The Poet and the Christian

Last updated on: October 14, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

In a TLS review of several new books on Kierkegaard, Will Rees comments on the therapeutic cruelty of Kierkegaard’s writing. In Sickness Unto Death, “Anti-Climacus explains how, far from an inheritance of birth, the ‘self’ is in fact a vocation – something that one must forge in a solitary reckoning with God, an experience that couldn’t be further from the comforts and consolations offered by mainstream Christendom.” Reading the book is “unpleasant,” and it’s supposed to be: “Kierkegaard aims to... Read more

Greek Love

Last updated on: October 14, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

Summarizing themes from his Love, Sex, and Tragedy, Simon Goldhill highlights the difference between ancient Greek conceptions of eros and Christian and post-Christian conceptions of romantic love. Even the most famous lovers of Greek antiquity, he writes, don’t express themselves with the little nothings that are normal among moderns: “Odysseus and Penelope, in Homer’s Odyssey never say ‘I love you,’ or ‘I want you,’ or even ‘I have missed you,’ or any other of the doting expressions a modern audience... Read more

Why We Sing

Last updated on: October 14, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

In Revelation, martyrs sing before martyrdom and after martyrdom (Revelation 14-15). Their martyr songs are the war songs of the Lamb, the triumphal chants of those who overcome because they, like the Lamb, do not love life even to death. It doesn’t happen only in Revelation. In his comments on the heavenly hymn of Revelation 4 (Revelation, 89), Ian Boxall observes, “Throughout history, religious and political minorities have sustained their vision and found renewed strength through singing. The participation of... Read more

Why We Sing

Last updated on: October 14, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

Denominational DIscourse

Last updated on: October 14, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

Prior to the 1830s, argues JCD Clark (The Language of Liberty, 1660-1832), British political debate was carried on with denominational idioms. Political divides were denominational divides. Political and denominational issues overlapped and intertwined. Political networks, on both sides of the Atlantic, followed denominational pathways. As Clark puts it, “From being merely the leading theme of denominational history (either an embarrassing obstacle to ecumenism or a defining myth of sectarian origins), the conflict among different persuasions of Christians is revealed as... Read more

As a Little Child

Last updated on: October 14, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

Look at a wall, suggests Matthew Crawford (The World Beyond Your Head). What color is it? You probably have an answer, a simple one, but when you force yourself to look closely you can see all sorts of variations. The paint is uneven; the old color shows through here and there; the color changes with the changing light coming through the window. The simple answer is the answer of an adult observer, an experienced observer who can “extract invariants from... Read more

Economics for the Irrational

Last updated on: October 14, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

According to Mathew Crawford (The World Beyond Your Head), economics once held “that we are rational beings who gather all the information pertinent to our situation, calculate the best means to given ends, and then go about optimizing our choices accordingly. The assumption was that we are able to do this because we know what we want, and the calculation will be simple because our interests are not in conflict with one another.” Behaviorial economists have their doubts. The rational... Read more

Wings of Theology

Last updated on: October 13, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

In his commentary on Revelation 4, Victorinus spins off a fascinating allegory about the wings of the living creatures who surround the Lords’ throne. Four living creatures with six wings each: Victorinus does the obvious and multiplies. The resulting twenty-four wings represent the twenty-four books of the Old Testament, which happens to be the “same number as the elders on the tribunals.” Why do we need the wings of the OT? “Just as an animal cannot fly unless it has... Read more

Wings of Theology

Last updated on: October 13, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

Is There A Future for Protestantism?

Last updated on: October 13, 2016 at 12:00 am By Peter Leithart

Does Protestantism Have A Future? The answer to that question depends on what we mean by the word “Protestantism.” We Protestants typically think of Protestantism in doctrinal terms. Protestantism is the solas, justification by grace through faith, opposition to the merit theology of medieval Catholicism. These doctrines are associated with certain practices. Protestantism is preaching, and vernacular liturgy, and the liberation of the Bible to be taught to, read and understood by common believers. If the question is, “Do the... Read more

What Christian group emphasizes speaking in tongues as evidence of faith?