For all you philosophical-theological-Greek nerds out there, here’s something fun. As some have observed, Gregory of Nyssa’s On the Soul and the Resurrection is written in a way that mirrors Plato’s Phaedo.[1] A close reading of both show that this is correct. For example, Gregory utilizes the format so familiar to readers of Plato, namely, the dialogue. Gregory…
Some fifteen-ish years ago, I found myself racking my brain about what degree major to declare. It was a bit of a struggle. Sitting in my academic advisor’s office, I told him I wanted to “go into a ministry of some sort.” His immediate response was that I should go into marketing. After all, he…
Over at his blog, Mike Bird offers his thoughts on the Lord’s Supper. Here’s a snippet: Francis Chan recently preached a sermon where he said that we’ve replaced the Lord’s Supper with “one guy and his pulpit” and he also decried the mere memorialism of such evangelical practice of the Lord’s Supper and the marginalization of the…
Chandler Warren, a graduate student at the University of St. Andrews (Scotland), recently interviewed me on the subject of pastoral theology. We touch on a number of things–defining pastoral theology, the role of Scripture in the life of the church, prayer, etc. It was a fun conversation. You can check it out here: Interview on…
Part 1: It is not necessary to interpret “days” as literal, 24-hour days. As I said in the introduction, I don’t have all the answers to questions about Genesis 1-2. I have much to learn, for sure. And so, I have decided to take a journey of sorts through these opening chapters of the Bible.…
In today’s ideological climate, some sectors of both modern science and evangelicalism commune with each other about like oil and water. In other words, they don’t. When it comes to substantive issues, scientists and evangelicals have been known to disagree (to put the matter gently). Because both sides tend to have certain adherents who choose…
This video is part of a larger project that my colleague, Dr. Alan Bandy, and I are working on. The aim behind these interviews is to compile research on various sub-topics that relate to the paranormal genre and supernatural experiences that people claim to have had. Our goal is to help folks understand these things…
The video below is part of a larger project that my colleague, Dr. Alan Bandy, and I are working on. The aim behind these interviews is to compile research on various sub-topics that relate to the paranormal genre and supernatural experiences that people claim to have had. Our goal is to help folks understand and…
One of my favorite passages in Scripture is the so-called “Christ hymn” found in Phil 2:5-11. There, we learn how God’s love for each of us is incredibly deep. Christ, the text says, “emptied himself” (v.7). So much to say about this! The cross was the way in which God put his love on public…
UPDATED: 5/19/21: A few years ago, a friend (and seasoned saint) came up to me and said that, during a hard season of depression, some in the church told her that mature Christians don’t struggle with things like that. “Christians,” they said, “don’t go through depression at all.” Sigh. Such statements are as dangerous as…