“Rash men quickly take hold of the sword of justice to hack and hew. They think that what they do is according to reason, but they do not wisely weigh things in the balance of justice. Remember, justice has a balance as well as a sword” (Burroughs, Irenicum, p. 196).
Reformation and Revival
Important distinctions must always be maintained between true God-given revival and man-made revivalism – as capable writers are doing elsewhere in this issue. But at the same time, confusion on this entire subject is so rampant that we perhaps need to refine our vocabulary even further than this. Revival means “coming to life again.” Something …
Inflexible in the Joints
“Rigid, harsh, sour, crabbed, rough-hewn spirits are unfit for union. There is no sweetness, no amiableness, no pleasantness in them; they please themselves in a rugged austereness, but are pleasing to no one else in all their ways. They will abate nothing of their own, nor yield anything to others (Burroughs, Irenicum, p. 194).
Teachers and the Tongue
We sometimes miss the context of the oft-repeated teaching of James concerning the sins of the tongue. In the fifth verse of his third chapter, he shows us how the words of the tongue are a small spark that can create a forest fire, burning down a great wilderness. But he began that section by …
Islamic Fatalism
“Islamic predestination is particularly severe: it simplifies religion and so annihilates some theological difficulties, but at the price of a cruel fatalism” (Serge Trifkovic, The Sword of the Prophet, p. 66).
And Why Not?
“I do not use the word popular as the opposite of high, serious, or good. It cannot be stated too often, or too emphatically, that this usage is both illogical and ahistorical. In every period and place, it is possible to cite works that possess both popularity and artistic merit” (Martha Bayles, Hole in our …
Trinity Fest Nudge
If there are any of you out there who would love to be at Trinity Fest (see large toucan below), but are not going to make it because you are financially strapped, there are some scholarships available that would discount the registration fee. If you are in that category, contact our church office at office@christkirk.com …
Not a Relationship, but a Religion
Revivalism is actually the religion of magical technique. This religion is an ancient one, but the contemporary American form of it is revivalism. The purpose of all such religious technique is to control and manipulate the god who serves those adepts who want to worship themselves under cover of worshiping him. Through certain techniques, what …
Muslims Thinking the Way Christians Used To
“Islam is not a ‘mere’ religion; it is a complete way of life, an all-embracing social, political and legal system that breeds a worldview peculiar to itself” (Serge Trifkovic, The Sword of the Prophet, p. 55).
The Loss of Poetry
The causes are not easy to identify, but poetry has fallen on hard times. Poetry today huddles in its prescribed little ghettoes – the sentimentalism of greeting cards and cupboard poetry, the small clutch of arcane poetry journals with a circulation of thirteen, self-absorbed adolescents scribbling pages of navel-gazing free verse, nationally-ignored poet laureates, and …