“Mom, you told me once that I didn’t have to be friends with Susan, right?” “Actually,” her mother replied, “I told you that I would rather you not be friends with Susan. But basically, yes.” “Well, in the last couple weeks she has asked me to two different events. A get together at her place …
Back to the Fathers
Prefatory Address to King Francis I of France Charges of Antogonists Refuted: Newness, Uncertainty, the Value of Miracles (3) 1. How does Calvin respond to the charge that the teaching of the Protestants is a novelty? 2. If it is new, in what way is it new? 3. In response to the charge that this …
Thou Shalt Play With Cobras
The Old Testament prophecies of the glories of the new covenant era teach us to look forward in faith to a stupendous pileup of grace at the culmination of human history. God’s goodness to us has already been overwhelming, and much more is on the way. But in order not to get tangled up in …
Their Rule Intact or Belly Full
Prefatory Address to King Francis I of France Circumstances in Which the Book Was First Written (1) 1. What was Calvin’s first intention in writing the first edition of the Institutes? 2. What made it necessary to expand the work so that it also became a defense to the king on behalf of the Protestants? …
A Wiseacre Turk
“Dad, what is a parable anyhow?” the young fellow asked. His father, who had fortunately read something about this just recently, answered him on this wise. “Well, kid, let me tell you.” “Well, dad, tell me. That’s why I asked.” “The word parable comes from two Greek words, which together mean to ‘cast or throw …
Day One
This new year, 2009, marks the 500th anniversary of John Calvin’s birth. This milestone is being marked in many different ways, by different institutions and organizations the world over. For just one example, over the course of this next year, New St. Andrews is planning a series of lectures on all things Calvin, and other …
Chump Change Violence
In discussions of violence and the nature of God, one of the biggest issues before us is that of sorting out the relationship of the Old Testament to the New. Also, as it happens, sorting out that relationship is critical to a host of other issues as well — from baptism to church government, from …