Divine Will and Divine Intent

In the previous essay I explored what John Vervaeke considers a misplaced emphasis on the Divine Will (in theological terms) and the arbitrariness of the cosmos (in philosophical terms) and how that has shaped Christian’s thinking about our relationship to God. My conclusion was that the will of God is not as important as one …

What Is this “Will of God” of which You Speak?

Early on in my Orthodox days I was part of a conversation where a person raised in an Evangelical home asked an Orthodox priest about the will of God. The priest happened to be an old-school Arab guy who had probably never set foot in a Protestant church. Said person was tied up in knots …

Rules and Tools

In the last month I heard someone say that Christian fasting is a tool and not a rule. It’s a distinction that appeals to me, but it directly contradicts the language one often sees from various jurisdictions of the Orthodox Church. In this case, the seeming contradiction is a problem with semantics. In terms of …

Facts Aren’t the Half of It

I want to revisit an incident that I’ve commented on before, but add a new chapter. It was the 90s. I was on staff at 1,600 member church. It was well known as a congregation where both theological and political liberals and conservatives sat and studied side by side with relative comfort. That was achieved …

Crossing the Exclusion Zone

If you haven’t read the previous reflection on Josh.2:4, Follow God, but not too Close, go back and read it now, because I’m not going to turn that soil again. But as I was writing it, I realized that some people are going to find a “gotcha” in my description of an “exclusion zone of …

They Don’t Know the Half of It!

I asked a question recently about the soul on the r/Orthodox subreddit. I got several mini lectures about the mind instead. All the Orthodox newbies wanted to share their knowledge that the Greek word typically translated “mind” is nous, and it doesn’t quite mean the same thing as the English term “mind.” In true Reddit …

Christ as Theoretical Construct Rather Than Person

Since I've gotten back to the first half part of vol. 4 of Karl Barth's Church Dogmatics and have been posting about it, a friend sent me a note pointing me in the direction of Adam Neder's book, Participation in Christ: An Entry Into Karl Barth's Church Dogmatics. Since both Eastern Orthodoxy and Adam Neder …

The Innocent Righteousness of Works

Too often a dispute has unintended consequences. In theology nearly all disputes are not between right and wrong, but rather an over- or under-emphasis that leads to error. Heresy (broadly understood) is not a matter of being wrong, it is a matter of being only almost right. But when sides are taken and battle lines …

God’s No is also God’s Yes

In my rereading of Church Dogmatics, by Karl Barth, I’ve arrived at IV/1 §61, “Justification.” My first time through CD was back in the late 80s and early 90s, when I was a newly minted Presbyterian pastor. I underlined frequently and made a number of marginal notes in this section. I was clearly impressed with …

Anselm: Some Further Thoughts

I got some push back on my previous Anselm post. So first, let me clarify what I did and didn't say. What I did say is that Anselm is unfairly disparaged, especially among the Orthodox for all the theological sins of the West. I did not say that his doctrine of salvation was adequate. I …