The Scriptorium Daily

Category: Culture

  • Are Artists Creators?

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    Matt Jenson
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    What do people do when they make a work of art? What do we mean when we speak of human creativity? Are artists creators? Humans are made in the image of God; does this imply that, in our creativity, we mirror his creating? Surely in some sense, human uniqueness includes our capacity to intentionally shape…

  • Spaaaace Tuuuunes!

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    Fred Sanders
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    Here’s some fun music by friends at my church: Lost in Space, by The Pop Rockets. Click through to the Noisetrade page to sample all five tracks and download them if you like what you hear. As for me and my house, we like what we hear. Anybody with Vacation Bible School in their background will…

  • The Theologian’s Stone: Atonement In Harry Potter, Book I

    The Theologian’s Stone: Atonement In Harry Potter, Book I

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    Adam Johnson
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    “It is a monstrous thing, to slay a unicorn…. Only one who has nothing to lose, and everything to gain, would commit such a crime. The blood of a unicorn will keep you alive, even if you are an inch from death, but at a terrible price. You have slain something pure and defenseless to…

  • Christ’s Death and the Fate of Western Lowland Gorillas

    Christ’s Death and the Fate of Western Lowland Gorillas

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    Adam Johnson
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    Paul Fryer’s striking art installation is a beautiful and realistic work… of a crucified gorilla. At first one might think his “Privilege of Dominion” is little more than a parody of the Christian faith, a repetition of ancient graffiti portraying Christ crucified with the head of a donkey. And in fact there has been some…

  • Watch “The Cost of Freedom”

    Watch “The Cost of Freedom”

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    Scriptorium Admin
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    The video for “The Cost of Freedom” event is now available. Cornel West and Robert George joined Rick Warren at Biola University for a discussion about disagreement, common ground, and justice. West and George are good friends, yet disagree on important issues.  There is a lively discussion about halfway through as George talks about prudence and…

  • In Defense of ‘Ramona’ and Other Children’s Classics

    In Defense of ‘Ramona’ and Other Children’s Classics

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    Adam Johnson
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    I teach classics for a living. As a result, my kids overhear conversations and snippets of conversations about Homer, Dante, Shakespeare and a host of others. But that’s not all they hear, for as someone devoted to the classics, I share this love with them in a steady diet of children’s classics by Beverly Cleary,…

  • The Cost of Freedom – Robert George, Cornel West, and Rick Warren

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    Scriptorium Admin
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     April 30, 2015 7:30 pm Biola University Buy tickets or register for the livestream. How can societies preserve freedom for all people when we are beset by serious and substantial disagreements over what shape freedom should take?  What kinds of virtues do we need as a people to preserve the common good?  What kinds of…

  • Confessing the Generations

    Confessing the Generations

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    Adam Johnson
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    (This is in some ways a sequel to my earlier post, “Gospel of Confession”) Perhaps, like me, you have dreaded your turn to tell your conversion story at a church event. I would open my story with an apology: “well, my story really isn’t very interesting….” Unlike some of the more sensational stories that had…

  • God, Science & The Big Questions

    God, Science & The Big Questions

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    Scriptorium Admin
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    The Torrey Honors Institute recently partnered with Biola’s Apologetics department to host a discussion on God, science and the big questions between J. P. Moreland, William Lane Craig, and John Lennox, moderated by Hugh Hewitt. Enjoy this discussion. The minds are keen, the wits sharp, and the ideas vibrant. From Biola University: Join us for this…

  • Because of Fairies

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    Matt Jenson
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    Recently, I spent twelve hours discussing Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream with sophomores in the Torrey Honors Institute. (What a job!) I love this play more and more. It’s easy to miss its richness–it’s such a romp! Here’s the thing that struck me in reading the play this time, and it’s a line that I…

  • Conversation on Theology & California

    Conversation on Theology & California

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    Fred Sanders
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    Here’s a one-hour video about theology and California, or, more specifically, Theology and California, the book of essays that Jason Sexton and I edited (Ashgate, 2014). You can view it at Open Biola (which includes several video and audio options), or stream the embedded version here below. Jason and I were joined by Bob Covolo, author…

  • Christmas Playlist 2014: Monophonic

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    Fred Sanders
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    So much Christmas music is an overproduced mess. This year for our annual Christmas mix we decided to cleanse the palate by finding a set of songs at the other end of the production spectrum. We’ve got buzzing, droning, hissing and popping.  We’ve got yowling backup singers that ought to be on a different layer…