Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

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

…or, The Past Fortnight in the Theoblogosphere.

So, I seems to be on a mini-series role around here lately. First, I did the series on Helmut Gollwitzer and theological engagement with the Marxist criticism of religion. Now I’ve undertaken one on baptism and ecclesiology in patristic North Africa. This series was prompted by David Congdon’s recent post, Christological Unity and Pneumatological Plurality: A Theological Reflection on the Church, so be sure to check that out.

Now, here’s some of what went on in the rest of the theo-blogosphere:

• “Grad Student Deconstructs Take-Out Menu” - A sad and cautionary tale about the dangers of graduate school. A cognate danger would beset the theological student who dares to attend a church for regular worship. Sometimes it is difficult to turn off one’s critical cognitive processes.
• “Reserving the Sacrament” - Jason Ingalls offers one of the more convincing arguments for reserving the sacrament that I’ve seen. Not that I’m convinced, of course.
• “Walk On: A Guide to Exiting From Oneness Pentecostalism” - Brian LePort offers an extensive series filled with reflection born of personal experience. It will be an interesting read for anyone who has gone throw a shift in theological and ecclesial commitments.
• “Off the shelf: three more types of reading” - Another vlog from Ben Myers. In this installment, Ben discusses whether there is anything in the notion that one can be a better writer when living in the tropics, and declares against this position: when it’s hot, all you can do is be lazy. This is why I lock myself in the air conditioned library during the summer.
• “Placing T. F. Torrance in His ‘Critical Realistic’ Context” - Bobby Grow provides series of posts from Myk Habets on TF Torrance’s theology, positioned in response to some criticisms from Colin Gunton.
• “When did evangelicalism start to go wrong (right)?” - Roger Olson locates the fundamental shift in the ‘battle for the Bible’ that occurred in the 1970s. Symbolically speaking, it was perhaps – as Olson notes – the firing of Carl Henry as a guest writer at Christianity Today, a magazine he c-founded.
• “Tips for the Th.M. – Part 17” - Marc Cortez links to a post here at DET on analyzing theological texts.
• “Podcast Sermons: Preaching out of Place?” - Jon Coutts wonders about the importance of kerygmatic context in preaching.

Finally, if all this was not enough to keep you busy over the weekend, I’ve added to the recommended reading list.

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