You do not have to read far in Paul's letter to the Galatians to realize that he is upset, even angry. After stating his credentials and offering a short greeting to the Galatian churches, he launches right in: I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of […]
If justification were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose. (Gal. 2:21) For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, "Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them." … Christ redeemed us […]
"It is a marvelous thing and unknown to the world to teach Christians to ignore the Law and to live before God as though there were no Law whatever. For if you do not ignore the Law and thus direct your thoughts to grace as though there were no Law … you cannot be saved." […]
Little in the Apostle Paul's writings has been debated as intensively in recent years as his understanding of what he calls "the law" (see Rom. 3:21, 31; 1 Cor. 9:8-10, 20-21; Gal. 3; Eph. 2:15; among other verses). This topic is inherently and notoriously difficult because Paul makes equally strong positive and negative statements about […]
In advancing what has come to be called "the new perspective on Paul," E. P. Sanders argues strenuously that the Judaism in Paul's day was not "legalistic," as traditional Protestant readings maintain, but that it was characterized by "covenantal nomism." Legalism claims that we can become righteous simply by choosing to obey God's commandments. Covenantal […]
Christians dissatisfied with traditional formulations of the doctrine of justification have found a new alternative in N. T. Wright's popular book, What Saint Paul Really Said: Was Paul of Tarsus the Real Founder of Christianity?, published by Eerdmans in 1997. Wright, currently Bishop of Durham, is a talented and prolific writer and speaker who has […]
In light of the comparative dearth of historically and theologically informed studies of Reformed worship, one is inclined to welcome any contribution to the field that is characterized by both. R. J. Gore, Jr.’s most recent book is just that, although the book turns out to be more concerned with the subtitle than the title. […]
In recent years, conservative Roman Catholics and Protestants have found themselves on the same side of many contentious social and moral issues, a convergence that has undoubtedly served as an important impetus to ecumenical discussions and even joint doctrinal statements. The use of contraception, however, remains one moral matter that has continued to divide most […]
In this provocative and engaging work, based on his lectures at Loyola of Chicago, Robert Kraynak challenges the "end of history" thesis famously articulated by Francis Fukuyama-that is, the idea that liberal democracy in the West finally and permanently resolves the thorny and ancient question, Who should rule? Arguing from within the Augustinian framework of […]
