“The distinction between the two was the love of God for Jacob and the hatred of God for Esau — the distinction was in God’s intention, and God’s intention is not mediated. The intention drives the mediation, not the other way around . . . The fact that the gift of faith is not inexorably …
With Arms Quivering
Over at First Things, Peter Leithart interacts with a 2010 article by natural law theorist Jean Porter. At issue was the question of whether or not natural law provides a basis for rejecting same-sex relationships or marriages. Porter thinks not, and Peter finds her reasoning compelling — as far as the natural law limitation goes …
When God Gives the Increase
“The Spirit’s work does not come through the means (the sermon, the sacrament) like water through a garden hose. Rather, the Spirit’s anointing is given on account of the means . . . He meets us where He promised He would, in the Word and in the sacrament” (Against the Church, p. 193).
What Jefferson Wrote
Some might want to think it a shame that in my summary of my position on property, I channeled Jefferson, that noted infidel and skeptic. This is what I wrote: “We are created by God, and it is self-evident that we were endowed by that Creator with certain rights that are inalienable, and that among …
A Clean Conscience and a Well-Oiled Shield
As I have been noting periodically in this series on liberty, taxation, and theft, I am not issuing a call to action, but rather a call for understanding and recognition. Clearly this is not because action is irrelevant, but rather because rash and precipitous action is usually destructive. Think, and then do. At some point, …
What Became of the Witty Pirate Then
Because taxes can be a form of theft, and because taxes need not be theft at all, a reasonable question to ask is how we can tell the difference. The baseline, the starting point, is that property belongs to the individual. He is the one that Thou shalt not steal applies to. He is the …
When the Mountain is Smoking
It is easy for conservatives to talk about how much we love liberty, but this too often comes off like commenting on how much we love ice cream. What such a person actually loves is the sensation for which ice cream is the necessary apparatus. But while it is lawful to love ice cream in …
Lots of Potential
“When the surgeon is gone from the hospital, his instruments are lined up in the drawer, full of potential” (Against the Church, p. 192).
A Gracious Gift of the Creeps
I recently read Peter Leithart’s piece on nature at the Trinity House page here, and my initial reaction was to pose a test case scenario for him. It looked like this. I wrote Peter and asked him to write an article that assumes his “un-metaphysic” about nature, and use it to demonstrate the sinfulness of …
A Real Guarantee
“One of the things we should not want to find ourselves doing is to affirm that God is like that manufacturer who issues a ‘lifetime guarantee’ for His products, and then when it breaks and you take it in, you discover that the guarantee was for the lifetime of the product, which apparently ended at …