From the category archives:

Reviews

From Ambiguity to Multiplicity

26 December 2009 Biblical Studies

In a previous post, I talked about the virtues of ambiguity. There I expounded our attraction to the unknown and how that unknown or unknowability causes us to continue to explore. As I read Westphal, I realize, however, that when it comes to interpreting the Word of God, many of us become scared of the unknown. We feel that the Bible should have a plain-sense, cut-and-dry interpretation and we should be able to know what it all means.

Isn’t this nonsense?

Tagged as: ambiguity, bible, hermeneutics, interpretation, multiplicity, Reviews, Westphal

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Thumbnail image for Exodus 33:19 in its Old Testament Context

Exodus 33:19 in its Old Testament Context

6 August 2009 Reviews

In this chapter, Piper attempts to venture back to the book of Exodus which Paul quotes in Romans 9:15: “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” The goal for Piper is to show that even in its original context (whether or not Paul might have tampered with that context is another issue entirely) this is a general principle rather than a particular event. By this, I mean to say that the notion of God having mercy/compassion on whom he will have mercy/compassion is not just relevant to Moses at that moment, but is an attribute of God that we can all take to the bank for all time.

Tagged as: exodus, romans

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The Purpose that Accords with Election: Romans 9:6–13

29 July 2009 Reviews

In the third chapter of The Justification of God, Piper does just this: he re-iterates much of what he has said before, makes his point, deals with dissenters, and moves on to address those dissenters. The evidence that he marshals is impressive in terms of breadth. He is comfortable talking about modern scholars, ancient exegetes, apocryphal literature, and exclusivist sects (i.e., the Qumran community).

Tagged as: romans

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Codex Redesigned

28 July 2009 Reviews

Tyler F. Williams, an Assistant Professor of Theology at The King’s University College in Edmonton, has had one of the better biblioblogs out there for sometime now. (In fact, you can find him in my blogroll). Recently, Tyler launched a fabulous site redesign. It’s clean, easy to navigate, and real pleasure just to stare at for a while.

Tagged as: blogs, web

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My Kinsmen are Accursed!

22 July 2009 Reviews

This is the second part of a fairly extensive review of John Piper’s The Justification of God: An Exegetical and Theological Study of Romans 9:1-23.
In the second chapter of The Justification of God, Piper’s aim is to show what is at stake in Romans 9–11: “[I]t appears that what God has guaranteed is in fact [...]

Tagged as: romans

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Introduction

22 July 2009 Reviews

This is the first part of a fairly extensive review of John Piper’s The Justification of God: An Exegetical and Theological Study of Romans 9:1-23.
Piper uses just a few page to introduce his work as a whole. This chapter provides the major questions and gives a road map for the argument. I shall do the [...]

Tagged as: romans

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WordPress vs. TheRest: How Should a Writer Blog?

12 January 2009 Reviews

This blog is powered by WordPress. My wife’s photography business has a website that I wrote with TextPattern. Other projects that I’m working on include Django and Ruby on Rails. I also use Tumblr for short posts. If I’m a writer, where should I turn for my blogging needs?
Bottom-Line: I’m a guy who likes to [...]

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REVIEW: Dr. Dog album: "Fate" (music)

5 January 2009 Reviews

For me, part of writing is finding the right inspiration. Sometimes that inspiration comes in very weird forms. A while ago, my wife, who has been itching to get into Dr. Dog after seeing them open for Wilco in 2007, downloaded their most recent album, Fate. I must say that these are 44 minutes of [...]

Tagged as: dr. dog, indie rock, music, review, rock

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REVIEW: "W." (movie)

17 October 2008 Reviews

This evening, I had the pleasure of seeing W., Oliver Stone’s new biopic about George W. Bush. The premiere had been Wednesday in New York, and Stone screened it at the Austin Film Festival on Thursday with James Cromwell (who is perhaps nine feet tall!) in attendance and fielding Q&A after the movie.
I’ve got to [...]

Tagged as: josh brolin, movies, oliver stone, Reviews, writing

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REVIEW: "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel

3 September 2008 Reviews

Recently, I interviewed for a job that required me to teach a ninth grade English class so that the administration could evaluate my teaching skills. They had read Life of Pi over the summer, and were just starting to explore all the things that a novel has to teach young high schoolers about grammar, writing, [...]

Tagged as: book, fiction, life of pi, novel, review, yann martel

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