in loosely affiliated groups there are boundaries. In creedless bodies, the problem is, the boundaries are often not well thought out, and many individuals have given little thought to what they believe.

Ecclesia Part 1: The Presbyterian Problem

A quick summary of the Presbyterian landscape

For those unfamiliar with American Presbyterianism, the Presbyterian Church split as most bodies did during the Civil War (1861-65) and even after Appomattox, the bodies remained divided.

These Churches both operated under the revised Westminster Confession (1646) which had been modified after the American Revolution to remove the notion of an Established Church and a magistrate that could call for Church councils to meet. This was incompatible with the American Experiment, and consequently they changed the Confession to reflect not only the new reality but a sentiment many shared. Some Presbyterians continue to reject this modification and want an official established Church.

A Strange Encounter Part 10

From the standpoint of other people across the world, the American Empire has three main arms. It has a military arm (symbolized by the Pentagon), a political arm (symbolized by the Capitol Mall), and an economic and cultural center (symbolized by the Manhattan).

The people that would fight the Empire are like fleas fighting an elephant. The United States cannot be militarily attacked or invaded. Any convoy of ships or aircraft will be annihilated long before it arrives on our shores. The only way America can be attacked is through a crippling strike...like a clandestine nuclear submarine attack...or some kind of guerilla attack which serves as a symbol or contains some kind of propagandistic value. Only the Soviet Union had the capability for a nuclear attack by submarine. Everyone else has to look to some other kind of battle tactic. That means guerilla warfare which when brought to an Empire's domestic shore will be labeled as terrorism.

Answering Questions #15- The Kuyperian Roadblock on the Pilgrim Road to Metapolis

Someone emailed me this link and asked for my response.

http://web.archive.org/web/20001016110209/www.alliancenet.org/pub/mr/mr94/1994.05.SepOct/mr9405.mjg.TwoKingdoms.html

I responded with the following:

 

(this is an unedited email)

 

Interesting article. While I can agree with much he says, the approach he takes is a bit different. I’m afraid I didn’t agree at all with his Cain/Abel contrast in terms of the urban/rural comparison. I know of others who might make much of that argument, but usually Two Kingdom people are not into Christian Agrarianism. I realize that wasn’t his point, but his way of framing the issue reminded me of it! That’s usually found among Dominionist minded folks who have embraced a certain narrative with regard to Western Civilization and the root of its social decline.

He seems to hint at what I might call the Pilgrim Identity and ties that in with the ‘rural’ narrative. There may be something to that, but it also might be a case of hyper-typology.

A Strange Encounter Part 9

The Common Citizen An Agent of Empire

Today with technology and globalization the 'frontiers' are often on the other side of the world. It's not the gritty face to face type of confrontation the American pioneer faced when dealing with the indigenous Indians. Though today it looks different, the war for expansion and new conquests has not abated.

Today, it might be a broker hitting the 'enter' key that just caused a chain reaction leading to several families in Indonesia losing their jobs and homes. Two months later they're selling their kids, and a daughter is forced into prostitution in order to buy medicine and keep grandma alive.

Did the broker mean to do it? Hey, he's just trying to make some extra money to pay his $2500 house payment and save up for his 17 year old to go to college. And, he's still paying off the credit card balance on that holiday cruise he and his wife took last December. Is he wicked? Well, no...and yes.

Summing up and the Christian Response: Part 6 of the series on American Evangelicals, War, and Iran

Iran is the hub of the Shiite world and represents the foundation, center, and caretaker role of Greater Persian culture. Shiite Palestinians, Lebanese and many Azeris look to Iran as a cultural and religious leader. On the eastern side, Hazara, Tajiks and to some extent the Ismaili community are also naturally inclined to Iran. The Iranians are very bitter that what should be their great regional role has been taken from them, or at the very least reduced by numerous powers throughout history and up to today. The French have at times shared a similar bitterness with regard to their role in Europe, a shadow of what it once was, and their former Empire.

A Strange Encounter Part 8

Innocent Motives and Unintended Consequences.

For the Church this tendency toward willful blindness in the name of Patriotism is most dangerous of all. While I argue it isn't good for the nation and its citizens, ultimately the nation doesn't matter much does it? They come and go. None are good, not really. And certainly none are Holy...things that are holy will survive the Eschaton because they belong to the Kingdom of God. There's no nation on earth that can make that claim.

I've written pretty extensively about the Babel Impulse and the danger of bringing the Church into the power game. Tying in theological concepts regarding the Kingdom with culture and power is an attempt to sanctify the Beast, to sanctify the tower of Babel.

A few comments on the employer-based health insurance system

 

I don’t mean to dive into the whole Health Care debacle quite yet, but when I look at the political theatre taking place at the moment over the issue of contraception, I am struck by the fact that no one will entertain the solution.

We can talk about contraception and whether or not it should be used. We can talk about whether as Christians we should use it, and if we don’t, whether it matters that those outside the faith use it. We can talk about our posture on this issue as Exiles in Babylon. The Christian community has politicized this issue as they have with almost the whole of Christianity, so even discussing it grants political capital to the other side. Whatever the other side does must be opposed. It’s pretty pathetic and frankly it’s starting to make a significant contribution to the breaking of our society.