Essay / Avant-Garde

If You Had Been There

Once upon a time –not quite “in the beginning,” but not too long after– a snake had a question. He sauntered up and posed it quite politely, and if you’d been there you’d have agreed that both his posture and his manners were impeccable. He

Essay / Theology

Doctrine or Problem: Wainwright on the Trinity in the New Testament

In 1962, Arthur W. Wainwright published The Trinity in the New Testament, a helpful one-volume treatment of a vast subject. Wipf & Stock keeps it in print, and no wonder: Wainwright handled the material so well that only a few pages in it seems dated –though

Essay / Theology

Unlucky Argument for Pauline Authorship of Hebrews

E.W. Bullinger (1837-1913) was a quirky Bible teacher. I would caution anybody against a steady diet of his books, but as long as you’re getting most of your nutrition elsewhere, a little dash of Bullinger can be a piquant spice. You can count on wild

Essay / Literature

Wordsworth in the West

William Wordsworth perfected a certain type of nature poetry, a particularly spiritual sort of nature lyric. He celebrated the movements of the infinite Spirit making itself known to humanity through the forms of nature as contemplated by poet-prophets who were the universe’s appointed spokesmen. Nature

Essay / Theology

“English Bible” did not mean “Dumbed Down”

Earlier this year I noted the premiere of a new journal, the Journal of Inductive Biblical Studies.  The second issue is out now, and among the essays published there I especially enjoyed the autobiographical piece by David Bauer entitled, “My Journey with Inductive Bible Study.”

Essay / Theology

Progress and Regress on the Trinity: The Book

Zondervan has published select proceedings of the 2014 Los Angeles Theology Conference in a volume bearing the same title as the conference: Advancing Trinitarian Theology, edited by Oliver Crisp and Fred Sanders. Slipping into advertising mode, I was going to say “Get the book, don’t

Essay / Theology

Irrelevance & Relevance of the Trinity to the Christian Life

I was excited when Kyle Strobel and Kent Eilers invited me to write the Trinity chapter in their book Sanctified by Grace: A Theology of the Christian Life (Bloomsbury / T&T Clark, 2014), and I’m more excited now that the book is in print.  I

Essay / Culture

Theology and California: The Book

I’m pleased to announce the publication of a strange, new book: Theology and California: Theological Refractions on California’s Culture (Ashgate, 2014), edited by Jason Sexton and me. It’s available in hardcover for your libraries, softcover with a gorgeous cover photo, and e-book for portability. As

Essay / Podcasts

The Common Room Ep. 8: Virgil’s Aeneid and the Meaning of Fate

Torrey director Dr. Paul Spears discusses “Virgil’s Aeneid and the Meaning of Fate” with Dr. Adam Johnson.  Moderated by Dr. Fred Sanders. For other episodes of The Common Room, click here.  The Common Room is available on iTunes in both video and audio formats.

Essay / Theology

Where to go to Church

It recently came to light that the inimitable Billy Graham said that if he could do it all over again, he would be “an evangelical Anglican.” Such a sentiment immediately caught the attention of evangelical Anglicans everywhere: we could have both J.I. Packer and Billy

Essay / Podcasts

The Common Room, Ep. 7: On 1 and 2 Samuel

Theologians Dr. Joe Henderson and Dr. Adam Johnson discuss the books of 1 and 2 Samuel.  Moderated by Dr. Matt Jenson. For other episodes of The Common Room, click here.  The Common Room is available on iTunes in both video and audio formats.

Essay / Theology

Wolfhart Pannenberg (1928-2014), Theological Outflanker

Wolfhart Pannenberg, retired from a long theology career at Munich, has died at age 85. Pannenberg was a major twentieth-century theologian by any count, with a series of brilliant articles, important books on the topics of revelation, christology, ethics, science, anthropology, and metaphysics, and a