Calling for a Return to the Doctrinal Ideals and Kingdom Ethics of the First Reformation
https://issuesetc.org/2022/07/29/2101-christian-crusaders-raymond-ibrahim-7-29-22/
This was but another ridiculous interview I found on Issues
Etc., yet another case at the attempted rehabilitation of The Crusades. Ibrahim
inadvertently all but confesses that his work is not just revisionism but
hagiography focusing on the 'heroes' of The Crusades.
The psychology explosion took place (culturally speaking) in the 1970's and the Evangelical movement in its zeal to be culturally relevant trailed closely behind. We see this in Tim LaHaye's psychologically-rooted approach to spiritual gifts which gained popularity during the same decade. He revived and recast The Four Temperaments, a notion rooted in the long discounted physiology based on humors and the ideas of ancients and pagans like Galen. How this took root in ostensibly Bible-based circles is still a wonder.
This piece is in response to the 16 August 2022 piece entitled Secular Psychology and the Denial of Scriptural Authority found here:
https://proto-protestantism.blogspot.com/2022/08/secular-psychology-and-denial-of.html
I was asked to clarify and expand upon some of the ways
Evangelicalism has been compromised by modern psychology and feminism. These
questions could easily fill up a multi-volume series but I'll touch on just a
few points.
https://rfbwcf.substack.com/p/does-the-bible-trump-the-bco
The Book of Church Order (BCO) is utilised in various forms
by various Presbyterian denominations and as such represents a fluid canon (or
authoritative body of laws) that is parallel and in some cases equal to
Scripture and functionally can often supersede it.
Following recent Christian discussions on historiography, it was inevitable that criticism directed at Historicism would eventually be put on the table. In this case the reference is to the argument for inevitable historical processes that govern human development and progress. Following in the footsteps of thinkers like Hegel, the philosopher studies these processes and by understanding them, a right view of history can be developed and with it a coherent political theory and strategy.
Albert Mohler and other Evangelicals are right, we as Christians cannot vote for Democrats. Amen. And they go further and suggest those that do so fall under condemnation. Amen to that as well.
When inflation rates rise, the Right often makes demagogic appeals to the Gold Standard accompanied by denunciations of fiat currency and central banking policies. Some go much further and speak of conspiracies. Others focus on the ethical side of things and how inflation is a form of theft in that it decreases the value of money that people have worked for, saved, and invested.
As our routine has been further derailed by my son's injury, I decided on a recent rainy Sunday to revisit an Alliance (CMA) congregation near us that we attended over twenty years ago. I have stopped in on occasion over the years and to be blunt the decline has been remarkable in terms of numbers, content, and overall quality. My recent visit was particularly disappointing.
Whether Meloni is able to implement her policies or not is yet to be seen. Her coalition may very well implode as she is contending with some powerful personalities and egos that will certainly challenge and undermine her leadership at points. If they can actually work together they will be very powerful and given what's happening in France and Germany, (the only EU members more powerful and influential in Italy) – the prospects for the future are a cause for concern.
God, Family, and Country – what's wrong with that? This is the response of the Christian Right to the electoral victory of Giorgia Meloni and her choice slogan. In fact it sounds a lot like what one hears with the Trumpite movement. Meloni who is all but set to be the next prime minister of Italy has certainly been making the rounds and has garnered considerable support in American Right-wing circles. Fluent in English she has been able to blend in nicely at the National Prayer Breakfast and CPAC.
What drives these Christian teachers to stay in the public system? For some it's just pragmatic concerns about job change and pensions. For all the whining about being underpaid, it's steady work with lots of time off and in rural areas it is in fact one of the better paying jobs.
https://www.npr.org/2022/09/12/1121999705/sex-education-school-kindergarten
Parents need to understand the sodomite-feminist ethos is
omnipresent in the culture and in the public school. It's something much bigger
than the agenda of specific sex-ed classes. Pulling your children from these
sessions is not enough. Christian parents must get their children out of public
school. This is not negotiable. If it was at one time, that day is now long
past.
On many occasions I've been driven to reflect on the immigrant experience. Apart from my Germans who came from Russia in the late nineteenth century, my ancestors almost all arrived in North America back in the seventeenth and eighteenth century. My point being, apart from the one branch, my family doesn't have an 'immigrant story' that is located within memory.
I was asked concerning Romans 9 and Paul's affection for the Jewish people. Apparently this passage is used by some Dominionists to justify ethno-nationalist agendas or forms of patriotism, suggesting that Paul effectively endorsed such thinking by his expressions for the Jewish people.
Did Biden err in making this now infamous speech – in calling out MAGA Republicans and the Trumpite movement, and in identifying them as a threat to the country?
It goes without saying that the death of Elizabeth II is a cultural milestone. It's unsettling for many as one of the foundational pillars of British society has been removed. The monarchy continues but because of the length of her reign and the stability it brought during the tumultuous cultural upheaval of the post-war period – the stability is associated less with the monarchy as a whole but is instead associated specifically with her person. And now she's gone.
The New Testament tells us to honor the king and given the Neronic context of these writings and apostolic exhortations, that imperative remains true even if the regime can be categorised as bestial. As such, rebellion or collaboration with anti-monarchical forces is forbidden to Christians in all cases.
https://mereorthodoxy.com/church-architecture/
This was another offering at The Aquila Report. A ridiculous
article and all the more in that it's being promoted by a Reformed-affiliated
website that ostensibly stands on historic and traditional principles such as
the Sufficiency of Scripture and the Regulative Principle of Worship.
The point in all this is to say – that at some point his employers may conclude that he has no future there (or no near future) and they may decide to drop him. That will mean a loss of medical coverage. Once again, it's tragic that in the flawed American system one's access to health care has all too often been tied to employment. This has made people vulnerable and in some cases it has effectively enslaved people to their employers as they live in fear of losing coverage. This is all the more true in the case of those that have chronic conditions and need regular care or rely on expensive medications. One can safely say the whole system is a mess and yet the primary driving factor of that mess – is the profit system. It's all the more egregious in the context of human health and suffering as it preys on fear and desperation.
As I reported a few days back my son (who is in his early twenties) recently broke his back in a bicycle accident. He came very close to losing his life and had a very close shave with paralysis. Even now, he's not entirely out of the woods but the remaining risk is low.
It's one thing to break free of philosophy or tradition, or the extant influences of the Magisterial Protestant Reformation, but for Americans in particular there's often a barrier or problem the hinders a return to the New Testament and it's one that Restorationist groups like the Witnesses, Churches of Christ, and others need to understand.
I feel something of a burden for the members of this group. They are to be commended, for on many points they put the larger Evangelical and Protestant world to shame. In terms of ethics and a sense of pilgrim identity, the Witnesses are in many ways much closer to the New Testament than those who consider them a cult.
https://www.christianpost.com/news/churches-address-mental-health-stigma-in-the-pews.html
In some respects it's surprising that this article is even
appearing at this point. This debate over whether or not Christians should
embrace psychology and its assumptions is effectively over. The ship has sailed
as they say. I remember the contentions over this point in the 1990's and by
the early 2000's it was clear there had been a fundamental shift. We moved from
hearing psychology condemned from the pulpit to pastors on Christian radio
telling the audience to leave their church if psychology is called into
question – because at that time there will still churches challenging this
paradigm.
For years commentators have spoken of the decline of America and what it would look like. Others (including myself) have argued that the American Establishment may opt for war as a means to escape this deterioration and reassert the largely failed project of post Cold War US hegemony.
After many years I finally found the time to read Norman Cohn's The Pursuit of the Millennium: Revolutionary Millenarians and Mystical Anarchists of the Middle Ages first published in 1957. For all the attention this book has received I was quite disappointed.
Cohn's thesis rests on a cobbled together narrative that
confuses popular impulse and superstition with religious conviction. He tries
to argue that various utopian and chiliastic movements of the medieval period were
the cultural and ideological precursors of twentieth century Nazism and
Communism.
As far as charging interest to the unbeliever and that sort of thing – for me it's out of the question. I don't believe I can view the unbeliever as an enemy (which would be in keeping with the Old Testament scenario) and while I may agree (in the broad strokes) with Aristotle on this point, the real issue is (I believe) that so-called risk is invalid in terms of making a legitimate profit.
This article was sent to me accompanied by some follow-up
questions. It's actually by an Eastern Orthodox cleric and I must say I was
pleased to read it.
For the most part I agree with was said – with a few
qualifications.
Not long ago it was one of those rare Saturdays – the womenfolk were gone and it was just me and my sons. As readers will know I am committed to the New Testament doctrines of non-violence and non-resistance and yet unlike some within the Anabaptist or Holiness traditions, I believe in engaging culture on a certain level. This is not with an intent to transform or exert political influence but I believe we do need to understand the context in which we live. There are limits, all the more as culture becomes overtly sinful in much that is produces.
Visiting a church last Sunday I wasn't terribly surprised when there was mention of the Dobbs v. Jackson case and the overturning of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. Evangelicals are celebrating this ruling and several others that have come down at the conclusion of the Supreme Court's recent 2021-2022 term.
To my mind, it makes perfect sense that this dispute over the doctrine of God has arisen in the context of Reformed Baptist circles as I have long argued Baptist doctrine and understandings regarding concepts such as the covenant and sacraments tend toward reductionism and result from a kind of rationalism at work that will not tolerate ambiguity, tension, and paradox – even though a true Biblicist hermeneutic demands the embrace of such mysteries.
Though I've made it abundantly clear in the past that I'm not
a fan of Chris Arnzen's Iron Sharpens Iron, when I saw that Sam Waldron was to
be the guest I decided to give the show a listen. I was all the more intrigued
by the suggestion that there were problems or challenges with regard to Sola
Scriptura.
I was mostly pleased by what I heard. I feared that the show
would be about Critical Race Theory, alien epistemologies and things of that
order, but that wasn't it at all. They were talking about a debate taking place
within Reformed circles and given Arnzen and Waldron – specifically within
Reformed Baptist circles.
Does 1 Timothy chapter 2 assume that Paul looked for Christian magistrates?
https://wng.org/opinions/welcome-to-pride-month-christian-1654083759
Trueman is right to lament Pride Month and the latest shift
in our culture that will (without a doubt) lead to the marginalisation of
Christians. It's inescapable, and like Lot in Sodom – any Christian is bound to
be vexed by the world and the conduct that surrounds us.
It's June, and in the United States that's the time when the Supreme Court issues its substantial rulings. If the reports are to be believed it is likely that Roe v. Wade, (the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that made abortion legal in all fifty states) is going to be overturned.
Though the 7-2 decision makes it an unlikely candidate for
reversal, there were always some issues with the ruling that made it subject to
review. A political issue more than a legal one, the time has come or so it
seems. With the Trump appointments and some GOP scheming, the Right has now
gained a decided advantage on the court and it would seem they're making their
move. The new era of Dobbs v. Jackson will soon be upon us, the case that will
overturn Roe.
Understanding the hopelessly corrupt nature of the world and its vanity we can then (with Paul and the Corinthians) take comfort in being 'the little people', the 'nothings' in the eyes of the world – the types that a reprobate like Trump would call 'losers'. For no one hates Christianity and Christians more than Donald Trump. Obviously the Church doesn't understand this one bit. Led by fools they think he's an ally and an asset to the Church's cause in the world. So misled by the false shepherds and shaped more by the epistemology and values of the Right than by Scripture, they have latched on and in increasing numbers have sold their souls to this charlatan and now his lackeys and imitators.