Sex and the Christian Vision of the Good
Christianity doesn't guarantee prosperity of every kind for every individual. Struggles in one's health, one's marriage, one's work, and even one's faith are par for the Christian course (Jas 1:3). But, overall, we expect the biblical vision of the good life to produce a better life than the non-Christian vision. And (marital) sexuality is included. The Bible doesn't deny that sin brings pleasure (Heb 11:25), only that the pleasure lasts or is worth having. Sin is always a denial of love for...
Mark Ward on Shaun Tabatt Show Discussing Logos
I had a chance to go on the Shuan Tabatt show recently.
Joy Davidman Lewis’s Brilliant Take-Down of Materialism
Just yesterday I was thinking, "I've just got to recover that fantastic quotation from the Joy Davidman Lewis biography I listened to on audio last year." (The downside of audio books—and the reason I typically "read" only fiction and biography in audio format—is that I can't take down quotations easily for future use.) And then today Alan Jacobs comes through for me, quoting the very thing I was wanting to recover. It's brilliant. Joy, later in life, describes the way she thought as a young,...
Review: KJV Reader’s Bible
KJV Reader's Bible, Black/Brown Tooled LeatherTouch by Anonymous My rating: 4 of 5 stars I’m being generous and hopeful with four stars; I love the idea of this KJV Reader’s Bible, and the the execution is both brilliant and deeply flawed at the same time. THE GOOD Let’s start with the good. Most importantly, this is a reader’s Bible: no chapter or verse numbers clutter the text. We get nicely paragraphed (though see “THE BAD” below), single-column text and a much smoother reading experience...
One of My Favorite Theologians Questions Me on My Decision Not to Capitalize Deity Pronouns
Posted by permission and with slight editing from both parties. Hey Mark, I just noted your upcoming column on deity pronouns. My only beef with it is that it seems to me to set up a straw man and completely ignores a stronger and more pertinent argument. I’m sure there are people who argue for capitalization on the grounds of tradition and respect; I just don’t know any (as far as I’m aware). My argument is clarity, pure and simple. That clarity extends not only to our writing about God, but...