CultureWatch

Bill Muehlenberg's commentary on issues of the day...

Time to Trim the Bible?

Mar 15, 2007

The war against Biblical Christianity continues to hot up. This time the prestigious journal, Nature, has weighed into the battle. In its 8 March, 2007 issue, it carried a “news item” about an attempt to understand how “religious violence”

God, Judgment, and this World

Mar 12, 2007

Most media outlets carried the story over the weekend of the radical Muslim cleric who told his followers that the nation’s drought was caused by Australians’ lack of faith in Allah. His comments were quickly condemned by many, including

When Our Media Elite Discuss Jesus

Mar 12, 2007

There was a rather atrocious discussion about Jesus on Melbourne’s ABC radio on March 9, 2007. Of course silly discussions about Jesus take place all the time, but as I happened to be listening to this particular one, it is

What’s Wrong With the Ten Commandments?

Feb 28, 2007

Political conservatism and religious conservatism tend to go together. Not always. Not completely. But there does tend to be a connection. It can be said that secularists tend to align themselves more with the left side of politics, while those

Love and Hate in an Age of Tolerance

Feb 22, 2007

A poster which has recently been displayed outside of some Australian churches has caused a fair bit of controversy. The large outdoor posters feature the words, “Jesus loves Osama”. A Baptist church in Sydney, for example, displayed the poster, only

A review of Fabricating Jesus. By Craig Evans.

Jan 11, 2007

IVP, 2006.

At the very heart of Christianity is Christ. Remove Christ, and you no longer have Christianity. Thus those wanting to attack Christianity concentrate their heaviest firepower on Christ. And we have seen plenty of examples of that recently.

Everything You Wanted To Know About Free Will Theism

Dec 13, 2006

Openness thought, also known as free will theism, is generating lots of attention. Among its more radical claims is the belief that God does not in fact fully know the future. I have already written several book reviews on this

A review of How Much Does God Foreknow? By Steven Roy.

Dec 12, 2006

InterVarsity Press, 2006.

One of the most controversial doctrines of free will theism or openness theology is the claim that God does not know the future. The motivations for this may be good: to protect God from charges of being

Yoko Ono, Forgiveness and Faith

Dec 9, 2006

On December 8, 1980, John Lennon was gunned down by a deranged fan, Mark Chapman. Still at the prime of his life at 40 years of age, it was a great tragedy for many millions of people, especially Yoko Ono,

Atheist Rage and Venom

Dec 3, 2006

I have mentioned before Richard Dawkins’ new book, The God Delusion. While familiar with some of his earlier work, I have yet to fully read this latest offering from the Oxford scientist, evolutionist and atheist. Until I do, I

A review of Is Jesus the Only Savior? By James Edwards.

Nov 8, 2006

Eerdmans, 2005.

These are difficult days to be a biblical Christian. In affirming the uniqueness of the Christian truth claims, we run up against a host of obstacles, such as the denial of truth, as is postmodernism; disdain of ethical

A review of The Benefits of Providence: A New Look at Divine Sovereignty. By James Spiegel.

Oct 25, 2006

Crossway Books, 2005.

Having lectured in systematic theology, and being an eager follower of the free will/sovereignty debate, when I spotted this book I snatched it up, without looking at it too closely. I assumed it would be just another

A review of Full Gospel, Fractured Minds? By Rick Nanez.

Oct 18, 2006

Zondervan, 2005.

It is no secret that there has been a strong tendency in Pentecostal/Charismatic circles to downplay the use of the mind, the intellect, reason, theology and doctrine. Some even relish in bashing theology and the intellect. This of

A review of Repenting of Religion. By Gregory Boyd. Part 1.

Oct 15, 2006

Baker, 2004.

This book rightly argues for the primacy of love and our need to more closely reflect Jesus. Yet in a number of respects I found this book to be somewhat disappointing and frustrating, when it need not have

A review of Repenting of Religion. By Gregory Boyd. Part 2.

Oct 15, 2006

Baker, 2004.

I begin by reiterating what I said in part 1: much of the message of this book needs to be heard. But because it seems to latch on to certain biblical themes over against others, it can come

A review of The Letters to Timothy and Titus. By Philip Towner.

Oct 10, 2006

Eerdmans, 2006.

Major recent commentaries on the Pastoral Epistles that have featured a more-or-less conservative and evangelical stance include the NIGTC volume by Knight (1992), the Word volume by Mounce (2000) and the Anchor Bible/ECC hybrid by Quinn and Wacker

A review of Judas and the Gospel of Jesus. By Tom Wright.

Oct 8, 2006

SPCK, 2006.

The standing joke about Tom Wright goes like this: An inquiring student gives Dr Wright a call. His secretary says,” Sorry, but he is busy writing a book”. To which the student caller replies, “That’s OK, I’ll hold”.

In Defence of Theology

Sep 26, 2006

We live in an age that is hesitant about, or indifferent to, the use of reason, study, mental discipline and religious education. Truth is under attack, religion is despised, and logical thinking is often ignored. Needless to say, in such

Right and Wrong Interfaith Dialogue

Sep 19, 2006

Most attempts at interfaith dialogue are doomed from the start, as they play down real differences between religions, and appeal to a lowest common denominator. As any serious student of the world’s major religions will attest, there exist very big

Suicide: A Biblical Assessment

Sep 14, 2006

Suicide is a major problem in the Western world. This paper has a very limited focus however. It will not look at such issues as why people attempt suicide, or how we can prevent such attempts. Instead it will focus

About CultureWatch

We live in an age where we see evidence of cultural decline, the erosion of values, the decline of civility, the denial of truth and the elevation of unreason. Many people are asking, “Where is our culture heading?” This website is devoted to exploring the major cultural, social and political issues of the day. It offers reflection and commentary drawing upon the wealth of wisdom found in the Judeo-Christian tradition. It offers reflective and incisive commentary on a wide range of issues, helping to sort through the maze of competing opinions, worldviews, ideologies and value systems. It will discuss critically and soberly where our culture is heading. Happy reading!

Bill Muehlenberg

CultureWatch

Bill Muehlenberg's commentary on issues of the day...

Time to Trim the Bible?

God, Judgment, and this World

When Our Media Elite Discuss Jesus

What’s Wrong With the Ten Commandments?

Love and Hate in an Age of Tolerance

A review of Fabricating Jesus. By Craig Evans.

Everything You Wanted To Know About Free Will Theism

A review of How Much Does God Foreknow? By Steven Roy.

Yoko Ono, Forgiveness and Faith

Atheist Rage and Venom

A review of Is Jesus the Only Savior? By James Edwards.

A review of The Benefits of Providence: A New Look at Divine Sovereignty. By James Spiegel.

A review of Full Gospel, Fractured Minds? By Rick Nanez.

A review of Repenting of Religion. By Gregory Boyd. Part 1.

A review of Repenting of Religion. By Gregory Boyd. Part 2.

A review of The Letters to Timothy and Titus. By Philip Towner.

A review of Judas and the Gospel of Jesus. By Tom Wright.

In Defence of Theology

Right and Wrong Interfaith Dialogue

Suicide: A Biblical Assessment

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