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Posts from the ‘The Bible’ Category

Jun 4

Something New Under the Sun

Over the last couple of days the daily readings from the lectionary I’m following have been from the first three chapters of Ecclesiastes. This morning’s reading was the famous “a time for everything” passage in Ecclesiastes 3:1-15, popularized by The Byrds, and no doubt resonant with the experience of many. The seasons come and go, and life looks pretty much the same. Ecclesiastes is, I suppose, considered to be a bit of a bleak book (although I’ve always rather liked it), one that gives expression to how the world is experienced by human beings. We’re born, we struggle, we seize what fleeting pleasures are on offer, we die, and around and around it goes. Nothing new. Read more

Apr 25

9 Comments

Ehrman and Wright on the Problem of Suffering

The following exchange on beliefnet is worth checking out for those interested in the problem of suffering and evil, and how the biblical narrative addresses (or fails to address) it. Bart Ehrman is a former Christian and professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina who has recently authored God’s Problem: How the Bible Fails to Answer Our Most Important Question–Why We Suffer. N.T. Wright is a biblical theologian, the Bishop of Durham, and the author of numerous books on the the historical Jesus and the early church, as well as, more relevant to this discussion, Evil and the Justice of God. Read more

Apr 7

72 Comments

Offended by God?

Over the course of my thesis research over the last year or so, I have come across a lot of different reasons for doubting the existence of God. One major stumbling block for those who reject Christianity is those parts of the Bible which seem to justify actions that we consider to be culturally backward, confusing, and irrelevant or, even worse, immoral. And I think that most Christians, if they’re honest, will agree that there are parts of the Bible that they find baffling, frustrating, or, possibly, just plain offensive. Read more

Feb 27

12 Comments

Love and Knowledge

Near the end of Christopher Hitchens’ God is not Great, tucked away in a chapter entitled “The Resistance of the Rational,” is the following definition of an educated person, approvingly attributed to Socrates: “All he really “knew,” he said, was the extent of his own ignorance.” Read more

Feb 12

Coming to Peace with History

I recently had an interesting conversation about the relationship between history and truth with a group of UBC students with whom I’m going through Lesslie Newbigin’s The Gospel in a Pluralist Society. We arrived yesterday at what is, in my opinion, one of the most important chapters in the book—”The Logic of Election.” In this chapter, Newbigin challenges our assumptions about what election is for, arguing that God never chose a specific group of people—whether the nation of Israel or the church—to be the objects of eternal salvation but rather to be his instruments of extending his redemption to others. According to Newbigin, we do not encounter God as isolated individuals; he has always used other people—both now and across time—to communicate his purposes to us. Read more

Nov 22

14 Comments

Put Your Bibles Away?

I came across this intriguing piece at Per Crucem ad Lucem via Faith and Theology. It’s a quote from one of Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard’s journal entries—one in which he seems to be advocating something, well, something kind of un-Christian. Here’s a little (provocative) sample: Read more

Sep 16

4 Comments

Love Songs for a Saviour?

For any and all who have sat (suffered) through a church service saturated with theologically impoverished songs encouraging us to declare that we are “in love” with Jesus, John Stackhouse’s thoughts on the matter might be of interest.

I don’t have anything particularly insightful to add to this excellent post other than, to quote a pastor from my childhood, “a hearty ‘Amen.'”

Aug 23

7 Comments

I Wish This was a Joke…

One of the interesting features of blogging at WordPress is being able to see which sites are linking to your own posts. There aren’t usually very many of these, mind you, but the odd one pops up. Some of these are intriguing, but many are just plain strange and I have no idea where they come from or how they connect to me. Read more

Jun 24

1 Comment

Are You Happy? Should You Be?

The Globe and Mail is currently doing a very interesting feature on happiness. I was particularly intrigued by this article that I came across yesterday which questions our cultural fascination with the “cult of happiness,” both its legitimacy as an enterprise, and its efficiency in achieving the results we crave. We are obsessed with being happy, and when this happiness eludes us, we’re desperate for someone to tell us how to fix the problem. Everywhere we turn, there are no shortages of “life coaches,” psychologists, therapists, and all manner of “happiness experts” eager to lead us (usually for a handsome fee!) to the promised land of rapturous bliss. Read more

Jun 14

5 Comments

Ryan the Bible Teacher?!

For those who do not know, I have been hired to teach one section of an Introduction to Biblical Studies class at Columbia Bible College in the fall semester. I’m pretty excited about this—my wife and I attended CBC for a year in the mid-1990’s and we have very fond memories of the place. Also, it’s not much of a secret that I would like to teach on a more permanent basis after I graduate—either in an academic or church context—and this could represent one tiny foot in the door to the world of teaching. At the very least, it will give me some much needed experience in learning how to be a public figure, and it will force me to learn how to communicate ideas clearly and helpfully in an interactive environment (not to mention I get a funky CBC library card that says “Sessional Faculty” on it, right beside a picture of me with a rather stupid looking grin on my face—almost like I was convinced that I was getting away with something, and I wanted to get out of there before somebody found out…). Read more

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