Apr
29
2010
Worth a Look 4.29.10
Stephen Prothero (in the Boston Globe) believes it’s misleading – and dangerous - to think that religions are different paths to the same wisdom:
But this lumping of the world’s religions into one megareligion is not just false and condescending, it is also a threat. How can we make sense of the ongoing conflict in Kashmir if we pretend that Hinduism and Islam are one and the same? Or of the impasse in the Middle East, if we pretend that there are no fundamental disagreements between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam?
The hope of the world resides in a dying man beaten beyond recognition and nailed to a Roman cross centuries ago. By His death, resurrection and ascension, the curse has been reversed, but not fully realized at present. Biblical hope by faith is the present possession of those who are called not to see Jesus with their eyes, but to hear and believe the Gospel. Through the efficacy of a divinely enabled capacity to hear and heed the biblical Gospel, hope is grounded in the historical reality of Jesus as He now stands in victory over death, Hell and the grave.
These pictures from the Iceland volcano are simply spectacular.
James Grant interviews Kevin DeYoung about his new book, which explains the Heidelberg Catechism:
1) It’s an intuitive way to learn about the faith. There’s almost a conversational element to reading through a catechism.
2) When we use old confessions and catechisms were help teach our people that their faith is an old faith, shared by millions over many centuries. We also help them realize that other Christians have asked the same questions.
3) Catechisms are ready made documents for Sunday school, new members classes, or even the occasional sermon.
4) Catechisms guard us against faddishness and chronological snobbery.