“Thus we have a curious dichotomy in the modern literary scene. Whereas the popular culture gives us books that offer entertainment but no ideas, the ‘high culture’ gives us books that offer ideas but no entertainment. There are many books—in my opinion the best books—which manage to do both” (Gene Edward Veith, Reading Between the …
A Slight Improvement
“The Bible contains a great deal about doctrinal priorities. Some of the most withering criticism leveled by our Lord was directed at religious meatheads who did not know that the altar was more important than the gold placed on it, and honoring parents was more important than contributing to the current pledge drive for the …
Being Made Worthy
Breaking a bad habit is hard to do, and the difficulty is directly proportional to how long the bad habit was indulged. The Christian church needs to break two bad habits when it comes to the Lord’s Supper. These two habits consist of looking in the wrong place as we meditate. The first place we …
The Metaphorical Bonnet
The exhortation last Lord’s Day spoke to austere fathers. Today I want to address women who tear down their households with their own hands, and with their own tongues. Scripture has a great deal to say to us in our particular stations and callings. Men are addressed one way, and women another. In a community …
A Brief Foray into Canada
For those in the area who might be interested, I will be doing a conference next month (April 28) for Christ Covenant Church in Langley, British Columbia. The conference will be on The Church and Culture, and talks will include, “The Church as Shaper of Culture,” “Devil in a Blue Dress,” “Culture and Tradition,” and …
Ritual of Life
This ritual meal is not demeaned through being a ritual. We do not say that it is merely ritual. After all, through rituals many remarkable things happen. A bachelor becomes a husband; a daughter becomes a wife. Through ritual, a civilian becomes a soldier. Through ritual, an Englishman becomes an American, or an American becomes …
Your Temper is a Doctrine of God
As we come to worship the Lord this morning, I want to deliver a particular exhortation to a particular part of our congregation. I want to speak to fathers about the dangers of austerity. Austere fathers are often attracted to certain elements of the Reformed faith, and by emphasizing that faith partially, they often stumble …
Imitation on the Sly
“In their effort to build a way of life based purely on the Shar’i laws, Islamists strain to reject all aspects of Western influence—customs, philosophy, political institutions and values. Despite these efforts, they absorb vast amounts from the West . . . Even Ayatollah Khomeini, who was more traditional than most Islamists, failed in his …
Just Plain Bad
“Some of the most popular books are starkly bad — bad in their content, bad in their effect, and, in a related way, bad aesthetically” (Gene Edward Veith, Reading Between the Lines, p. 27).
Purity Circling the Drain
“Some perfectionists look at this dismal state of affairs and conclude that what we need is an additional splinter group — and presbyterian denomination of three people, not counting the stated clerk. The stationery proudly proclaims that they are a continuing presbyterian church, that they sing Psalms through the left nostril, unlike those hardy blasphemers …