The danger of dogma

A few years ago, while browsing Dogmatic Theology by W. G. T. Shedd, a friend expressed surprise that such a book was in print today. To be fair, the book was originally published in three volumes from 1888-1894, and the title dates from that period. It seemed somehow out of place in the 2020s. In theology, the word …

What is a creed?

The second in a series of posts about religious creeds and confessions. A creed is a short formal statement expressing religious truth. The English word โ€œcreedโ€ derives from the Latin credo, โ€œI believe.โ€ This implies both assent to concepts and trust or reliance upon the implications of such concepts. A creed, therefore, is firstly a personal confession of faith, and a personal …

No creed but the Bible

The first of a series of posts about religious creeds and confessions. Creeds as we know them do not occur in Scripture. They began to appear toward the end of the first century and the beginning of the second century of the common era. Gradually, creeds adopted a standard trinitarian form and became more complex …

Mountains of Scripture (2): Mount Ararat

Ivan Ayvazovsky, "Descent of Noah from Ararat," oil on canvas, 1889. National Gallery of Armenia โ€œAlmost from the beginning of the Bible, mountains are sites of transcendent spiritual experiences, encounters with God or appearances by God.โ€[1] In Genesis 8:4, after what must have been a terrifying and tumultuous experience navigating the Great Flood, Noahโ€™s Ark …

Resources on The Thirty-Nine Articles

The execution of English Reformer Thomas Cranmer, from Foxe's Book of Martyrs. A list of sources for research and commentary on The Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England. For some, I have included links to PDF versions of the full text (active at 10 June 2023). If you know of useful additions to the …