Theology

The GOP Shutdown: Democracy in Action

Let me preface this by saying that this is going to be a short post. You might have noticed that I have been posting a bit less frequently (but probably you did not notice anything at all). Here are the details, but the short version is that I am trying to honor the grace and patience of my editor. Still, I do political theology, so I feel obliged to make a brief observation about the government shutdown. My point is more philosophical than theological (Jerusalem and Athens have always been “passionate” lovers, in every sense of that word, no matter what Tertullian says). If you are looking for a partisan rant about how the GOP is obstructing the democratic process, expect to be disappointed, because I don’t think they are obstructing democracy at all. I think the government shutdown is democracy in action.

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Jonathan Edwards was a Sophiologist, Part 3

The genius of sophiology is the recognition that God and creation are not mutually exclusive. Do not take that as a ringing endorsement. A reasonable person can – and should! – be able to appreciate the genius of those she disagrees with. Bulgakov was an avowed panentheist. I am not. I think the very idea of panentheism inadvertently supports the dualistic cosmology it intends to overcome, but that argument will have to wait. My point here is to compare Bulgakov and Edwards.

Both of them viewed creation as an emanation of the divine life, God’s delight in Godself apprehended as if it were an other to Godself. We can best get at this idea by following Bulgakov’s take on the Christian view that God created ex nihilo – out of nothing. Continue reading “Jonathan Edwards was a Sophiologist, Part 3”

Jonathan Edwards is a Sophiologist (Part 2)

Jonathan Edwards (via Wikimedia Commons)

In my last post I briefly explained that I have been buried by an invited chapter for a book that takes an ecumenical approach to the theology of Jonathan Edwards.

This is Part 2 of what is at least a three-part series. I have been playing with my argument a bit. The information is all there. I could argue my point well over a beer. The struggle I have been having is putting it all on paper in a way that the reader can easily follow (especially if the reader does not know Edwards/Bulgakov well). I sometimes find that when I am trying to suss out an argument, putting it in blog form helps. So here you go. Snippets from my draft, abridged and somewhat edited Remember, draft! You will find silly typos. Be nice.

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Jonathan Edwards is a Sophiologist (Part 1, apparently)

The blog has taken a back seat over the past few weeks to an essay ~~that’s kicking my butt~~ that I’m working on. I’m making good progress and thanking God for generous editor extensions, but I find that in the thick of a complex academic argument, it can help to step back and explain to others, in plain speech, what I’m trying to say. A blogged a bit about this project a few months back when I noted the paucity of Orthodox interest in Jonathan Edwards. At the time, I was not ready to say out loud what my thesis was. Now I am. Are you ready?

Jonathan Edwards was a sophiologist.

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Writing on Edwards with ADD: A Brief Update

About three years ago, I was diagnosed with ADD. This explains pretty much my entire childhood and most of my adult life (it also explains why I tend to insert a lot of parenthetical remarks into everything I write). I have an essay on Jonathan Edwards that I need to submit to the editor in a few days, and I have been experimenting with a new, ADD-friendly, way to write my paper.

I have used Scrivener for a while, but I do not think I have used it in quite the way it was intended. Scrivener is word processing software that is built for big projects, particularly those which tend to be written in bits and pieces, but I have used it mostly as a standard word processor. I would outline my basic argument, move a couple of things around, and then export immediately into Pages (because Word sucks) and start formally drafting. Continue reading “Writing on Edwards with ADD: A Brief Update”

The Manliest Church of All? – My Response to Frederica Mathewes-Green

Kh. Frederica Mathewes-Green strikes me as a sincere and eloquent writer. I respect her, but I do not always agree with her. This is one of those times. A Facebook friend posted a link to a well-trafficked article in which Mathewes-Green explains why Orthodoxy is especially attractive to men. Rather than speculate about why men might like the Orthodox Church, she asks them, and then arranges their answers topically. But her suggestions for why Orthodoxy might appeal to men are illogical, silly, dangerous to the heart of Orthodoxy, and maybe even a little bit sinful.

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