Author: Adam Johnson
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One, Holy, and Broken: Conflict In Christ’s Church
A church I attended suffered the pangs of conflict, and unfortunately, this was nothing new in my experience. As my wife and I moved around the country for graduate studies and then different teaching positions, four of the six churches we attended suffered deeply from conflict during the handful of years we were there (the…
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Authority in Mentoring
A concerned student recently asked me to use my authority over a friend of theirs (also a student and mentee of mine) to help get them on the right track, for this friend was involved in quite destructive behavior. As we were talking, I was growing increasingly uncomfortable, but when this request finally emerged, something…
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Adjusting the Soundtrack of the Atonement
When we think about the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we often do so with an image or a set of biblical passages and categories in mind. Much like the score in a movie, those categories help us make sense of Jesus’ death. For that is what doctrine is about—helping us make sense of…
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Doctrine Leaping Out of Its Chains: Review of Young’s “Construing the Cross”
Young, Frances M. Construing the Cross: Type, Sign, Symbol, Word, Action. Eugene, Oregon: Cascade Books, 2015. Frances M. Young’s Construing the Cross is no mere exercise by a young scholar with an idea, research leave and a bibliography. Rather, this is the product of a mature and measured lifetime of study, a small window looking…
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Love the Perpetrator as the Survivor? Correspondence with a Friend about Loving Your Neighbor as Yourself
A friend and I had a conversation about a situation of systemic and personal abuse she was suffering, which turned into correspondence between us. With permission, I have polished up my exchange with Lori (a pseudonym), as a reflection on what it means for a victim to properly love a perpetrator—a excruciatingly difficult challenge. Lori:…
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Silent No More: CS Lewis’ Cosmological Theory of the Atonement
According to C.S. Lewis’ Ransom Trilogy, our home is “Thulcandra—the silent planet,” for “it alone is outside the heaven, and no message comes from it.” That is to say, no message came from our planet, until Ransom was kidnapped, and brought to Malacandra (or Mars). At a certain point in the story, Ransom learns that Oyarsa,…
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The Hunting Grounds
A recent documentary, The Hunting Ground, explores the tragedy of sexual assault on university and college campuses across the nation. Directed by Oscar-nominated Kirby Dick, maker of The Invisible War, which discusses the epidemic of rape within the military, The Hunting Ground serves as Dick’s startling follow-up into the world of sexual assault. The problem…
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Theology Conferences Part II of II: The Vices
See Part 1 here. In my first post, I sought to paint a constructive vision of academic conferences, but that is far from all there is to say—for a conference is a vice-saturated affair, and it’s worth knowing that ahead of time. One of the most superficial and natural ways vice rears its head has…
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Theology Conferences Part I of II: A Brief How-To Guide
See Part 2 here. If you are interested in an academic career, welcome to the world of conferences. For all their weaknesses, these are one of the main heartbeats of the academy. Over two posts, I will do my best to pass along what I have learned, thus speeding up the learning curve. The Cost…
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The Flowering Crown
This post was featured on Biola’s Center for Christianity, Culture and the Arts’ Lent Project on Easter Sunday, March 27, 2016. The crown of the thorns is a symbol of cruelty and oppression—but a poetic one. The rightful king of creation enters his realm, only to find himself crowned with the very thorns that choke…
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Migliore on Charitable Theology
One of the professors who most impacted me over the course of my studies in theology was Daniel Migliore, Professor Emeritus of Theology at Princeton Theological Seminary. In fact, we even share a birthday, July 22—though he is my elder by some years. I found in Prof. Migliore something I had seen in others, but…
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Completing the Atonement? A Lewisian Experiment in Theology, Memory and Poetry
I tend to think of memories as the decayed remains of past events—the bits and pieces I have managed to salvage and store away, to treasure in the present. But I have no confidence, due to repeated experience, that these bits and pieces are in pristine condition. I repeatedly find that what I thought was…