“I delight in mercy ( hesed ) rather than sacrifice, and in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.” Thus far Hosea (6:6), reaffirmed by Jesus (Matthew 9:13; 12:7). Less well-known is the context in Hosea 6: “What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah? For your loyalty ( hesed ) is like a morning cloud and like the dew which goes away early. Therefore I have hewn them in pieces by the prophets; I have... Read more
Jerome thought that heretics, like the animals on the ark, come in twos, male and female. In Virginia Burrus’ translation: “Simon Magus founded a heresy, assisted by the help of Helen, a prostitute. Nicolaus the Antiochene, inventor of all impurities, led a female band. Marcion sent a woman on to Rome to prepare minds to be deceived by him. Apelles had Philumene as companion in his teachings. Montanus, mouthpiece of an impure spirit, through Prisca and Maximilla, noble and wealthy women,... Read more
Burrus, summarizing the argument of Maurice Wiles, notes: “For Wiles, the viability of Arianism, whether in fourth-century Egypt or eighteenth-century England, was partly dependent on the existence of a worldview that could accommodate ‘spirits’ mediating between divine and earthly realms, and thus also find a place for an ontologically subordinate (but still sovereign) Christ. Trinitarian orthodoxy—which is arguably no more scripturally grounded or logically coherent than Arianism (and perhaps considerably less so)—rests on the rejection of such a mediating christology and cosmology in favor of the concept... Read more
Like many other fathers, Athanasius described heretics as Jews – in his case, the Arians. He had, as I read Athanasius, biblical and theological reasons for saying so. When Newman repeats the link between Judaism and Arianism in his book on the Arians, the emphasis is racial. Jews are a “carnal, self-indulgent religion” that gives “license to the grosser tastes of human nature.” In Antioch, where Jews were powerful and where Arianism originated (so Newman argues), Judaism could not help... Read more
In The Quest for Community , Robert Nisbet – no wild-eyed lefty he – argues, following Karl Polyani, that ” Laissez faire . . . was brought into existence. It was brought into existence by the planned destruction of old customs, associations, villages, and other securities, by the force of the State throwing the weight of its fast-developing administrative system in favor of the new economic elements of the population.” He adds, “There is, indeed, a sense in which the... Read more
How is circumcision a seal of the righteousness of faith (Romans 4:11). Augustine ( Contra Faustum ) says this: Circumcision was performed on the eighth day. The eighth day is the day of Jesus’ resurrection. Jesus resurrection is for our justification (Romans 4:25). Hence, “because this resurrection, which justifies us when we believe it, was symbolized by that circumcision on the eighth day, the apostle therefore says of Abraham, to whom it was first entrusted, ‘And he received the sign... Read more
INTRODUCTION Our understanding of the Spirit’s work is often truncated. We think the Spirit works “personally” but miss the “political” work of the Spirit. For Micah, though, the Spirit is a Spirit of justice, power, and political courage. THE TEXT “Hear now, O heads of Jacob, and you rulers of the house of Israel: Is itnot for you to know justice? You who hate good and love evil; who strip the skin from My people, and the flesh from their bones; Who also... Read more
Islamicists are often accused of elevating political conflicts into cosmic ones. They can’t help “religionizing” conflict, given their pre-modern, irrational, non-secular assumptions. Then Andrew Sullivan writes, shortly after 9/11: “What is really at issue here is the simple but immensely difficult principle of the separation of politics and religion . . . . We are fighting for the universal principles of our Constitution – and the possibility of free religious faith it guarantees. We are fighting for religion against one... Read more
Critics often complain that Supreme Court decisions have removed contentious issues from the political arena, where they can be debated and decided by citizens and their representatives. That is, it appears, no accident. In a 1969 article on the Harvard Law Review that was cited in several Supreme Court cases, Paul Freund argued that religious cases at least needed the finality of a court decision. “Ordinarily I am disposed, in grey-area cases of constitutional law, to let political process function. ... Read more
In a lengthy review of the career of Justice Hugo Black, Philip Hamburger ( Separation of Church and State ) lays out his clan connections and the anti-Catholic animus that motivated his views on politics and law. One supported boasted that Black had visited “Klaverns” all over Alabama during his Senate campaign speaking on Catholicism: “Hugo could make the best anti-Catholic speech you ever heard.” It’s not an accident that one of Black’s most famous Supreme Court opinions ( Everson... Read more
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