What is the most repeated phrase in the Bible? “Do not worry.” In this part, we continue from where we left off with Jesus's statements on justice, analyzing his approach to anxiety. In the previous part we saw how one section of the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 6:19–34) can be applied to one common form of anxiety—negative self-image—and here we will turn to worries about Continue Reading …
Parables as a Guide to Jesus the Philosopher, Part 2: Prudence
Part 1 of this series ended with my arguments that because Jesus was not a systematic philosopher, it would be helpful to elaborate his moral teachings in the framework of an ethical system, and that virtue ethics is the system best suited to this purpose, as many Christians have traditionally thought. Taking up this approach, in Parts 2 to 4 I discuss several of Jesus's Continue Reading …
Parables as a Guide to Jesus the Philosopher, Part 1: Introduction
Jesus was a philosopher. If you doubt this, I'd like to persuade you by way of his parables, which imply a certain kind of ethical system with several key values. These include, principally, prudence, nonpossessiveness, nonjudgmentalism, humility, inclusion, and forgiveness. This is post is the first of several parts. In future parts, I'll address parables themselves. In Continue Reading …
Two Biblical Aftershows Now Available for Inspiration
Back on March 22, host Stephen West was joined by Wes, Michael Burgess, Ken Presting (calling in from the center of a vacuum cleaner, apparently), and (after 15 min or so) Law Ware reflect further on whether hermeneutics can really give us a reading of the Bible that gives us modern folks something that's not morally backward or otherwise crazy. This last Sunday, April 19. Continue Reading …