Theology

colorful toothed wheels

Order of Operations in Exegesis and Theology

This post is my upgrade/response to a diagram I saw presented online. There is a Baptist biblical studies scholar online that has great content if you are starting out in Biblical languages, etc.. . I really appreciate his videos and would not hesitate to recommend him. I was watching a video today and he presented …

Order of Operations in Exegesis and Theology Read More »

black and red typewriter

Seeing All of Life Through the Narrative Arc of the Bible

I wrote this devotional up this afternoon for some friends at Assembly Care Ministries. You might not think of the following as a “devotional” because it is closer to a Biblical Theology. However, it is just this sort thinking that I find nourishing in a devotional way). I want to recommend a practice that I …

Seeing All of Life Through the Narrative Arc of the Bible Read More »

The Familiar, the Comfortable, the Kitsch; the Good, the True, and the Beautiful.

I bet that you and I do the following at times. We confuse the familiar, the self-beneficial, the surprising for the good, the true, and the beautiful (in no particular order)? We’d love to think we don’t but I suspect we all do. I suspect I do. Familiar, novel, nostalgic, surprising, self-beneficial – these words …

The Familiar, the Comfortable, the Kitsch; the Good, the True, and the Beautiful. Read More »

anonymous person with binoculars looking through stacked books

Research Suggests “Smart” People Are Better at Bending Data to Fit Their Biases

Over the last few days I’ve come across a piece of research, more than once, suggesting that a high IQ doesn’t protect you from certain kinds of bias. The first was a defeating-defeater style video by Inspiring Philosophy. The video attempts to undercut claims that a higher IQ leads to atheism. Instead it seems that …

Research Suggests “Smart” People Are Better at Bending Data to Fit Their Biases Read More »

collection, glasses, sun glasses

Will the Real “Critical Realism” Please Stand Up?

I am writing my dissertation on critical realism. More specifically I am putting critical realism in conversation with analytic theology. Critical realism feels something like a 1960’s to early 2000’s topic. Except for a form that emerged in the early decades of the 20th century, most critical realists did their work in the last quarter …

Will the Real “Critical Realism” Please Stand Up? Read More »

Image of a man sitting in prison cell.

“Are Human’s Worth Saving?” – Failing to Distinguish Human Value and Merit.

I copied the above image from a Facebook post someone put up in a reformed group. People responded to it with various answers. Most said “No” “Nope” “Not at all…” Here is my response: The original post seems to conflate two different issues: worth vs merit.(a) Is there any good reason to save humans? Value/Worth(b) …

“Are Human’s Worth Saving?” – Failing to Distinguish Human Value and Merit. Read More »

Theological Method and the Prioritization of Sources in Theological Work

A Model for Theological Method: Balancing the Sources and Norms of Theology (by Jesse Gentile) Clarifying one’s theological methodology instead of doing theology is like sharpening a knife without cutting into anything. ( Cited by Paul Allen)FOOTNOTE: Footnote A dull knife is more dangerous than a sharp knife. (Common warning from chefs)  A motivating concern …

Theological Method and the Prioritization of Sources in Theological Work Read More »