Reflections on the loving kindness of the Triune God
Recently I watched an American Public Broadcasting television show about the mathematical universe. The program featured the universe of numerical relations around us—relations by which we can trace underlying patterns in the universe. Galileo and Newton became stars for having identified key formulae—some of the many patterns that point to the orderly numerical relations of …
Read More Biblical WeatherLet me introduce Fran O’Rourke’s book, Pseudo-Dionysius and the Metaphysics of Aquinas. It’s a solid contribution to the history of Christian thought. O’Rourke, a philosopher, teaches in Dublin and the book came out with E. J. Brill in 1992. It’s now in paperback from Notre Dame. Why mention a book intended for academics? Will it …
Read More O’Rourke’s BookLet me start by telling a true story but with some particulars changed to honor privacy. Gary’s comment caught my attention at the funeral of his father, Ricky: “I’m glad he’s finally at peace and together again with Linda.” Linda, his mother, died of cancer six years earlier. As context, I knew Linda from church. …
Read More In Heaven?“Let all things be done for building up.” This call wrapped up Paul’s response to the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 14:26 on the question of spiritual gifts. He was dealing with a divided and spiritually immature church—“infants in Christ”—who wrestled, ironically, with how to be godly in their new relationship with God. So here’s my …
Read More A Bottom LineJesus wept over Jerusalem—“because you did not know the time of your visitation.” So, given the Son’s presumed power to grant salvation to the elect why was he weeping? Let me poke this question with a pair of affective insights—insights that recognize the heart as the defining motive center of both God and humans. Earlier …
Read More Resisting GraceToday began in Serbia—in Sremska Mitrovica. Last Sunday was Jos, Nigeria. In between were a couple of days at home in Camas. So my body—my sleep cycle—is confused. Call it a game of perpetual catch-up! But what about the soul? What offers stability, no matter what I happen to eat and where I get to …
Read More CompanionsThe Provost spoke the traditional words, “Christ is risen!” and the hundreds of students responded in full voice, “He is risen indeed!” It was the Thursday chapel before Easter—just before the students left for home to attend Good Friday services. I was in Nigeria at the Gindiri Theological Seminary—both far from home but still at …
Read More EasterAny of us who do bold Bible reading—the three-or-more-read-throughs-a-year folks—will have conversations with God as we read. That’s our insiders’ information . . . what makes the reading so satisfying and keeps us going. I’m happy to promote relational Bible reading once again for a couple of reasons. First, it’s a wonderful opportunity—a rich and …
Read More Reading IsaiahSin is ironically powerful. It has all the power of a runaway human ego. It can undermine great rulers, break the strongest vows, blind the most able scholars, and even crucify God himself. But ironic? Yes, ironic because sin has no extrinsic power over the sinner. Sin, instead, is an inner ambition of the soul. …
Read More Moral Sight“Christendom” is the collective rhetorical tag for all who are now or have been associated with historical Christianity. To outside observers—whether Hindu, Buddhist, Islamist, or secularists—the links are loose and ill-informed. But the result is that Christendom – that is, the Western world – is a monolithic spiritual opponent. And when outside observers are hardened …
Read More Who?