A New Book-Reflection: “In the Spirit of Happiness”–(Part 1: Monks and the Matrix)

For the month of December, I thought I would take the time to write a few posts that focus on a book I read probably over 25 years ago that not only shaped much of my spiritual outlook, but also (looking back) was an early step on my journey to Orthodoxy. The book is In…

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“The Religion of the Apostles”–Book Analysis (Part 8): The People of God and the Law of God (Wrapping things up…)

It has been a couple of weeks since my last post on Stephen De Young’s The Religion of the Apostles: Orthodox Christianity in the First Century. And although I like the book, I have to admit that I’m getting a bit burned out writing on it. Therefore, even though there are two more chapters to…

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The Religion of the Apostles: Book Analysis (Part 7)–Let’s Talk About the ATONEMENT!

As we move on in my book analysis of Stephen De Young’s The Religion of the Apostles: Orthodox Christianity in the First Century, we now come to Chapter 7: “Atonement for the Whole World.” The word “atonement” tends to create quite a kerfuffle in competing factions of Protestantism. Theological wars have been waged over the…

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In Praise of Dr. Gordon Fee (d. October 25, 2022)

If you know anything about Biblical Studies over the last fifty years, you probably have heard about Dr. Gordon Fee. One of the top textual critics of his time, head of the NIV committee, and, for anyone who had the privilege of having him as a professor, one of the best Biblical Studies teachers…ever. When…

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The Religion of the Apostles: A Book Analysis (Part 6)–Creation and Chaos…and Christ…and Salvation…and Meaning and Purpose…and a few more things!

As we make our way through Stephen De Young’s The Religion of the Apostles, we now come to Chapters 6-7, both of which make up Part 3 of his book: “Creation and Salvation.” We’ll begin with Chapter 6, “Creation and Chaos.” Creation: Being and Becoming, Order out of ChaosIn Chapter 6, De Young discusses the…

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Bonus Post: What We Can Learn from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Story, “Young Goodman Brown”

This year, after fifteen years of teaching Biblical Worldview and Biblical Studies, both at the high school and college level, I have taken a teaching job teaching high school English again. Although Biblical Studies has, as will always be, my primary area of love and interest, English Literature will also (and always will) be a…

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“The Religion of the Apostles”–A Book Analysis Series (Part 5): Human Beings on the Divine Council? Mary the Theotokos? And What’s Up with Getting Baptized for the Dead?

It’s the weekend, October 16th to be exact, and if you’ve been following my blog lately, you know what that means! Another installment in my book analysis series on Stephen De Young’s The Religion of the Apostles: Orthodox Christianity in the First Century. Here in Part 5, I’m going to be covering De Young’s Chapter…

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Bonus Post Out of Left Field: Jim Palmer, John Pavlovitz, and my Irritation with Such Bile (ah yes, you’re intrigued, aren’t you?)

This is somewhat of a random post, but it involves something that has been buzzing around in my mind for quite some time. The specific impetus for this post has to do with something that someone I do not know posted on the Alumni Facebook page of one of the graduate schools I attended. I…

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“The Religion of the Apostles”: A Book Analysis Series (Part 4)–How De Young Channels Michael Heiser (when talking about the spiritual world)

Another weekend means another installment in my book analysis series on Stephen De Young’s The Religion of the Apostles: Orthodox Christianity in the First Century. Since this is Part 4 and I’m only beginning Chapter 2 of Young’s book, this post is going to cover a lot—and I mean A LOT—of ground. In my previous…

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“The Religion of the Apostles”: A Book Analysis Series (Part 3)–Jesus Christ in the New Testament = The Incarnation of the Second Hypostasis of God (What’s that? Read on…)

It’s the weekend, and that means yet another installment in my book analysis series on Stephen De Young’s The Religion of the Apostles: Orthodox Christianity in the First Century. In my previous post, I detailed De Young’s argument that in both the Old Testament and Second Temple Judaism itself, there was a clear belief that…

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