• Christianity

    Caner says, “I never signed it.”

    Dr. Ergun Caner is the President of Liberty Theological Seminary, a school founded by the late Dr. Jerry Falwell. Many were surprised to see his name among the charter signatories of “An Evangelical Manifesto.” He writes, ‘In recent days, I became aware that my name is on the list of “Charter Signatories” for the Evangelical Manifesto (EM). ‘There is only one problem: I never signed it.

  • Theology/Bible

    Caners vs. Calvinism (part 2)

    I noticed this morning that there is a new entry on Ergun Caner’s blog in which he defines hyper-Calvinism. I guess he felt compelled to define this term since he keeps referring to James White as a hyper-Calvinist. Caner defines a hyper-Calvinist as having two characteristics: (1) hyper-Calvinists believe in “reprobation” and (2) I quote, “If anyone believes that there is even the possibility of an infant (’non-elect’) going to hell, that would be clear hyper Calvinism.” I don’t understand why Caner defines hyper-Calvinism this way. Historically, hyper-Calvinism has been marked by two characteristics: (1) a refusal to offer the gospel to all without distinction, and (2) a minimization of…

  • Theology/Bible

    Caners vs. Calvinism

    I was looking forward to hearing the debate over Calvinism that was to take place in Lynchburg, Virginia this month. Ergun and Emir Caner were set to take on Tom Ascol and James White on the perennial evangelical dispute over the biblical doctrines of Grace. The Caners were going to argue against the Calvinist position, and Ascol and White were to argue in favor of it. Sadly, the debate has been cancelled just two weeks before the event was to take place. Apparently, the debate moderator changed the terms of the debate without getting permission from both sides to do so. This was most unfortunate as the two sides went…

  • Christianity,  Culture,  Theology/Bible

    Is “Systemic Racism” a Useful Category for Christians to Use?

    I’ve been watching the misadventures of Matthew Franck’s insightful article criticizing the concept of systemic racism. It originally appeared for two hours yesterday morning at Newsweek online. Apparently the opinion editor fought to have it posted, but the editor-in-chief swooped in to remove it without explanation. Franck explains the behind-the-scenes chicanery at The Public Discourse where the full article is now posted. It’s not encouraging. Is the concept of systemic racism so brittle that it can’t be scrutinized? Or are Newsweek editors too afraid to allow a thoughtful piece questioning the new orthodoxy? Who knows? In any case, it’s a shame that Newsweek would not stand by Franck’s column because…

  • #NeverTrump,  Politics

    #NeverTrump has only just started

    Well, the verdict is in. Donald Trump is officially the presumptive GOP nominee for president of the United States. Trump’s decisive victory in Indiana and Senator Ted Cruz’s withdrawal from the race have all but assured that Trump will acquire the 1,237 delegates he needs to secure the nomination on the first ballot at the GOP convention next summer. Unless you’re Joe Scarborough, you probably didn’t see this coming when the primaries began. But here we are. I have made no secret of the fact that I am a #NeverTrump guy. If you want to know my reasoning behind this, you can read it here. What I want to offer…

  • News

    Facebook Fraud

    Did you know that it is possible to purchase Facebook likes? There’s a legal way and an illegal way to do this, but it turns out that neither of them actually help generate real interest in your site. The video above is very illuminating. The interwebs are filled with chicanery.

  • Politics

    Stupak: Duped or Caved?

    The longer I look at this the worse it looks. The executive order that Stupak is relying on to bar federal funding for abortion clearly isn’t going to work. As Bill Burck and Dana Perino have noted, “Executive orders have the force of law only within the executive branch and only to the extent they are consistent with legislation.  Stupak believes that the Senate bill does not do enough to prohibit the use of federal funds; what he apparently does not realize is that the executive order can do no more to prohibit use of federal funds for abortion than the Senate bill does.” Could Stupak really have been duped…

  • Theology/Bible

    Stupak to Vote “Yes,” HCR Will Pass

    Bart Stupak has just announced that he will vote in favor of healthcare reform. He will do so on the basis of a promise from President Obama to sign an executive order barring federal funding of abortion. You can read the executive order here. I’ve read the executive order. I’m no lawyer, but the order does appear to uphold the standards of the Hyde Amendment—a legislative provision barring the use of federal funds to pay for abortions. I think that is a good thing, but I am still not satisfied with this agreement. An executive order only lasts as long as the sitting president’s tenure and resolve to keep it…

  • Book Reviews,  Politics

    The Baptist Perspective on Religious Liberty

    I’ve just begun reading a new release from Broadman and Holman, First Freedom: The Baptist Perspective on Religious Liberty. The book is a collection of papers that were read at the 2005 Baptist Distinctives Conference held at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. Among the contributors are Russell Moore, Richard Land, and Paige Patterson. I just finished Russell Moore’s contribution, and it is provocative to say the least. It’s titled, “Conservative Christians in an Era of Christian Conservatives.” Here’s a snippet in which he takes a whack at the emerging church:

  • Theology/Bible

    Ledbetter on Baptists and Calvinism

    Tammi Reed Ledbetter is bringing Southern Baptists up to speed on the ongoing debates over Calvinism in the Southern Baptist Convention. In a pair of very fair articles, she talks about the cancellation of the debate that was to have taken place on October 16 in Lynchburg, Virginia (see my previous posts), and she outlines the theological and historical points of contention that exist between Calvinistic and non-Calvinistic Baptists. Calvinism debate cancelled, but serious discussion still resulted Baptists & Calvinism: Event was called off, but not the debate I have been blogging about this controversy for the last several days, and I have found these two articles to be very…