John Calvin, The Doctrine of Election (trans. from the French by Robert White; Edinburgh: Banner of Truth Trust, 2022). 224pp + indexes. ISBN 9781800402652 Reviewed by Dr Rod Benson The biblical doctrine of election is fraught with controversy. The reasons for this are not hard to discover: there is, firstly, an apparent tension between determinism …
Passions of the Christ: The Emotional Life of Jesus in the Gospels
F. Scott Spencer, Passions of the Christ: The Emotional Life of Jesus in the Gospels (Baker Academic, 2021). 265pp + bib. & indexes. ISBN 9781540964465 Reviewed by Dr Rod Benson Carl Heinrich Bloch, Jesus Cleansing the Temple, 1874. Biblical revelation, the ecumenical creeds, and orthodox Christian theology all attest that Jesus Christ was fully God …
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Why the Cross? Divine Friendship and the Power of Justice
Ligita Ryliลกkytฤ, Why the Cross? Divine Friendship and the Power of Justice (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2023). 491pp. ISBN 9781009202763. Reviewed by Dr Rod Benson Published in the CUP series Current Issues in Theology, this book addresses the question, โWhat does it mean for the cross of Christ to save?โ This book offers a fresh …
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Taming the Beast: A Reception History of Behemoth and Leviathan
Mark R. Sneed, Taming the Beast: A Reception History of Behemoth and Leviathan (Berlin: De Gruyter, 2022). 288 pages. ISBN: 9783110579314. Reviewed by Dr Rod Benson William Blake, Behemoth and Leviathan, 1805. The poet and artist William Blake painted the image above, depicting the mythical biblical creatures Behemoth and Leviathan, in 1805. More recently, children's …
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Church traditions and the creeds (1)
Thomas Cranmer, the first Protestant Archbishop of Canterbury and chief architect of the Anglican formularies. Real or imagined crises are often the catalyst for the formulation, promulgation and revision of creeds and confessions. During the brief period during which the New Testament writings were being composed, a โtrinitarianโ confessional pattern emerged that shaped later credal formularies. …
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