Category: Apologetics and Theology Blog
My first introduction to the abortion debate was in a Political Science seminar at Brock University. At the time I had not taken a position on the issue. I was shocked by the emotion involved and was surprised at the anger the pro-choice side had toward pro-life, often accusing them of being mysogynist. I have … Read More “When It’s Wrong to be Right: Abortion” »
I was helping someone in my church pick some courses to take. She told me that she was avoiding philosophy because it was against Christianity. This reminded me of my university years. I had an atheist friend who told me that if I took one philosophy course, I would stop believing in God. Is philosophy … Read More “Is Philosophy Our Enemy?” »
Since my article on embracing the Community of Christ into orthodoxy came out, I have had a few people question me (respectfully) on this. Their main concern, as was mine, was the fact that the Book of Mormon is still considered scripture by the Community of Christ. I would like to respond to this. Two … Read More “Community of Christ and Salvation” »
Some atheists believe that the problem of suffering is a devastating argument against belief in God. If there is a God, why does he allow so much suffering? Even Christians wrestle with these things. The easiest response is with regards to human evil. God sees human freedom as valuable and the natural result is that … Read More “Suffering and Human Responsibility” »
I am sometimes confused as to the reasons for the time and energy that Christians put into heretic hunting. It does not take long to find people being extremely critical of people such as Rick Warren, Rob Bell or N.T. Wright. I am not against conversation and even keeping each other accountable. But critics will … Read More “Dangers of Heretic Hunting” »
There is an interesting audio course on the History of Philosophy and Christian Thought from Reformed Theological Society taught by the late Ronald Nash. It is an interesting set of lectures, although Nash is pretty impatient with scholars he disagrees with. It is still worth the listen in order to strengthen knowledge of western philosophy … Read More “Ronald Nash and the History of Philosophy and Christian Thought” »
I have been having a discussion with someone about the wise men following the star in Matthew. The claim is that God would not have led the wise men by a star because astrology is forbidden in the Bible. The question is: Can God accommodate himself to false theology? Let me use this as a … Read More “Can God Accommodate to False Theology?” »
I am enjoying a podcast by Nigel Warburton called Philosophy: The Classics. It is based on his book and it summarizes the works and thoughts of the great western philosophers. Please note that Warburton is not a Christian philosopher but is a humanist philosopher. However, I very much enjoy his teaching. You can find the … Read More “Philosophy: The Classics” »
Very often, skeptics claim that Mary, the mother of Jesus, is just another version of other pagan virgin mothers such as Isis. I have done some work to demonstrate that often these pagan mothers are not quite so virgin as Jesus Mythicists like to suggest. However, I would like to come at this … Read More “Mary and Pagan Virgin Mothers” »
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When Herod the king … Read More “Following the Star” »
What does the Greek word monogenes mean? Does it mean ‘begotten’ in the sense that God created or produced a Son? I appreciated the words of the late biblical scholar F.F. Bruce from his commentary on 1 John. “As in the Gospel, the adjective ‘only begotten’ (monogenes) is used in a sense which combines the … Read More “Monogenes and Being Begotten” »
I just finished the writings of Justin Martyr. Justin is known as being on of the first apologists. I thought I would share a few thoughts about his work. First of all, as important as Justin is, it must be acknowledged that Justin had some theological issues. He did not see Jesus as co-eternal with … Read More “Justin Martyr” »
This is the message I gave yesterday at my churches: First Baptist Church Meaford and Woodford Baptist Church. An Apologetic Church “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this … Read More “An Apologetic Church” »
I have been attempting to increase my knowledge in philosophy. One of the ways I do that is with podcasts. One of the ones I have enjoyed is called Philosophy Bites. They are a short podcast (about 15 minutes) that are interviews with respected philosophers dealing with a very wide variety of subjects. It is … Read More “Philosophy Bites” »
The Barmen Declaration was a 1934 document, written by Karl Barth, “fortified by strong coffee and one or two Brazilian cigars,” as the Confessing Church broke away from the Nazi dominated church in Germany. This definition of the Church from section 8.17 is just as important for today it was back then. “The Christian Church … Read More “Barmen Declaration” »
I have been very interested in the Community of Christ, in particular what I consider to be a very orthodox statement of faith. For that reason, I appreciated this recent notice: On November 10, delegates at the General Assembly of the National Council of Churches USA (NCC) approved Community of Christ for membership. The NCC … Read More “Community of Christ and the National Council of Churches” »
One of the most popular arguments against the existence of God is the problem of suffering. If there truly was something like the Judeo-Christian concept of God, one would expect that he would prevent suffering. There are responses to that challenge. But I would like to make a simple observation. Most of the people I … Read More “God and the Problem of Suffering” »
This is a controversial question. But here is something to keep in mind. Here are a couple of verses from Revelation. The verses are from the same book and so we cannot be accused of patching together two passages in a forced way. ““I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who … Read More “Is Jesus God?” »
I have read two of the books that I bought at ETS/SBL. The first is Michael F. Bird’s Introducing Paul. The book is exactly what the title suggests, an introduction to Paul. Bird looks at all the basics including the background, letters and summary of theology. It is not overly detailed, but it is good … Read More “Two Books on Paul” »
The cornerstone of the Christian faith is that of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. If we do not get this, we do not anything. That is why it is so important to learn more about these pivotal events in how God has dealt with humanity through Jesus. I would like to recommend two … Read More “The Death and Resurrection of Jesus” »
I presented a paper at the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society. Many people have asked what I was speaking on, so I thought I would share. The title of the paper was “The Gospels, Josephus and the Place of Precision in Ancient Historical Accounts.” I often hear criticisms of the Gospels that they … Read More “Josephus and Precision Within the Gospels” »
I like what Raymond Brown says about historical issues surrounding the story of the guard at the tomb in Matthew. My interest is not in what this means for this story but rather for what it says in general when we approach the Bible. “In principle some would reject any possibility that the Matthean account … Read More “Raymond Brown on Historicity and Presuppositions” »
One of the best Jesus books that I have read in the last couple of years is Craig Evans’ Fabricating Jesus, where he deals with some of the recent radical theories regarding Jesus. Here is an interesting interview with Dr. Evans, where he talks about a number of issues including the Gospel of Jesus. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJCcsX4g9LI]
I normally am challenged on why I believe in the divinity of Jesus but it is fair to ask why I believe in the divinity of the Holy Spirit. Is it not possible that the Spirit is just the non-personal power of God? Well, the Spirit is described in ways that you would not expect … Read More “The Divinity of the Holy Spirit” »
When I was a youth pastor, I remember being contacted by one of the teens in our group about Christadelphians. They were nice people who believed in Jesus, was that not enough? Being not very familiar with them, I had to look into it. I have decided to revisit that. What is it that Christadelphians … Read More “Christadelphians” »
I have recently been doing some research into the Community of Christ (formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints). Having examined their statement of faith, I find it quite orthodox. You can find their statement of faith here. One of the biggest barriers to protestants accepting the Church of Christ as … Read More “Rethinking the Community of Christ” »
In the Oct. 1 2010 issue of the Watchtower there is an article entitled “What is the Holy Spirit?” One of the main purposes of this article is to demonstrate that the Spirit is not a person. Here are some responses. The article points out that in Acts 2:1-4 that people are filled with the … Read More “Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Holy Spirit” »
One of the top New Testament scholars of recent years has been the late Raymond Brown. I like what Brown says about Josephus’ witness of Jesus in his Death of the Messiah vol. 1 on page 374. Even if few scholars today would argue that Josephus wrote the whole passage as quoted, most would contend … Read More “Raymond Brown on the Testimonium Flavianum” »
When we look at the New Testament as history, we need to compare it with other contemporary histories. The best example we have are the works of Josephus. Most Christians have only a superficial knowledge, usually focusing on what Josephus says about Jesus. However, there is much more value to Josephus. Shaye Cohen in his … Read More “Josephus in Galilee and Rome” »
The Christian faith is based firmly on the Bible. But sometimes we act as if there is this great void between the time of the New Testament and our present experience. The fact is, that there have been centuries of Christians wrestling with the Scriptures just as we do. One of the most helpful resources … Read More “Apostolic Fathers” »
I am very interested in the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ claim that Jesus is the archangel Michael. In my reading, I came across something interesting. Papias was an early Christian father, a companion of Polycarp and someone who had met and heard the Apostle John. He is an important witness for understanding what the early church believed. … Read More “Papias on Christ and Michael” »
Often times people will point out that the Apostles died for their faith. This is offered as evidence for the proof of the Gospel, after all, who would die for a lie? The immediate counter-argument is that there are many people who die for a lie. From time to time we hear of cultists (e.g. … Read More “What Does the Death of the Apostles Prove?” »
One of the most important passages for demonstrating the resurrection of Jesus is the first part of 1 Corinthians 15. There is one part of this that some people have questioned: Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. … Read More “Five Hundred Witnesses” »
I had a phone conversation today with a person who has read this blog. He accused me of taking potshots at other faiths (more specifically his own). I am sorry if I have offended anyone with my views, but I would like to make my position very clear. I am a Christian. I believe in … Read More “Purpose of this Blog” »
Should we pray to Jesus or should we only pray to the Father? Certain groups, including Jehovah’s Witnesses claim that we should pray to God in the name of Jesus but should never pray to Jesus. This makes sense if one denies the deity of Christ. But what does the Bible say? In Acts 7, … Read More “Praying to Jesus” »
September 11 is an emotional day for everyone. It is very easy to let anger and resentment take over. There is a strong temptation to lash out. Jesus calls us to a different way. There will be many people today praying for the families of those who lost loved ones on 9/11, and we should … Read More “Prayer for Muslims” »
I had a conversation today on Facebook with a brother Christian about Acts 19, which describes the burning of magic books, and the recent threat to burn Qur’ans. I was going to post my comments here, but I came across a better presentation on the Stand to Reason blog. You can read the post here. … Read More “Qur’an Burning and Acts 19” »
As you may know, Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe that Jesus is co-eternal with the Father. Instead of God incarnate, they see Jesus as the archangel Michael. One of the first problems that they have to deal with is that the first couple of chapters of Hebrews make it very clear that Jesus is not … Read More “Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Problem of the Archangel Michael” »
Very often in discussions on the Trinity the focus is on the divinity of Jesus. Yet we have to remember that there is a Holy Spirit in there as well. In reading the Shepherd of Hermas, a very early text (mid second century), I came across this verse: “The preexistent holy spirit, which created the … Read More “Early Evidence for the Trinity” »
There is a new resource on the web for those interested in apologetics. It is called the Library of Historical Apologetics. It deals with apologetics from the 17th to the early 20th century. It is good for us to have a bigger picture of apologetics rather than just our immediate context. Make sure to check … Read More “Library of Historical Apologetics” »
More from my reading of the Journal of John Wesley: The more I converse with this people, the more I am amazed. That God hath wrought a great work among them is manifest; and yet the main of them, believers and unbelievers, are not able to give a rational account of the plainest principles of … Read More “John Wesley on Religious Ignorance” »
There is an article on the CNN Belief blog calling into question whether or not Jesus was really crucified. You can read the post here. What is different about this is that the scholar identifies himself as an evangelical Christian. The issue is not whether or not Jesus was executed but whether he was executed … Read More “Was Jesus Really Crucified?” »
In our house we ask our children to share by giving, they respond by redefining sharing as taking. In the same way, we see reinterpretations of Scripture that look like contradictions. Genesis 15:6 says “And he (Abraham) believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.” Paul cites this as evidence of justification … Read More “Righteous Reckoning: Paul vs. James on Genesis 15:6” »
N.T. Wright‘s Surprised By Hope is one of the best books that I have read in a long time. I had read his Resurrection of the Son of God, which is much more scholarly, but Surprised By Hope fulfills an important role of bringing these ideas to a popular level. The basic idea is that … Read More “Surprised By Hope” »
I have been reading the Journal of John Wesley. He has a number of instructions for his Stewards. I thought number ten was one important for those involved in apologetics. 10. In all debates, you are to watch over your spirits, avoiding as fire all clamour and contention, being swift to hear, slow to speak; … Read More “John Wesley on Debate” »
Very often I encounter people who say that they are spiritual but not religious. CNN has an interesting article on this very subject that you can find here. I appreciate the article and the way it reflects on the danger of this generic spirituality. To me it comes down to the purpose of being spiritual. … Read More “Spiritual But Not Religious” »
We know that Paul’s epistles are letters and Revelation is an apocalypse, but what exactly are the Gospels? Some scholars have claimed that the answer is easy: the Gospels are gospels. That is they are a genre of their own, created by Mark and continued on into the following centuries. The problem with this is … Read More “What Are the Gospels?” »
This article from the New Yorker is typical of what people see in about the state of current scholarship. Unfortunately, it is very skewed. There are many scholars who are very confident in the value of the Gospels as historical sources. There is much that we can put together and come up with an adequate … Read More “Searching For Jesus in the Gospels” »
There has been a big deal lately about a scientific breakthrough where scientists created artificial life from some chemicals. Is this a picture of life developed on earth without God? This interview with CNN demonstrates that this is not life from scratch. I do not want to take away from the importance of this discovery, … Read More “Did Scientists Create Life From Scratch?” »
We just had a Bible study at church that led to a common conversation: There is so much suffering in the world, so why doesn’t God do something? This is a frequent criticism of Christianity. It is fine to ask this question, but I would like to take it to the next step: What would … Read More “Why Doesn’t God Do Something?” »
I recently finished David Berlinski’s The Devil’s Delusion: Atheism and Its Scientific Pretensions. This is not your typical evangelical Christian response to the new atheism. David Berlinski is a secular Jew who writes as a scientist. His purpose is not to prove evangelical Christianity or even Judaism as the correct religion. His purpose is to … Read More “The Devil’s Delusion” »
Last week I presented a short paper at a conference on the resurrection at the Catholic University at Louvain La Neuve in Belgium. It was a great experience and Amanda and I made a nice vacation out of it as well. Belgium is a beautiful country. But what I want to talk about here is … Read More “Gerd Lüdemann and the Resurrection” »
There is an interesting video on CNN by Sam Harris on why we should ditch religion. You can watch the video here. For a philosopher, Harris seems lost in a desert without logic. He points out some of the worst examples of religion such as Muslims in Afghanistan who scar little girls with acid and … Read More “Sam Harris on Why We Should Ditch Religion” »
Fairly recently I heard a story about the founder of the Guinness brewing company being an evangelical Christian. I was not sure what to make of it, so when I encountered Stephen Mansfield’s Searching For God and Guinness, I had to read this book. One of the things that I appreciated about the book was that … Read More “Searching For God and Guinness” »
I finally got around to reading Homer’s Iliad (Amazon affiliate link) after years of reading little segments here and there. It is an interesting story about the war between the Greek city-states and Troy over the abduction of Helen. The Greeks attempt in vain to get Achilles to join the fight. Meanwhile Zeus shows his … Read More “The Iliad” »
It is very common to hear comparisons between the Gospels and other ancient literature. Often those texts are not actually quoted. The Documents for the Study of the Gospels is a collection of various texts that are related to the Gospels in some way. For example, there are samples of supernatural birth stories and ascension … Read More “Documents for the Study of the Gospels” »
I recently read Marvin Meyer’s Ancient Mysteries. Meyer is better known for his work on Gnosticism. This work deals with ancient mystery cults. This is an important work. Very often authors will make radical claims about the influence of ancient mysteries on the composition of the Gospels. However, they rarely quote the actual texts but … Read More “Ancient Mysteries” »
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvDOtpsmxbc] This video is quite typical of claims that the story of Jesus was taken from the stories of Mithras. This video is full of errors in numerous ways. The most obvious is the statement of the church having theological controversies in the 4th century BCE, four hundred years before Jesus! But there are more … Read More “Jesus vs Mithras” »
Next we are going to take a look at the Mormon understanding of the Restoration of the Gospel. This article is correct that it was a time of great religious excitement at the time Joseph Smith lived. But it is strange that he would say that every minister and every church had a different claim … Read More “Mormons and the Restoration of the Gospel” »
I just finished reading Bart Ehrman’s Lost Scriptures. I quite enjoyed this book. It is a collection of non-canonical gospels, acts, epistles and apocalypses. It also includes the earliest canonical lists. There is a wide variety of theological views presented as texts are included from the Apostolic Fathers, New Testament Apocrypha and the Nag Hammadi … Read More “Lost Scriptures” »
I have been listening lately to a very good New Testament podcast. It is by biblical scholar Mark Goodacre. I do not necessarily agree with everything he teaches but he has some great things to say. The podcasts are scholarly thorough but also are presented in a way understandable to laypeople. The podcasts can be … Read More “Good New Testament Podcast” »
Many people are interested in good theological education. But there are so many schools out there. Is the school a degree mill? Is it too expensive? Is it too fundamentalist? Is it too liberal? Thankfully, I came upon the right school right away. Living in St. Catharines Ontario at the time, I was not far … Read More “McMaster Divinity College” »
Our next section looks at the concept of the Great Apostasy. According to Mormons, soon after the death of Jesus, the church fell into a great apostasy. Reformers such as Luther and Calvin knew there was something wrong but without proper understanding, they were unable to restore the Gospel. Now, Christians would agree that throughout … Read More “Mormons and the Great Apostasy” »
Our next section is on the issue of Jesus Christ Establishing His Church. If you read any of the history and background of Mormonism, you will quickly find that positions, titles and offices are very important. I have a few issues with this. First of all, the core message of Jesus was not the establishment … Read More “Mormons, Jesus and the Church” »
The next section that we are going to look at is the Heavenly Father Reveals His Gospel to All. There is a very subtle movement in this section. They begin with looking at Old Testament prophecy and then the way God worked in the New Testament. It is argued that if God worked through a … Read More “Mormons on the Prophets” »
Mormons stress the importance of families as seen in their comments about the Gospel That Blesses Families. This is one of the areas in which Mormons are strong. Even if people have theological questions about Mormonism or archaeological doubts about the events described in the Book of Mormon, many people are still attracted to the … Read More “Mormons and the Blessing of Families” »
Mormons proclaim that God is your loving Heavenly Father. No Christian would disagree with that statement. While there is something suspicious with the reasoning that God is Father because he is father of our spirits, I am not going there yet. Rather I want to comment on the claim that the Father has a body … Read More “Mormons and the Heavenly Father” »
I just finished reading Euripides play The Bacchae. This is a very important ancient writing as it is one of our best texts for understanding the Dionysus cult. This is of importance to me as Dionysus is one of the most frequent gods presented as an inspiration for the Jesus story by proponents of the … Read More “The Bacchae” »
I very much enjoyed reading Luke Timothy Johnson’s Among the Gentiles. Considering he deals with the New Testament, Apostolic Fathers, Early Apologists, Gnosticism, philosophy and Greco-Roman religion, one does not feel as if the material is rushed through. The basic idea of the book is that early Christianity can be looked at through the lens … Read More “Among the Gentiles” »
I recently started listening the Reasonable Faith podcasts by William Lane Craig. I found them quite enjoyable and helpful. They are mix of answers to questions sent in and portions of debates with background on some of the behind the scenes dynamics. You can find the podcast plus a lot more resources at the Reasonable … Read More “Reasonable Faith” »
There is a story of a little boy that handed a preacher a $5 bill at the back of the church after a service. When the preacher asked why, the boy responded: “My dad says you are the poorest preacher he has ever heard.” Ironically, some of the wealthiest preachers out there have the poorest … Read More “Was Jesus Rich?” »
Islam is becoming a religion that people need to know about. Muslims are not people from a far and distant land but likely your friends and neighbours. There are some pretty bad resources out there that are only good for driving more of a wedge between Christians and Muslims. If you want a helpful resource … Read More “Audio Course on Islam” »
One of the criticisms that sometimes come up against the historical reliability of the New Testament is the suggestion that Jesus lived in Nazareth. The problem, according to some critics, is that Nazareth was not even an inhabited town at the time of Jesus. This claim has been questionable for some time. However, there is … Read More “Nazareth and Jesus” »
I recently finished reading Glenn Sunshine’s new book Why You Think the Way You Do. This book is basically a history of the western worldview. The author begins with Rome and moves into the advent of Christianity. With the fall of Rome and the rise of Christianity, the western world moved into the middle ages. … Read More “Why You Think the Way You Do” »
It is important for Christians to understand our Jewish heritage. It is equally important for us to understand our Greek heritage. There is a reason why the New Testament was written in Greek. Even Judaism was greatly influenced by Greek culture (the word synagogue is Greek!). John Mark Reynolds does an excellent job of presenting … Read More “When Athens Met Jerusalem” »
I recently read a book that I thoroughly enjoyed. It was James Jeffers’ The Greco-Roman World. A book on the Greco-Roman background of the New Testament could be easily very boring. This book was far from boring. Jeffers is able to present a very thorough and academic treatment of the biblical background in an extremely … Read More “The Greco-Roman World” »
I have been meaning to read something by Rudolf Bultmann for some time and I finally got around to reading a collection of his essays entitled New Testament and Mythology. I have encountered a number of times people pointing to Bultmann and saying “See, even the great New Testament scholar Rudolf Bultmann thought the Gospels … Read More “New Testament and Mythology” »
As this is the 150th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s Origin of the Species, it is appropriate for people to reflect on its impact. Atheist Richard Dawkins gives this interview with CNN on the importance of Darwin’s work and its importance for the new atheism. Dawkins is very honest about the importance for atheists to attack … Read More “Richard Dawkins on Charles Darwin” »
I have always been more of a biblical theologian than a systematic theologian. That is why I was very happy to read Andreas Kostenberger’s new book A Theology of John’s Gospel and Letters. This is the first volume in a new series in biblical theology that will be edited by Kostenberger. My first impression of … Read More “Theology of John’s Gospel and Letters” »