Yesterday afternoon, I came across a little book which, to be honest, I had forgotten I owned: The Justification of God by P T Forsyth, a series of lectures on the theodicy delivered in 1916 at the height of the First World War. It is vintage PTF, packed full of insight and quotable passages. Here...

David Robertson, of the Free Church of Scotland, brought this article to my attention this morning. Very much of the Roger Scruton `comfort from a false belief is not necessarily false comfort' variety, but still a fascinating read: here

...but hold the medicine. After yesterday's post, I received the following comment from my former secretary, proof positive that working for the Commissariat of Academic Affairs spoils even the best kids' movies (though I refuse to believe that any movie with the dance sequence `Knees Together,...

On the issue of fascism/socialism as rasied by Rick, I wish that people would not bandy such terms around. As the recipient of both this year as terms of abuse (now does that mean I'm really a middle of the road guy??), I think some variation of Godwin's Law should be applied. At least, I have...

I'm afraid Ref21 has been outclassed in its sad attempt to promote Calvin's anniversary by encouraging people to read the Institutes . The PCUSA has gone one better, issuing Calvin masks to members of its General Assembly. I kid you not. You can get the full story here . After years of looking to...

The latest edition of Christianity Today carries a cover story on `Marketing Jesus' by Tyler Wigg-Stevens (who sounds as if he should be a Ref21 character). The article makes some good points about the unavoidability of having to market the gospel in a consumer culture, but also of the need to...

Rachel Maddow reported on her show last night that Rick Warren's church has removed the statement on its website that indicates that unrepentant homosexuals cannot join as members. I cannot verify this, as I had never visited the website prior to the apparent removal of the statement. Rachel Maddow...

The hoo-hah over President Elect Obama's choice of Rick Warren continues unabated, with most of the critics focusing mainly on Warren 's attitude to homosexuality and gay marriage. Only Christopher Hitchens seems more disturbed by his eschatology (individual and general) and lack of culture and...

I was fascinated last night to listen to the language used about Rick Warren on The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC. For the record, I'm a huge fan of the show: she is intelligent, witty, thought-provoking, and offers commentary on each day's events that often breaks with orthodoxies on all sides. Last...

There is a thoughtful reflection on the ethics of the recent face transplant, posted here . The writer nails it: the striking thing about the modern Western world is the importance of aesthetics, how these aesthetics shape human behaviour, sense of meaning, and even what risks are deemed necessary...

I just noticed the following obituary for Avery Dulles, Cardinal and son of Cold War Warrior, John Foster Dulles of the Eisenhower administration. Cardinal Dulles was one of the most thoughtful Catholic leaders of recent time, and a good writer to boot! You'll find the obit here .

I'm sure he'd be too modest to promote his own stuff, so here's a link to Iain D. Campbell's review of John MacLeod's excellent book on the religious history of the Isle of Lewis, from whence the present Mrs. T originates: http://creideamh.blogspot.com/

I received this comment via my extensive online social network (i.e., the Gnome), apparently responding to my piece of yesterday: "With what does the Christ of MsMiller reach out? A piece of paper and the promise of a few years ofcompanionship, perhaps some great sex, and then what?" Herein lies...

This week's Newsweek leads with an article by Lisa Miller on the Bible and gay marriage. I will not summarise the full argument here: the article is well-written, engaging, makes some good points that provoke critical reflection, and is only three pages long; and Newsweek is so easily accessible,...

While we're in a Dutch auction of mutual appreciation, I'll lower the bar yet further.... Here 's a further link to a Frank Schaeffer's response to Os Guinness. And, just for good measure, a link to an article on the Huffington Post by FS on Mormonism which gives pause for thought on issues of co-...

The text of a recent address by Al Mohler on preaching is available on his blog. A must-read for any preacher who feels tired and discouraged. Here.

There's an interesting interview with Frank Schaeffer available at the NPR website here . FS has taken a lot of hits for his repudiation of his father's evangelicalism, his conversion to Eastern Orthodoxy, and for his recent book on his father, Crazy for God . I haven't yet read the latter, though...

Our friends over at Theology Network have a podcast of Pinky and Perky talking about the cross. OK, it's not Pinky and Perky, those signing porcine legends from the 60s, but Mike Ovey and Andrew Sach; but when I tried to connect they sure sounded like them. I am reliably informed that its my...

Reading the note below on Brain McLaren and liberalism led me the following quotation from another theologian: `There is nothing we are more often told by those who discard evangelical faith than this -- that we must now do what scholarship has only just enabled us to do and return to the religion...

Danny Hyde has set up a new website dedicated to all things Belgic Confession. You can find it here . The church has been in debt to Bob Yarbrough for many years, particularly for his translations of German works by Linneman and Schlatter. Now Bob has produced a fine commentary on the Johannine...

Is Trueman a Marxist? Well, as that nice, loyal Mr Lieberman might say, `That's a good question!' And, as it now appears that it is not seeing class struggle but rather belief in graduated income tax that defines a Marxist, I guess I do stand in that long line of Marxists which -- ahem -- includes...

On Friday last week, Willie Mackenzie of CFP gave me an advance copy of Douglas F. Kelly's forthcoming Systematic Theology I: The God Who Is -- The Holy Trinity . It looks excellent. Three things are striking. First, Kelly interacts extensively with the Church Fathers, especially the Easterns (...

My friend John Macleod's Banner in the West: a Spiritual History of Lewis and Harris (Birlinn) is out as a beautifully produced hardback. Being married to a girl from Lewis, the Outer Hebrides are yet another place where I am not native but have the equivalent of a green card, being, as is the way...

One of the advantages of the British system of democracy has to be the relative brevity of the election season. An election can be called any time within the five year period and the trick for the incumbents is to get the timing right, though this is not always the case, as with the disastrous...