Keller's apology for the faith

Because most of my writing is addressed to people who are already Christians, I've not taken much interest in apologetics, which is aimed at sceptics and at those considering Christianity for the first time. Too often apologists assume they can argue people into the faith, whereas in my experience converts have come to Christ for deeply-felt personal reasons and out of a sense of God's leading in their lives. For this reason—along with having to budget my time while I was still teaching—I allowed this book to pass me by when it first appeared in 2008: Timothy Keller, The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism. Apologetics is someone else's business, I implicitly figured. However, only months after the author's passing, I have finally read the book, and I can now affirm that it is beautiful in virtually every way and a most satisfying read.

Remembering the life of a loving mother

A tribute to my late mother has been published in Christian Courier: Jane Koyzis (1931-2023). Trying to summarize a life lived for 91 years is no easy feat, and there is so much more that I could say about her. But here is a brief excerpt from my column:

One of my fondest memories is of my mother sitting on the double bed in the master bedroom, surrounded by her children, and reading to us from J. B. Phillips’ New Testament paraphrase. Her love of God was so infectious that her faith became second nature to her children.

Read the entire article here.

July newsletter posted

My Global Scholars newsletter for July is now posted here. Among the items included are mentoring opportunities with which I've been blessed in recent years, the last meeting of a five-week online course for Brazil, the final instalment of a series on political ideologies, and an appreciation of the late Tim Keller. Thanks to everyone for your support for my work.

Letters from Moscow: afterword

Peter Schuurman, head of Global Scholars Canada, has posted an account of last month's event in Oakville, Ontario, including my own remarks: Letters from Moscow: The Opening and Closing of Russia, a Thousand Year History. From the introduction:

What is happening in Russia that it would sacrifice its young men, military budget, Ukrainian relatives, and Western relations in an attack on Ukraine? Global Scholars Canada asked a few of its scholars and some academic friends to weigh in on the larger historical, political, and ecclesiastical context behind the war that continues to rage in eastern Ukraine.

Although there is supposed to be a video of this event, it appears not to have been posted yet. When it is, I will link to it here.

Canada's unworn crown

Christian Courier has posted my most recent column, titled, Canada's unworn crown. Here is an excerpt:

As I watched the King and his consort receive their crowns, my first thought was how uncomfortable they looked. Charles received St. Edward’s Crown, made for his predecessor, Charles II, in 1661. Because it weighs 2.07 kilograms, it could not but place undue stress on our sovereign’s 74-year-old neck. He may need physiotherapy for the next little while as he recovers from the ordeal.

My second thought was how different the coronation was from the installation of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands ten years ago. Since 1948, a Dutch monarch has served, not for life, but until retirement after several decades at the helm, leaving the throne to her heir. This precedent, set by Queen Wilhelmina, has now been followed by Spanish and Belgian monarchs, and even by Pope Benedict XVI. At Willem-Alexander’s installation, the Crown was certainly present in the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam, but at no time did it rest upon his head – much to his relief, I’m sure.

Read the entire article here.

Beyond liberalism

Since the middle of last year, I have been writing a series on political ideologies for the Politics Network of UCCF: The Christian Unions in the United Kingdom. Today the final instalment in this series is posted: Beyond liberalism. Recognizing that liberalism has failed to account for the true complexity of human society, especially the significant place of communities of all kinds,

has led many observers to abandon liberalism as an account of our society and to seek something different—something truer to reality. But post-liberals, as we might label them, are a diverse lot. The mere fact of moving beyond liberalism tells us nothing of a final destination. Some may embrace a form of socialism or even Marxism. Others may adhere to conservatism, although even the conservative label encompasses a variety of often mutually incompatible stances. Others may move towards a form of political authoritarianism, perhaps based on a traditional religious worldview, as in, for example, Catholic integralism.

Read the entire article here.

One-hundred years of Machen’s Christianity and Liberalism

Already a century ago, many Christians were noticing a seemingly subtle shift in the message issuing from Protestant church pulpits—a shift away from the gospel message and towards a focus on the religious experience of the individual person. This prompted one Presbyterian leader, John Gresham Machen (1881-1936), to write a book that remains relevant today. Here are my thoughts on One-hundred years of Machen’s Christianity and Liberalism, posted at Kuyperian Commentary. An excerpt:

During the 19th century, Princeton Seminary, founded in 1812, was a bastion of Reformed orthodoxy and remained so into the first three decades of the 20th. Nevertheless, by the turn of that century, the supporting denomination, the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (PCUSA), was already in the process of changing, and not for the better. Pulpits were increasingly occupied by ministers whose preaching was more influenced by the ideologies of the day than by sound biblical interpretation. The major ideology of the day was scientism, the conviction that the only genuine form of knowledge was that accessible by the scientific method. Other claims to knowledge were to be greeted by a general posture of scepticism. Even Scripture and the doctrines of the Christian faith must be subjected to the canons of science, which in turn were thought to determine what we can and cannot accept of that faith. Claims to miracles, for example, cannot be scientifically vindicated and must thus be relegated to the status of primitive myths. All that remains of Christianity is its supposed ethical core.

Read the entire article here.

Tim Keller's faithful witness

I had intended to write sooner about pastor and author Tim Keller (1950-2023), whose passing was quickly followed two days later by my own mother's death. Now Christian Courier has just posted an article I wrote about him. It takes the form of a tribute and expression of personal gratitude: Tim Keller's faithful witness. An excerpt:

Born in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in 1950, Keller grew up in a Lutheran congregation but came to a fuller knowledge of the Christian faith while studying at Bucknell University through InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. With his life now redirected towards serving God’s kingdom, Keller went on to attend Gordon-Conwell Seminary in Massachusetts and Westminster Seminary in Philadelphia. He was ordained a minister in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), a confessional Reformed denomination currently observing its 50^th anniversary.

After serving as pastor of a small congregation in Virginia, the PCA in 1989 asked him to start and lead a church plant in America’s largest city. Of course, New York is not a heavily churched community, and trying to maintain a Christian ministry in the heart of a secular urban centre certainly looked to be an uphill battle. Nevertheless, we know that with God nothing is impossible, and he used Keller to grow a vibrant church community in an unlikely setting. Beginning with only 50 people, by the end of 1989, attendance had grown to 250.

 Read the entire article here.

KLC interview

In April Jason Estopinal and I interviewed Hannah Nation, who edited the book, Faithful Disobedience: Writings on Church and State from a Chinese House Church Movement. The podcast has now been posted at the Kirby Laing Centre website: Learning from the Chinese Church Today with Hannah Nation. Indeed, we have much to learn from our brothers and sisters in a country that may one day become the global centre of Christianity.

June newsletter posted

I have now posted my Global Scholars newsletter for June. Among its contents: my recently completed series on Israel's precarious democracy, a new distance course for Brazil, a complete draft of my Genevan Psalter project, and a panel discussion on Russia sponsored by Global Scholars Canada. As always, thank you for your support for my work.

Israel's precarious democracy

My recent series on Israel's precarious democracy is complete. Here are all four parts:

1. Historical and demographic background
2. Institutional factors
3. Immigration and the Law of Return
4. Options for the future

There are undoubtedly factors that I have neglected to take into account, and I may come back to these at some point. But for now I have tried to set forth the basic contours of one of the most difficult political issues, which thus far has eluded all attempts at settlement, and to point to two necessary preconditions for moving forward.

Israel's precarious democracy, 4: options for the future

In the earlier instalments of this series, we discussed the historical, demographic, and institutional factors that condition the Israeli polity, along with the complicating factors of immigration and the 1950 Law of Return. All of these combine to make for a democratic system that is precarious at best, preventing domestic stability and a coming to terms with Israel's neighbours. In this final instalment, I will survey the options that the country's government could pursue, while recognizing that all of them bring dangers to its status as a Jewish state. I assume that the current status quo is unjust, but correcting this injustice will not come easily in any case, and each option threatens in a different way to worsen Israel's relations with its neighbours and to contribute further to domestic instability.

Israel's precarious democracy, 3: immigration and the Law of Return

Political stability requires a stable population living within a well-defined territory. The population should have long roots in the territory and share a strong enough sense of solidarity to enable people to work together for common purposes. They should share traditions and customs and a love for the land in which their forebears have lived for generations. Blessed with these preconditions, diverse peoples can become a nation, taking pride in their common history, with a determination to bequeath to their children what they have inherited from their ancestors. Once there is a sense of common nationhood, a people can develop political institutions embodying self-government, their durability secured by general agreement on the rules of the game. 

Pittsburgh pilgrimage

My monthly column has been posted at Christian Courier's website: Pittsburgh pilgrimage. Here is an excerpt:

In late February I travelled for work purposes for the first time since the pandemic began three years ago. My travels took me to the Pittsburgh area where I spoke at two Christian institutions of higher education. The first was Trinity School for Ministry in Ambridge, Pennsylvania, where a good friend of mine, Bill Witt, teaches. Trinity is an independent Anglican seminary that trains prospective clergy in several jurisdictions, including the largest Anglican provinces in Africa. My first lecture was on ideology and idolatry, in which I drew from my first book.

Read the entire article here.

Democratism: Making Too Much of a Good Thing

Here is the last-but-one instalment of my series with the Politics Network of UCCF: The Christian Unions: Democratism: Making Too Much of a Good Thing. Here's an excerpt:

Our democracies, in other words, are complicated systems in which several institutions counterbalance each other, providing for multiple eyes vetting policy proposals for the sake of the public good.

Nevertheless, for some people this is not enough. They want to see as many offices as possible subject to election and a clear voice of the people unfiltered by mechanisms put in place to check it. Here is where democratism as an ideology enters the picture.

‘Letters from Moscow’: The Opening and Closing of Russia

On saturday, 10 June, I will be participating in an event taking place at Faith Baptist Church in Oakville, Ontario, Canada: ‘Letters from Moscow’: The Opening and Closing of Russia. It is sponsored by Global Scholars Canada, the organization with which I am affiliated. Here's the description:

Global Scholars Canada’s original scholars, Drs. Wendy and Adrian Helleman lead the Symposium with their now available ‘Letters from Moscow’ (Moscow Messages); an account of their time teaching at Moscow State University (pictured) in the mid-1990s. The letters are rich and inquisitive, poignant in their capture of a brief period where new freedoms and openness post-perestroika, seemed possible.

Israel's precarious democracy, 2: institutional factors

In part 1, we covered the historical and demographic elements forming the unique context of Israel's politics. Here I want to discuss some of the institutional factors that play a role in Israel today.

First, Israel has no constitution. Well, not exactly. Like every country, Israel has a constitution in the sense of an empirical arrangement of political institutions relating to each other in customary and predictable ways. In this respect its constitution is similar to those of the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and nine of Canada's provinces. But Israel has no written constitution, that is, a document that establishes in normative fashion the institutions and offices that govern Israel. There is no equivalent to the Constitution of the United States, which describes itself as "the supreme law of the land," taking priority over ordinary statutory laws. This has complicated Israel's domestic politics, including Prime Minister Netanyahu's recent efforts to rein in what he sees as an overreaching judiciary.

Israel's precarious democracy, 1: historical and demographic background

This year Israel celebrates 75 years as an independent state. It was born in the wake of the Holocaust, as large numbers of Jewish refugees from nazi-occupied Europe fled to what was then the British League of Nations Mandate of Palestine. Britain had acquired Palestine in December 1917, when Lieutenant General Sir Edmund Allenby captured Jerusalem from the Ottoman Turks during the Great War. By then the nascent Zionist movement was already bringing Jewish immigrants from Europe into the territory. The previous month, the British government had issued the Balfour Declaration, named for Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour, which stated:

His Majesty's Government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.

During the three decades in which Great Britain controlled Palestine, the government in London discovered that the influx of Jewish settlers from Europe was not popular with its Arab inhabitants and attempted, rather too late, to curtail immigration. However, Jewish immigrants found ways to evade British efforts to stem the tide. After the end of the Second World War, survivors of the Holocaust streamed into Palestine, as Britain was preparing to vacate the territory.

Jane Koyzis (1931-2023)

Jane Marie Korpinen Koyzis has died at age 91 in North Andover, Massachusetts. A deeply compassionate and self-giving wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, she will be sorely missed by those she has left behind. She was born in Jackson, Michigan, the second daughter of Frances Marie Hyder and Eino Justus Korpinen, and had colonial American, German, and Finnish roots.

As an adolescent, she came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ through the influence of a childhood friend and her family's local church congregation. Soon thereafter, she attended the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago where she met her husband of 66 years, Theodore Koyzis (1928-2020) of Cyprus. Together they raised six children, pouring their heart and soul into them during their long residence in Wheaton, Illinois, bringing them to church on Sundays and supporting them in their school-related and extracurricular activities. She had a sharp intellect, was an avid reader, and was an invaluable partner to her husband in their market research business. During her long life, Jane developed considerable wisdom in her understanding of human relationships and was always her children's go-to person when they needed advice or just a listening ear. She prayed with her children when putting them to bed and read to them from the Bible. She had a beautiful singing voice and often sang while working around the house, bequeathing her musical talents to many of her descendants.

May newsletter posted

I have now posted my Global Scholars newsletter for May, containing two items of good news, one relating to my book and another to my work with the Genevan Psalter, along with an interview on the church in China, and a forthcoming remote course for Brazil. Thank you for your financial and prayer support for my work.

Raskolnikov and Resurrection

Christian Courier has just posted my April column: Raskolnikov and Resurrection, with this subtitle: "The greatest of literature points us to the One who was raised from the dead that we too might live eternally." Here is an excerpt:

Many years ago, when I was still a graduate student, I decided to read some of the major Russian novels of the 19th and 20th centuries. It’s taken me decades, but I finally got to Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment (1866). The story is set in the imperial capital of St. Petersburg. Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov has recently abandoned his university studies and is living hand to mouth in a rented room. Intellectually gifted, he is subject to frequent bouts of fever and depression.

Read the entire article here.

Nationalism: the need to belong

My series with the Politics Network of UCCF: The Christian Unions in the United Kingdom continues with this piece: Nationalism: the need to belong. An excerpt:

In principle we can recognize the legitimacy of national communities, however we define them. However, it is possible to make too much of our nation. And when we do so, we run the risk of idolizing it, thereby embracing nationalism as an ideology. In Cyprus, the partisans of enosis, or union with Greece, were so persuaded of their cause that they were willing to sacrifice the lives of those who stood in their way, including Turkish Cypriots and the less persuaded Greek Cypriots. Because their efforts led eventually to my paternal relatives losing their homes and becoming refugees in their own country, I have long been exceedingly wary of even a hint of nationalism, especially the ethnic variety. I dislike seeing the flag of Greece flying outside Orthodox church buildings in Cyprus because it represents a cause that disturbed the peace of the island and uprooted its people.

The series continues with a piece on democratism in June and concludes with one on post-liberalism in July.

April newsletter posted

I have just posted my April newsletter, with links to a wonderful Lutheran resurrection hymn, a revised table of contents for my next book, the 20th anniversary of this blog, and a new way for Canadians to contribute financially to my work.

The office of citizen

I have written a monthly column for Christian Courier since 1990. The latest instalment has been posted: The office of citizen. Here is a brief excerpt:

As God has created us in his image, he calls us to a variety of authoritative offices related to the various differentiated communities of which we are part. One of these is citizenship in our respective political communities. I myself was born an American citizen, although in adulthood I took an oath to our late Queen, her heirs, and successors and became a Canadian citizen.

Because citizenship is such an important office, with implications for us and our neighbours, we Christians ought to reflect on the obligations it imposes on us.

Read the entire article here.

'Citizenship Without Illusions': update

It's been two months since I reported on my contract with IVP Academic to write a third book, provisionally titled, "Citizenship Without Illusions." It's time for an update. By the start of this calendar year I had already written three chapters but in a different format than the one I am working with now. Since signing the contract, I have written most of seven chapters, with two more to go. The table of contents will look something like this:

Asbury em português

A Brazilian online resource called Gospel+ has reported on my recent commentary on the Asbury University revival: Renomado teólogo diz que frutos de Asbury só serão provados com “o tempo”. Translated into English, the title reads: Renowned theologian says Asbury's fruits will only be proven with "time". Of course, while I must protest that I am neither renowned nor a theologian, I appreciate that the writers have taken the time to read my original post on the subject.

March newsletter posted

I have now posted my Global Scholars Canada newsletter for March, including news about the progress of my book, a new online article on conservatism, and a review of a new metrical psalter.

Asbury's aftermath: weighing revival

The New York Post is covering the revival that recently broke out at Asbury University in Wilmore, Kentucky: How an ‘itchy sweater’ sparked a new Christian revival at a Kentucky university. Not having experienced this event first-hand, I am reluctant to comment on it. I will indicate that, by temperament and conviction, I am not a partisan of revivalism, a phenomenon often associated with emotional manipulation and a pelagian conception of salvation based less on God's redeeming work through Jesus Christ and more on my decision for Christ. I wrote in some detail about this last year: The altar call: good or bad? I am persuaded that it is better to emphasize, not the intensity of my response to God's call, but to focus instead on the ordinary means of grace that come to us through word and sacrament through regular church attendance.

That said, I would not wish prematurely to dismiss what has been happening amongst the young people at Asbury. Anything that moves the current generation to greater fervour and dedication to the kingdom of God must be seen as a manifestation of the work of the Holy Spirit, and for that we should give thanks. Youthful energy and enthusiasm can be infectious, and having taught and grown to love this age group for thirty years, I can testify that I am not immune to this. However, the test will come with time as we see how all this plays out in their lives over the long term. At present we are at the stage of the sower sowing the seeds (Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23). Inevitably, some will fall away after the enthusiasms ebb, but others will persevere throughout the course of their lives, trusting in God's saving grace and living in gratitude and obedience to his will. May God multiply the numbers of those in the latter category.

Conservatism: tradition as norm

The latest of my series of articles for the Politics Network of UCCF: The Christian Unions in the United Kingdom has now appeared. The title is Conservatism: tradition as norm. Here is an excerpt:

Despite attempts to define a “true conservatism,” the phenomenon is so slippery as to elude such efforts. While liberals and socialists boast guiding principles in their efforts to govern and improve their societies, conservatives lack something comparable. What unites conservatives is less a substantive set of principles than an attachment to tradition. Which tradition? Well, their own, whatever that might happen to be.

Obviously, every society has its traditions which it passes down to future generations through various means. Although we have experienced revolutions in technology and social mores over the centuries, we still for the most part live within a civilization shaped in countless ways by our forebears. We expect that people will live up to shared social norms when, say, eating in a restaurant, attending a concert, or meeting a new person. Churches, workplace communities, amateur football clubs, theatre troupes, and so forth all have standards to which members must conform. These are informed by traditions inherited from the past.

But what happens when our traditions conflict with each other?

Read the entire article to find out.

CPJ international relations discussion

On 7 February, I participated in a discussion with James W. Skillen on the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine, moderated by Calvin University Professor Tracy Kuperus. This was part of a board meeting of the Center for Public Justice. You can view the discussion below:

February newsletter posted

I have just posted my Global Scholars Canada newsletter for February, which this month includes news about my book contract and my recent travels to the Pittsburgh area to deliver three addresses at two educational institutions.

Trinity and Geneva: travels in western PA

Much of last week I spent in the Pittsburgh area speaking at two educational institutions. The first was Trinity School for Ministry in Ambridge. I had known of this institution for a long time, because my good friend William G. Witt teaches systematic theology and ethics there. I spoke on two subjects. The first took place at the Dean's Hour on wednesday morning, 15 February. It was about "Ideology and Idolatry," covering the basics of my first book, Political Visions and Illusions, with a preview of what is coming in my third book. My second talk was on metrical psalmody, which you can read about here. The second person responsible for my visit was the new Dean President, Bryan Hollon, who had heard me speak five years ago at Malone University in Canton, Ohio.

'A United Canada'

Maintaining a unified Canada over such long distances and scattered populations has always been a difficult proposition. Our national unity narrative has now encountered one more plot twist with Alberta's passage of its Sovereignty Act: 'A United Canada': New Act in Alberta creates sovereignty without independence. An excerpt from the article in Christian Courier:

Since our own rebellions of 1837, Canada has been at peace, although national unity has always been a precarious enterprise. For most of our history, the major issue has been linguistic, with French-speaking Québec being the most obvious candidate for separating from the rest of the country.

But now the government of Alberta, led by United Conservative Party Premier Danielle Smith, has passed something that smacks of René Levesque’s paradoxical 43-year-old goal of sovereignty-association: Alberta Sovereignty within a United Canada Act. According to the provincial government’s website, “The act allows Alberta to fight harmful federal laws and defend the constitutional federal-provincial division of powers.” Among other things, it allows Alberta’s legislature to debate and pass a motion to the effect that a particular federal policy violates the constitution or harms Alberta in some way. Once the legislature has approved such a motion, it will turn the matter over to the provincial cabinet to take appropriate action.

Read the entire article here.

MAID and the meaning of suffering

Christian Courier has published my most recent column, titled, MAID and the meaning of suffering, MAID standing for "Medical Assistance in Dying." An excerpt:

We live in confused times. The Government of Canada hosts two websites standing in tension with each other. The first is titled, “Preventing suicide: Warning signs and how to help.” It lists the phone numbers of crisis centres and offers advice for helping those at risk. It then lists the websites of other agencies and of the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention. So far so good.

The second website is titled, “Medical assistance in dying,” otherwise known by its acronym MAID. It describes the amendments to the Criminal Code mandated by the Supreme Court’s Carter decision (2015) permitting assisted suicide. It then proceeds to tell us who can offer this service to those wishing to end their earthly journeys.

It is difficult to know what to make of such an obvious contradiction. On the one hand, Ottawa is reaching out to save lives. On the other, it appears to facilitate the taking of life. Which is it?

Read the entire article here.

Rethinking NATO's role

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, known as NATO (OTAN in French), is arguably the most successful military alliance in history. Founded in 1949, it brought together Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the United States into a defence pact aimed primarily at containing the Soviet Union. At the end of the Second World War, Moscow had moved into the heart of Europe, occupying a large swathe of territory extending from the Baltic to the Black Seas, stopping short of the Mediterranean. In the countries it occupied, it set up communist governments and made them clients of the Soviet Union.

'Citizenship Without Illusions': contract signed and book forthcoming

I am pleased to report that on 20 January I signed a contract with InterVarsity Press, publisher of my first book, Political Visions and Illusions, to write a new book under the provisional title, "Citizenship Without Illusions." In effect, this new work is a sequel to the earlier one, and I plan to draw out some of its practical implications for ordinary Christians wishing to live out their citizenship in a way that honours God and serves their neighbours. The idea for this book was suggested to me by my good friend Bruce Ashford in a phone conversation a few years ago, and I decided to take it up. Like my first two books, this too grows out of three decades of teaching political science to undergraduate students at a Christian university here in Canada.

An American virus infects Brazil: Christian Courier

Christian Courier has picked up my recent post on the copy-cat uprising in Brasília earlier this month: An American virus infects Brazil. An excerpt:

Brazil has now experienced six republics, one more than France’s post-1789 five. Because its current constitution is still young, its institutions remain vulnerable to occasional outbreaks of political instability. Under such conditions, loyalty to the constitution may take a back seat to partisan allegiances in the hearts of many Brazilians. If your favoured party or candidate pushes an ideological narrative which you support, you may come to look at the constitution and its mandated procedures as obstacles to its implementation.

Read the rest of the article here.

January newsletter posted

I have now posted my newsletter for January 2023. Among other things, I have received good news from InterVarsity Press concerning my next book project. Read all about it here.

An American virus infects Brazil

No, this is not about COVID or some other physical malady. It's about how excessive political polarization is negatively affecting two of the world's largest democracies in a way that threatens to erode their political institutions.

The United States has one of the oldest functioning constitutional documents in the world dating back to 1787, when its founders negotiated a political union of thirteen states based on a federal division of powers with sovereignty at each level divided among legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Americans in turn borrowed many of their institutions from the centuries-old English and later British constitution, in which a balanced power-sharing arrangement among King, Lords, and Commons developed, not by deliberate design, but out of the vicissitudes of history.

Gorbachev, Putin, and the toxic cycle of Russian leadership

At the end of August of last year, I briefly noted the death of Mikhail Gorbachev and promised to comment further on his legacy. However, the death of the Queen days later delayed my fulfilment of that promise as the world's attention focussed on the legacy of Britain and Canada's longest reigning monarch. However, as we approach the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, I believe it is time to return to Russia, whose troubled history has negatively affected, not only its own people, but its neighbours as well.

For centuries Russian leadership has vacillated between seemingly good rulers bent on reform and tyrannical rulers bent on holding the line with, if necessary, methods ranging from the harsh to the cruel. We all remember Ivan the Terrible (1530-1584), the grand prince of Moscow who became Russia's first tsar. Putting an end to the last remnants of Mongol rule, Ivan expanded his country's territory into a vast Eurasian empire, but at the cost of many lives. He managed to murder his own son and heir, Ivan Ivanovich, and effectively killed off his own Ryurik dynasty, leading directly to the Time of Troubles between 1598 and 1613, when the first Romanov came to the throne. After this pivotal period in its history, Russia would see its leadership occupied by several more seemingly vicious rulers, during the tsarist, Soviet, and post-Soviet eras.

Incarnation and renewal

My December column for Christian Courier has been posted here: Incarnation and renewal, with this subtitle: "Christ took on our perishable flesh to redeem us for an imperishable life with him in his coming kingdom." An excerpt:

As I approach age 68, I am increasingly aware of the fragility of our earthly existence and that our years on God’s earth are limited. My father has been gone for two years. His younger sister died in October at age 90 . . . . Since May I have suffered from severe shoulder pain that is limiting my activities . . . . Moreover, I find November and December depressing months, with darkness enveloping our northern hemispheric latitude for so many hours each day. In such circumstances, it is easy to become discouraged.

Nevertheless, as a cradle Christian, I, along with the rest of the church, have rehearsed the redemptive story embedded in the church calendar for nearly three score years and ten – so many times that by now its cyclical patterns have become a source of comfort and stability. 

Read the entire article here.

Socialism and pluriformity

Two months ago I mentioned that I would be writing a series of short articles on political ideologies for the Politics Network of UCCF: The Christian Unions in the United Kingdom. The first was titled, Understanding Liberal Mythology, and was posted in October. Now the second piece in the series has appeared and is called, Socialism and Pluriformity. An excerpt:

What is socialism? It is a political ideology that aims to equalize the enjoyment of economic resources across a society, thereby eliminating the ancient cleavage between rich and poor. This would be done by everyone pooling their resources instead of each person claiming exclusive ownership over a portion. In other words, common property would replace private property. Under this arrangement, each person would work to produce the wealth that would go into a common pot, refraining from making a particular claim to the fruits of their labours. As the pot would be continually filled and refilled, any members of the community could draw from it to meet their own needs . . . .

However, the larger a community becomes, the more difficult it is to carry this out in the same way. Why?

Read the entire article to find out.

December newsletter: World Cup edition

My latest Global Scholars newsletter is now posted: DECEMBER 2022 newsletter: World Cup edition. How is my work relevant to the World Cup? Read and see for yourself. And while you are at it, please consider making a year-end donation so I can continue my work. Thanks so much in advance!

Incidentally, I've been informed by people in the know that my position on the alternate Brazilian team is not goalie but striker, "perhaps an even more prestigious position considering that is who scores many of the goals." I suppose I do tend to underestimate myself!

CARE UK event

As I did around this time last year, I had another great conversation today with the current group of young people in the CARE Leadership Programme in the United Kingdom. CARE stands for Christian Action, Research, and Education. The website describes the programme:

The Leadership Programme provides talented Christian graduates, who have a desire to serve the Lord in public life, the opportunity to experience a year in Parliament or a policy-shaping NGO.

For four days a week, graduates are placed with a Parliamentarian or in an NGO, helping with speech writing, research, advocacy and public relations. Most internships are London-based, but we also offer Parliamentary placements in Edinburgh at the Scottish Parliament and occasionally media and business placements. This eleven month educational programme provides a unique insight into Parliament and how it works . . . .

Additionally, for one day a week, graduates participate in an intensive study programme that includes theology, political theory and training in leadership skills.

Included in their studies is my book, Political Visions and Illusions, about which they posed some great questions for our discussion. I pray that God will bless these young people as they seek to serve him and their fellow citizens.

ANAJURE lecture and discussion

Last evening I was privileged to address remotely a group of Brazilians at the invitation of Gabriel Dayan Stevão de Matos, executive director of Associação Nacional de Juristas Evangélicos (ANAJURE), or the National Association of Evangelical Jurists. My talk was on the relationship between ideology and idolatry, and it was followed by questions from the participants.

As always, I was overwhelmed by the expressions of appreciation for my work and for my participation in this event. I was particularly moved by a prayer for me at the end of the event. May God bless the people of Brazil, and may he continue to advance his kingdom in that beautiful country.

Aqui está uma descrição em português:

A mystical faith

Christian Courier has published my recent column titled, A mystical faith, with this subtitle: "Our approach to God must always be accompanied by the humble recognition that he deserves our worship." An excerpt:

No one has ever accused me of being a mystic. For one thing, I don’t dress the part. No flowing robes or beard down to the belly. Corduroy trousers and tweed jackets are my style. But even apart from sartorial evidence, my writings show few signs of flirting with mysticism. I love the carefully constructed logical argument, whose symmetry I find deeply satisfying – even beautiful!

Nevertheless, I have always known that mystery accompanies faith in the God who created us and saved us through Jesus Christ. Part of this may flow from my paternal Orthodox roots, but even a Reformed Christian upbringing made me aware of God’s presence in a way that defies explanation.

Does that make me a mystic? Read the entire article here to find out.

Byzantine Calvinist Commentary 1: nondenominational churches and the liberal narrative

Beginning this week, I will periodically be uploading video commentaries on various issues, some relevant to politics and others more generally relevant to the life in Christ, including the church. Here is the first in this series, on Nondenominational churches and the liberal narrative, which is a slight reworking of my recent blog post with this title.

A Trilha de Cantuária: culto e reforma

My recent post on The Canterbury Trail: worship and reformation has been translated into Portuguese and posted at Lecionário: A Trilha de Cantuária: culto e reforma. An excerpt follows the Portuguese translation immediately below.

Meu post recente sobre The Canterbury Trail: worship and reformation foi traduzido para o português e postado no Lecionário: A Trilha de Cantuária: culto e reforma. Um trecho:

Webber não me levou ao anglicanismo per se, muito menos a uma comunhão anglicana, uma invenção de meados do século XIX. Mas ler seus livros me ajudou a entender que até alguns dos reformadores do século 16 erraram, especialmente no que diz respeito às liturgias históricas da Igreja. Em qualquer esforço para reformar a igreja, os pretensos reformadores devem diferenciar entre o que pertence legitimamente à tradição da qual são herdeiros e o que são acréscimos antibíblicos. Isso requer conhecimento de como era a igreja antiga e como ela adorava o Deus trino. Infelizmente, os reformadores não tiveram acesso às fontes mais antigas que conhecemos hoje.

Leia o artigo inteiro aqui.

Nondenominational churches and the liberal narrative

This month Christianity Today reports that ‘Nondenominational’ Is Now the Largest Segment of American Protestants. Although I have no memory of being part of such a nondenominational congregation, my parents had me dedicated as an infant at the Wheaton Bible Church in Wheaton, Illinois, although a year and a half later I would be baptized in an Orthodox Presbyterian congregation near Chicago. Back in the day, WBC was a flourishing congregation just north of downtown. Although the man who presided at my parents' wedding was an ordained Presbyterian minister, he attended this church along with his family. Decades later it is a nondenominational megachurch, having attracted members from other neighbouring congregations, one of which recently closed.

November newsletter posted

My latest Global Scholars newsletter is now posted online: November 2022 newsletter. Among the news to report: my shoulder pain appears to be improving slowly, and I have received a second grant from the Reid Trust. Thanks for your continued prayers and financial support for my work.

A new Carolingian era

Christian Courier has posted my latest column: A new Carolingian era, with this subtitle: "Three reasons to believe that King Charles is off to a good start." Here is the second reason:

[A]lthough King Charles has not been as beloved a figure as his late mother, he is heir to a legacy of considerable good will and admiration that she earned during her seven decades of service to her country and to the Commonwealth. Sad to say, the media are not as respectful of the royal office as they were in 1952, yet I believe that our new monarch will rise to the occasion, taking every opportunity to connect with his people on a personal level. He may not be a gregarious person, but neither was his late grandfather, who endeared himself to his people through his courage and dedication during the war.

 Read the first and third reasons here.

The Canterbury Trail: Liturgy and Reformation

Kuyperian Commentary has published my post, titled, The Canterbury Trail: Liturgy and Reformation. I wrote it in response to a post by Gillis Harp: Evangelicals on the Canterbury Trail: Reflections on the Pilgrimage to Anglicanism Nearly 40 Years After Webber’s Classic. An excerpt:

A close examination of the Apostolic Tradition [of Hyppolytus] and similar early documents indicates that many of the Reformers unduly disposed of much that should have been retained, rejecting some of the substance of the tradition along with the accretions. . . . If the Apostolic Tradition was lost to the Reformers, its liturgical rubrics and texts survived in both the western and eastern rites of the historic church and were thus available to the Reformers of the 16th century in that form. Indeed, Cranmer and Luther retained much of the ordinary of the mass, removing its accretions, translating it into their respective vernacular languages, and prescribing it for use in the churches for which they were responsible.

This is cross posted to my Genevan Psalter blog as well.

Dooyeweerd and the inadequacy of conservatism and progressivism

One of Abraham Kuyper's philosophical heirs was Herman Dooyeweerd (1894-1977), whose prolific writings are increasingly being translated into English, Portuguese, and other languages. One of his lesser known works is his Encyclopedia of the Science of Law, of which two volumes have thus far been published in English. Although Dooyeweerd was also an heir of Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer (1801-1876), whose analysis of the French Revolution owed much to that of Edmund Burke (1729-1797), Dooyeweerd was severely critical of conservatism in its many manifestations. This is from volume one of the Encyclopedia:

Iran and the arc of history

When I was an undergraduate student back in the mid 1970s, I took a concentrated summer course in the Russian language at the University of Minnesota. While my grasp of Russian would weaken over the ensuing decades, I still remember the protests on campus of Iranian students against the rule of the Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who had less than two years remaining in his troubled reign. At the time, it seemed possible that the Shah might be replaced by a Marxist régime. My political science education, coupled with a minor in history, had prepared me for the likelihood that an unpopular American-supported monarch, whom the CIA had put in power in 1953, could be replaced by a revolutionary group sympathetic to the Soviet Union. After all, we had seen it happen before in Asia and Africa, and, of course, in Castro's Cuba, only 140 kilometres from Florida's coast.

Ukraine & Russia: To Whom Does The Land Belong?

Jason Scott Montoya interviewed me again last week, and the interview can be viewed here:

The interview along with ancillary material can also be found here: Ukraine & Russia: To Whom Does The Land Belong? Discussing Geographic Sovereignty With David T. Koyzis Ph.D.

October newsletter posted

My Global Scholars newsletter has now been posted online: October 2022 newsletter. As always, I am thankful for your financial and prayer support for my work. Please pray for a complete recovery from my chronic shoulder pain and that I might get to see two specialists before too long. Thanks again.

The altar call: good or bad? Kuyperian Commentary

My short piece from last week has been reposted at Kuyperian Commentary: The altar call: good or bad? An excerpt:

Reformed Christians in North America were historically divided over New Measures revivalism, leading to an outright split between Old School and New School Presbyterians lasting from 1837 to 1857. The division resurfaced in the 1930s during the fundamentalist-modernist controversy with Orthodox Presbyterians (Old School) going one way and Evangelical and Bible Presbyterians (New School) going another. Old School Presbyterians feared that revival methods would elicit false conversions that would quickly disappear when buffeted by the winds of adversity and the temptations of sin (Matthew 13:20-21). Once the emotional high had evaporated, converts would rest on a false assurance of salvation depending too much on their own decision for Christ apart from God’s electing grace and the work of the Holy Spirit. Revivalism appeared to be based on the false assumption that an unregenerate person could decide for Christ and thereby effectively ensure his or her own redemption—something often called decisional regeneration.

Would bringing back altar calls in churches be a good thing?

Find the answer here.

Can Christian Higher Education Stay the Course?

A blog post of mine from the beginning of last month has been picked up by the Christian Scholar's Review blog: Can Christian Higher Education Stay the Course? An excerpt:

One possible reason for a university losing its confessional moorings is an underlying worldview that divides the curriculum between divinity/theology on the one hand and so-called secular disciplines on the other, parallel to the historic scholastic division between sacred and secular. Because it was assumed that these latter disciplines were subject to the canons of a neutral reason, any connection with the faith would be extrinsic at least and unnecessary at most. In McMaster’s case, this approach is likely why the university could so easily restrict the historic Baptist element to the Divinity College, still situated uneasily on campus as a curious vestige of its earlier affiliation.

Understanding liberal mythology: The Politics Network

Last week, on 3 October, I had the privilege of conversing with between 15 and 20 young people in the United Kingdom who are part of the Civitas programme of the Politics Network. I believe this is the third time I have spoken with a Civitas group, as hosted by Thomas Kendall. The Politics Network is affiliated with Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship, or The Christian Unions, located in Oxford. The participating young people are generally working for members of parliament. The topic under discussion was "The Liberal Myth: Rationalism and the Privatisation of Faith." As before, it was a most enjoyable experience.

The altar call: good or bad?

Christianity Today recently published an article by Russell Moore titled, Bring Back Altar Calls,  with the following subtitle: "They could foster the worst in evangelical spirituality. But the best of it, too." Because the article is behind a paywall, I cannot assess the author's argument, but I will take the occasion to look at the altar call because it is something with which I grew up, at least in part. No, not at the Orthodox Presbyterian Church congregation my parents started with another family in Wheaton, Illinois, when I was a small child. The OPC represents a rather pure form of Old School Presbyterianism, which took a dim view of New Measures revivalism in the 19th century. Worship in our congregation was based on the 1961 Trinity Hymnal, along with the use of traditional liturgical forms such as the Lord's Prayer, the Apostles' Creed, the Gloria Patri, the confession of sin and assurance of pardon, and the weekly reading of the Ten Commandments. We sang metrical psalms from the 1912 Psalter of the former United Presbyterian Church in North America.

Remembering Ron Sider

My latest Christian Courier column has been posted online: Remembering Ron Sider, devoted to the late Christian leader who died on 27 July this year. Here is an excerpt:

[Sider] attempted to articulate a comprehensive pro-life ethic in opposition to abortion, capital punishment, and of course hunger. In 1987 Sider wrote a book called Completely Pro-Life: Building a Consistent Stance, in which he tied together several issues that would defy the conventional labels of conservative and progressive. Sadly, his efforts did not prevent especially evangelical Christians from dividing along the political lines familiar to us today.

Read the entire article here.

When a constitution gets rights wrong

Last month, after Chileans rejected a new proposed constitution, I offered some possible reasons for this rejection: Chile's constitution: back to square one. Now another article appears that puts Chile's constitutional issue in a larger historical context: What the Constitutions of the Soviet Union and North Korea Can Teach Us about Rights—and the Purpose of a Constitution. The author, Jack Elbaum, recounts the adoption of the 1936 Soviet Constitution which the country's leaders praised as "the most democratic in the world."