I’m two years in to my PhD program, and I need to finish writing this dissertation soon, or it’s going to be the death of me! Don’t get me wrong. I love Wheaton’s program. My supervisor and second reader are fantastic. And I think that this Barth, Bonhoeffer, and the Bible project is worthwhile. But I’ve got a wife, a kid, a commitment to the Church, and I need to move on with my life. ...
SOURCE: Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Indexes and Supplementary Materials, ed. Victoria J. Barnett et al., vol. 17, Dietrich Bonhoeffer Works (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2014), 154–158. Sermons and Meditations Address on Jeremiah 27–28—(DBWE vol. )9 Address on John 19—9 Address on Luke 12:35ff.—9 Address on Matthew 21:28–31—9 Address on the Decalogue—9 Address on the First Commandment—9 Baptismal Homily on Joshua 24:15—13 Baptism Sermon on 1 John 4:16—11 Baptism Sermon on Ephesians 5:14—11 Bible Reading and Prayer on 1 Corinthians 4:20—13 Biblical Reflection: Morning—14 Catechesis in the Second Theological Examination on the Fifth Petition of the Lord’s Prayer—10 Catechetical Examination on Matthew 8:5–13—9 Catechetical Outline concerning the Second Article of Faith—9 Children’s Address on Psalm 24:7–9 Communion Homily on 1 Corinthians 15:55—15 Confession Homily on Micah 4:9—15 Confirmation—15 Confirmation Question Confirmation Sermon on Mark 9:24 Confirmation Verses Devotional Aids for the Moravian Daily Texts—16 Daily Text Meditation for June 7 and 8, 1944 Daily Text Meditation for Pentecost 1944 Devotions on John 8:31–32—11 Devotions on Luke 4:3–4—11 Devotions on Luke 4:5–8—11 Draft for a Catechism: As You Believe, So You Receive—11 Draft for a Liturgy, Remembrance Sunday—10 Draft for a Liturgy, Reminiscere (Memorial Day)—10 Opening Liturgy Prayer Draft for Worship Service on 2 Corinthians 2:14; 6:10; 6:1—15 Exegesis and Catechetical Lesson on Luke 9:57–62—9 Exegesis and Sermon on James 1:21–25—9 Exposition on Romans 9–11 (Student Notes)—14 Exposition on the First Table of the Ten Words of God—16 Fragment of a Wedding Sermon—13 Funeral Address on Luke 2:29–30—13 Funeral Liturgy and Homily on Proverbs 23:26 for Hans-Friedrich von Kleist-Retzow—16 Guide to Scriptural Meditation—14 Homily for the Children’s Service—10 Homily on Daniel 10:1, 8, 16–19—12 Liturgy for a Seminar Worship Service—12 Liturgy Fragment for Christmas—15 Marriage Sermon on Ruth 1:16–17—13 Meditation and Catechetical Lesson on “Honor”—9 Meditation and Sermon on Luke 9:51–56 for the Theological Examination—9 Meditation on Luke 9:57–62—13 Meditation on Psalm 119—15 Bonhoeffer’s Meditation (Fragment) Two Structural Outlines of Psalm 119 Notes for a Young Man—10 Outline for a Homily for Personal Confession on Proverbs 28:13–14 Outline on Proverbs 3:27–33—14 Recommended Devotions on Jeremiah 16:21 and Ephesians 1:22–23—16 Sermon for Evening Worship Service on 2 Corinthians 12:9—13 Sermon for Evening Worship Service on Proverbs 16:9–13 Sermon for the Lector on Matthew 2:13–23—15 Sermon for the Second Theological Examination on 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18—10 Sermon (Fragment) on Deuteronomy 32:48–52—10 Sermon (Fragment) on Luke 12:49—10 Sermon (Fragment) on Matthew 7:1—10 Sermon (Fragment) on Song of Solomon 8:6b—10 Sermon Meditation on Isaiah 9:6–7—16 Sermon Meditation on Revelation 2:1–7—14 Sermon Meditations—15 Sermon Meditation on John 3:16–21 for the Second Day of Pentecost Sermon Meditation on John 10:11–16 for Misericordias Domini Sunday Sermon Meditation on John 14:23–31 for the First Day of Pentecost Sermon Meditations on John 20:19–31 for Quasimodogeniti Sunday Sermon on 1 Corinthians 2:7–10—13 Sermon on 1 Corinthians 12:27, 26—10 Sermon on 1 Corinthians 13:1–3—13 Sermon on 1 Corinthians 13:4–7—13 Sermon on 1 Corinthians 13:8–12—13 Sermon on 1 Corinthians 13:13—13 Sermon on 1 Corinthians 15:17—10 Pulpit Notes Sermon Sermon on 1 John 2:17—10 Sermon on 1 John 4:16—10, 11 Sermon on 1 Peter 1:7b–9—12 Sermon on 2 Chronicles 20:12—11 Sermon on 2 Corinthians 5:10—13 Sermon on 2 Corinthians 5:20—13 Sermon on 2 Corinthians 12:9—10 Sermon on Colossians 3:1–4—11 Sermon on Genesis 32:25–32; 33:10—11 Sermon on Exodus 32:1–8, 15–16, 18–20, 30–35—12 Sermon on Jeremiah 20:7—13 Sermon on John 8:32—11 Sermon on Judges 6:15–16; 7:2; 8:23—12 Sermon on Luke 1:39–56—14 Sermon on Luke 1:46–55 Sermon on Luke 12:35–40—11 Sermon on Luke 13:1–5—13 Sermon on Luke 16:19–31—11 Sermon on Luke 17:7–10—9 Sermon on Luke 17:33—10 Sermon on Luke 21:28—13 Sermon on Mark 9:23–24—13 Sermon on Matthew 5:8—10 Sermon on Matthew 8:23–27—12 Sermon on Matthew 11:28–30—13 Sermon on Matthew 16:13–18—12 Sermon on Matthew 18:21–35—14 Sermon on Matthew 24:6–14—11 Sermon on Matthew 26:45b–50—14 Sermon on Matthew 28:20—10 Sermon on Philippians 4:7—10 Sermon on Psalm 42—14 Sermon on Psalm 58—14 Sermon on Psalm 62:2—10 Sermon on Psalm 63:3—11 Sermon on Psalm 90—14 Sermon on Psalm 98:1—13 Sermon on Psalm 127:1—9 Sermon on Revelation 2:4–5, 7—12 Sermon on Revelation 3:20—10 Sermon on Revelation 14:6–13—14 Sermon on Romans 5:1–5—15 Sermon on Romans 11:6—10 Sermon on Romans 12:11c—10 Sermon on Romans 12:17–21—15 Sermon on Wisdom 3:3—13 Sermon on Zechariah 3:1–5—14 Supplements to the Monthly Letters from the Confessing Church Council of Brethren in Pomerania to Its Pastors—15 Meditation on Christmas Meditation on Epiphany Theological Reflection on the Lord’s Supper Wedding Sermon from the Prison Cell—8 Wedding Sermon on 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18—14 Wedding Sermon on John 13:34—14
(Here’s a PDF of this paper: STEELE_The Tree of Religion Barth and Bonhoeffer on the Tree of Knowledge.) Introduction The precise meaning of the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (=TK) has long vexed interpreters of Genesis 2:4–3:24.[1] While the “tree of life” (=TL) is mentioned and alluded to throughout the Bible, the TK is explicitly mentioned by its full name just twice (Gen. 2:9, 17).[2] Nevertheless, because of the significant role that the TK plays in the narrative, both Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Karl Barth highlight the TK in their theological interpretations of Genesis 1–3. Furthermore, both theologians describe the TK and the knowledge of good and evil (=KGE) in ways that resemble their theological critiques of “religion” as an improper response to divine revelation. ...
(Here’s a PDF of this paper: STEELE_When Will Thy Kingdom Come.) Introduction: “Thy Kingdom [Has/Will] Come”? Just how eschatological is the Lord’s Prayer (=LP; Matt. 6:9–13; Luke 11:2–4), particularly in light of its second petition, “Your kingdom come” (ἐλθέτω ἡ βασιλεία σου, Matt. 6:10a; Luke 11:2d)? In other words, when will God’s kingdom come? Has it already arrived (not eschatological)? Is it in the process of arriving? Or will it arrive at some point in the future (eschatological)? Furthermore, who brings the kingdom about? Humans? God? Or some combination of the two? Settling the question of eschatology involves both the timing and the agency, the when and the who, of the kingdom. ...
Jesus Christ has gone into the far country in our stead, to bring us home to God!
It just happened again. I had to consult “BDAG,” A Greek–English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (3rd ed.). I don’t own a copy, so every time I have to consult BDAG I think “I really should buy this.” But for the past decade or so, primarily because of BDAG’s cost ($150 on Logos, $130 used on Amazon, $165 new on Amazon) I’ve held off. Nevertheless, I’m seeking to build my “must-have” personal reference library to sustain a ministry as a pastor theologian. So, I think I need to buy BDAG sometime soon. While I’m at it, I might as well get HALOT, the Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament… Logos sells them as a bundle. ...
I’m trying to put together a basic home gym in our basement apartment. Mainly, I’m interested in doing squats for now. Then, I’ll expand to deadlifts and benchpress. Our ceilings are too low for overhead presses, however. Anyways, I just ordered the Valor Fitness BD-9 squat rack from Amazon. I still need a decent Olympic bar and Olympic plates.
I’ve always wanted to learn more about Andrei Rublev’s famous icon of the Trinity. If you’re also curious, check out this video.
From “In Praise of Boredom,” by James K.A. Smith. But I know at least this: Instagram won’t save us, and tweeted verse will not undo what we’ve done to ourselves. But neither is there any special enchantment to reading in print. So this is not the Luddite’s redoubt, nostalgically canonizing codex or canvas as if history had come to an end in some glorious past. Every medium now reaches us inside the ecology of attention masterminded by Silicon Valley. We take pictures of our books and coffee, for heaven’s sake. The point isn’t platform but desire: what do we want when we pick up our phones? We don’t need better media, or to romanticize old media. We need to change what we want. ...
John Webster’s essay, “Reading the Bible: The Example of Barth and Bonhoeffer” (pages 87–110 in Word and Church: Essays in Christian Dogmatics [Edinburgh; New York: T&T Clark, 2001]) is, in large part, the inspiration for my doctoral dissertation. I’d like to share the three reflections/lessons Webster draws from the biblical work of Barth and Bonhoeffer. Wrapping up his essay, Webster claims that Neither Bonhoeffer nor Barth were wissenschaftlich theologians; both were practical or pastoral theologians of the church of Jesus Christ. . . . Both, in short, were members of the guild, so despised by Kant and most of his heirs, of biblical theologians. Pondering their work may give us cause to reflect on three matters (108–109). ...
I’m reading Walter Sinnott-Armstrong’s excellent book, Think Again: How to Reason and Argue. In it (on pages 25–26), I came across “Rapoport’s Rules.” First formulated by mathematical psychologist Anatol Rapoport and discussed by Daniel Dennett (Intuition Pumps and Other Tools for Thinking, 31–35), here they are: 1: You should attempt to re-express your target’s position so clearly, vividly, and fairly that your target says, “Thanks, I wish I’d thought of putting it that way.” ...
Just came across this article in New Blackfriars, and it looks helpful, especially in the context of Anglican debates about women’s ordination. Title: “The Four Types of Priesthood in the New Testament: On Avoiding Confusions about What ‘Priesthood’ Means” Author: Geoffrey Turner Abstract: Christian discourse tends to treat the concept of ‘priesthood’ univocally, so that ordained priests are seen to share the priesthood of Christ. But a careful reading of Hebrews shows clearly that the priesthood of Christ is unique to him. There are four (even five) types of priest in the New Testament and each of them is distinct and not to be confused. ...
I became an “egalitarian” in college, before I became an Anglican in seminary. It’s taken some time for me to get used to the different contours of the women’s ordination debate within Anglicanism. Growing up, the debate was all about particular Bible verses and whether or not women could teach and preach. However, in Anglicanism, although those same questions/arguments are present, I hear much more about whether or not women can administer the sacraments as priests. ...
Maybe you, like me, are coming to Anglicanism from a different tradition. If that’s the case, then one thing you should know is that Anglican debates about women’s ordination can often be quite different from debates about the same topic in other church contexts. This is due to Anglicans having different views on, among other things: ecclesiology (the doctrine of the church), the sacraments, and ordination. For example, in my broadly evangelical/non-denominational/Baptist upbringing, debates about women in ministry centered on whether or not women were allowed to preach and teach. ...