After my two posts on last week’s ETS meeting, some readers have asked if there is any available audio from the sessions. Yes, there is audio, but unfortunately it’s not free. All of the presentations are available for download (over 620 of them!), but listed below are some of the sessions related to the conference theme—inerrancy. If you’re already planning to buy the Five Views book with Mohler and Enns, some of these papers will probably be superfluous. Nevertheless, the panel discussion with the direct interaction between Mohler and Enns is very interesting. See below.
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ETS inerrancy debate featured in “The Economist”
The most recent print edition of The Economist features an article on the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) and the controversy about inerrancy at its meeting last week. Among other things, the article portrays the ETS discussions as an intramural debate among a dying breed of Christians—a discussion that has no relevance to the modern world, much less to the droves of young people who are leaving the evangelical faith of their parents.
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Understanding the Minister’s Housing Allowance
You may have heard the news over the weekend that a federal judge has ruled that an IRS exemption giving clergy tax-free housing allowances is unconstitutional. In the wake of this ruling, a lot of people have been asking why this exemption exists in the first place. Joe Carter has the best analysis that I’ve seen on the history and the rationale for the ministerial housing allowance. He notes that clergy are not the only ones who have received such exemptions.
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Jesus and the Same-Sex Marriage Debate
Andrew Walker has a very helpful article over at The Federalist titled “Jesus and the Same-sex Marriage Debate.” In it he argues that the sexual revolutionaries have been trying to get Jesus on the side of gay marriage by reinterpreting the biblical text. He writes, Perhaps the most common argument issues from silence: Jesus never mentions homosexuality or same-sex marriage; therefore, he must be for it. But this argument from silence presents another set of troubling conclusions. Namely, that whatever Jesus didn’t specifically address, he must endorse. If we accept this contorted logic, Jesus must also support human trafficking because he never spoke out against it. Failing to withstand even…
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Some reflections on the 65th annual meeting of ETS
Yesterday wrapped up the 65th annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) in Baltimore, Maryland. For those of you who don’t know, ETS is a society of theologians and biblical scholars who are dedicated to biblical inerrancy and a belief in the Trinity. At the annual meeting, members come together to present academic papers, meet with publishers, and catch up with old friends. What follows are some random reflections about this year’s meeting. 1. It’s been about five years now since Pete Enns left Westminster Theological Seminary because of a conflict about his views on scripture. Upon his departure, he and WTS issued a joint statement saying that “his…
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Albert Mohler on JFK, C. S. Lewis, and Aldous Huxley
As many of you know, today is the fiftieth anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. You may also know that on this very same day 50 years ago, both C. S. Lewis and Aldous Huxley died as well. Three very significant but very different lives ended at nearly the same moment, and we are still living with their enormous legacies today. Albert Mohler has a fascinating discussion of all three of them, explaining that President Kennedy was a “cultural humanist,” Aldous Huxley an “ideological humanist,” and C. S. Lewis a “Christian thinker.” The discussion is wide-ranging, and I commend it to you. Download it here, or listen…
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Ted Turner says he does not want to go to hell
CNN has a fascinating and wide-ranging feature on Ted Turner today. Among other things, it says that Turner has grown more reflective about his mortality in his later years. Turner even confesses that he doesn’t want to go to hell. It’s a provocative piece in many ways. Here’s an excerpt: Even though he is a son of the Bible Belt, Ted Turner and God haven’t been on the best of terms. Despite his strong stance against religion in the past, he’s not an atheist. He’s an agnostic, trying to make sense of it all — his way. He revised the Ten Commandments, which he considered outdated, coming up instead with…
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Trailer for new movie about Noah and the flood
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“The Bible’s Big Story” by Jim Hamilton
Jim Hamilton is a prolific author. His commentaries and monographs on scripture are serving the church and enriching the field of biblical theology. Because of this work, most readers know Hamilton as a scholar. Few readers, however, know that he is also a pastor, a father, and a poet. But indeed he wears all of those hats, and that is why one of his most recent works is an excellent little book for children titled The Bible’s Big Story: Salvation History for Kids.
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Mothers tell their abortion stories
Sunday’s New York Magazine features testimonials from twenty-six women who have had their unborn children aborted. The stories are raw and revealing. These are not stories of feminist liberation and power. They are the stories of women who have pangs of conscience over what they have done. Some of them have muddled through the aftermath by suppressing their consciences. One woman even says, “There’s no room to talk about being unsure.” Other women aren’t able to pretend and are obviously living with a heavy burden of grief and regret. The first story is from a 19-year old named Nicole (pictured at right). She writes,