I think I actually put this gem up on Facebook about a year ago, but it’s just too good to not re-post a second time. This is actually part of a collection called “The Little Folks of Animal Land.” It is over 100 pages full of images such as this. Continue reading →
David B. Hart argues that naturalism is incapable of accounting for the reality of that which is, and thus ipso facto eliminates itself as an exhaustive approach to reality:
The one thing that a naturalist view of reality cannot encompass is being itself, the very existence of nature; nature, by definition, is what already exists, and no investigation of its innate causes can penetrate the mystery of its ontological contingency. Thus naturalism is always surrounded and permeated and exceeded by that which is, quite literally, “super naturam”; and naturalism can be held as a philosophy only to the degree that one fails or scrupulously refuses to notice this surd of the supernatural, this ever deeper mystery behind and beyond all the lesser mysteries of natural order.
Read the rest of it here.
While few may doubt my inestimable authority in the field of Wesley studies, I am yet not content to rest on my laurels. Meticulous research- involving countless hours of pouring over the slightest scrap of correspondence, genealogical records, ship manifests, etc.- has uncovered what may be the crowning achievement of my already luminous career: there was a third Wesley. Not Susanna, not Samuel, not one of the other 13 Wesley children who get no historical recognition. Rather, I am referring to a (to date) lesser luminary whose name will soon be on the lips and in the memory of Wesleyans and Methodists from this day forward: Dave MaGee. He is the third Wesley. Continue reading →
One of the characteristics of the Renaissance in the West (at the risk of over-generalization) was a fascination with all things classical; that is, the Greco-Roman heritage of both West and East. As the West was reintroduced, to some extent, to this heritage, it would become a locus of art, literature and a host of other fields towards the closing of the Middle Ages. (as strained and artificial such a categorization may be…) Continue reading →
New video for rezlife this week- Sticks and Stones.
This 2 week series for 7th/8th graders is on the things we say, bullying- you know, all those fun middle school issues we all remember so fondly. As I was coming up with a concept for this, I wasn’t having much luck really thinking of anything that would speak to this subject. Continue reading →
I don’t think this needs any comment. Except to say that people seem to have any easier time taming large cats that can kill you than taming house cats who at worst can leave surprises in your shoes.
Of course, that’s not to say the large cats wouldn’t try to leave surprises in your shoes. It’s simply that they might not fit, if you know what I mean.
per viscera misericordiae Dei nostri in quibus visitavit nos oriens ex alto
In these words, (or their Greek equivalent) generations of Christians in both East and West were able to immediately perceive a connection between the faith they professed in the Son of God incarnate and the very physical posture of their worship. As they faced towards the east, it was not merely an arbitrary geographical detail nor a historical accident, but rather a deliberate stance that at once spoke volumes both theologically and viscerally. Continue reading →
Yesterday Megan and I were at her mom’s house carving pumpkins, baking pumpkin seeds and other delectable items. We had our camera along to take some pictures for Megan’s amazing food blog, and I decided to photographically bother one of their dogs. This cute little West Highland Terrier is Molly, and she evidently didn’t mind me getting up in her face and snapping some pictures. 
Continue reading →
My brother Joel recently made a sortie into the world of auto-tune, and decided to use as his text a portion of St. Athanasius’ On the Incarnation of the Word.
Check it out here.
FITTING indeed, then, and wholly consonant was the death on the cross for us; and we can see how reasonable it was, and why it is that the salvation of the world could be accomplished in no other way. Even on the cross He did not hide Himself from sight; rather, He made all creation witness to the presence of its Maker. Then, having once let it be seen that it was truly dead, He did not allow that temple of His body to linger long, but forthwith on the third day raised it up, impassible and incorruptible, the pledge and token of His victory.
This is the first of what I hope to be a continuing series of paraphrases of the church fathers. Ever since college I have had a fascination with historical theology, and particularly the writings of the ante-Nicene and Nicene church fathers. The English translations that I have, however, were translated in the late 19th century, and thus employ many archaisms and language which, to modern readers, can be difficult to fully absorb. Thus, I wanted to paraphrase some sections in more updated language. Continue reading →
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