Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

…or, Something to keep you busy over the weekend…

…or, The Past Fortnight in the Theoblogosphere.

So . . . it’s been more than a fortnight. Oh well. I suspected as much would happen, what with the start of my semester and other sundry concerns. But here I am now, and I have quite a few links to share. So buckle up!

First, what’s been happening here at DET? I put up a couple of tame posts dealing with Calvin – typical dry academic DET fare. The first was a bit of Calvin’s correspondence with Bullinger about Luther, and the second was some stuff from Bruce Gordon on Calvin’s legal education. Then I got a bee in my bonnet and launched a diatribe against creationism. Rounding things out, we had a reflection on Christianity and Labor Day from friend-of-the-blog Scott Jackson, and DET contributor Derek Maris posted briefly about Moltmann and recent Barth research.

The rest of the links are artificially divided into the two categories this time. Of course, proper theology has political consequences and Christians ought to engage in politics with a theological perspective. But making the distinction makes it faster for me to put this thing together so just go with it for now.

Politics

• Here’s an article about that nun who broke into a nuclear reservation in Nevada back in August. Dated, I know, but very interesting.
• Here’s a lovely piece about how Paul Ryan’s budget proposals have been rejected by Roman Catholic ethicists, bishops, etc., in the face of his claim that his religious beliefs influenced him in putting it together. Wonder if they’ll excommunicate him if he gets elected (current polls suggest that’s a long shot…thank God…) and tries to put them into effect…
• Putting those first two links together, some nuns wrote a letter to Romney criticizing him over his lack of engagement with the poor.
• Time for some reflections on the importance of the separation between church and state.
• This one could have gone in the theology section just as easily as up here, but oh well. Darren Sumner wrote this very engaging and helpful post. The title speaks for itself: “Faith, Politics, and the Evangelical Culture of Judgment”
• Food for thought from the Women in Theology blog: “In Defense of Politics”
• Richard Floyd reflects on the Republican National Convention. I must say, I find it nigh on impossible to disagree with him here: “Commandment takes beating in Tampa: “Lies, Damn Lies, and Republican Convention Rhetoric””

Theology

• Matt Frost wrote a couple posts about what sort of science biblical studies or theology is. Here’s a link to the first one (which includes a link to the second).
• Want coverage of how the nuns finally decided to respond to the Vatican? Here ya go!
• This is a little review of Barth’s God Here and Now.
• Take a break from reading to what this video from BIOLA featuring George Hunsinger and Nicholas Wolterstorff discussing Hunsinger’s “Golden Rule Theory.”
• Here is a Collin Cornell twofer: on creation and on Barth and wisdom literature.
• The Women in Theology blog offered this post on Pussy Riot early in that saga.
• Jason Goroncy uploaded a paper for our perusal that he presented at “Southern Presbytery at their AGM in Invercargill.” The topic? Mission and the Priesthood of Christ.
• My good friend, colleague, co-belligerent, and theologically-conjoined twin – David Congdon – threw up a post updating us all on his current academic endeavors.
• This post offers a brief review of a book that deals with Christian scripture’s origins in a generally accessible way: Lee McDonald’s The Origin of the Bible: A Guide for the Perplexed. I had the pleasure of meeting with McDonald once at Princeton Seminary when he was there for some research, although I doubt he would remember.
• Scott Jackson reflects on that tricky business called “truth.”
• Might as well put this in the theology category: bad news for the future of American academics, especially in the humanities.
• Another Collin Cornell twofer: the problem of objectification in biblical and theological language, and an address to students.
• Bobby Grow asks: “What is Classical Theism?: And what impact does this have on the American Church?”
• Christian Collins-Winn, new chair of the biblical and theological studies department at Bethel University, spoke at the university’s first chapel service of this academic year. He used this opportunity to offer reflections on what the pietist tradition has to offer us as we think about what it means to live together in a society (George Costanza will be stuck in my head all weekend now…). The talk was made public in the form of a blog post: “Pietism and Civil Discourse”

“Look, A White!”

These two posts from the Women In Theology blog are such good combinations of theology and politics (even if the former goes largely unstated) that I just had to give them their own categories. The primary title of each is that of this section: “Look, A White!” And they are kind enough to provide editions for both Ann Romney and Mitt Romney. Enjoy!

==================================
Follow @WTravisMcMaken