The children songs of Abel Burckhart gave Karl Barth his first theological education. Later Barth wrote: What made an indelible impression on me was the homely self-assurance with which these unpretentious verses spoke of the vents of Christmas, Palm Sunday, Good Friday, Easter, Ascension, Pentecost, as though they could have taken place that very morning … Continue reading Karl Barth on the hymns of his childhood
(Translated from CGST magazine - click here for the link) And here's a very faint copy of the original German. For Hong Liang, this is all I could write tonight, heartfelt greetings. What is Theology for? by Jürgen Moltmann 1. Theology exists for faith. Christian faith is not a blind faith, but a knowing faith. This … Continue reading What is Theology for? by Jürgen Moltmann
CHAPTER 3 VIEW FROM 40,000 – SPACE SHUTTLE REENTRY VIEW The point of this chapter is to capture the CD in one long sentence: SUMMARY: “The Science of God explores the revealed God through an encounter with the actuality of God made known in Jesus Christ who is spotlighted in Scripture to hone our relation … Continue reading Chapter 3 – One Bite at a Time
We are currently posting excerpts from Dr Marty Folsom's upcoming book - Learning to Read the Church Dogmatics of Karl Barth - One bit at a time. Today we take in the view from Earth's orbit. CHAPTER 2 - THE VIEW FROM EARTH’S ORBIT The point of this chapter is to capture the Church Dogmatics … Continue reading Chapter Two – One Bite at a Time
I'm really excited to introduce a series of blogs from Dr Marty Folsom, author of Face to Face. Marty has written a guide for understanding Karl Barth's Church Dogmatics from the big picture and once all the chapters have been written, to publish them as a book. Chapter 1 starts with the biggest picture of … Continue reading Chapter 1 – One Bite at a Time
Theological Declaration of Barmen Written by Karl Barth and the confessing church in Nazi Germany in response to Hitler's national church. Its central doctrines concern the sin of idolatry and the lordship of Christ I. An Appeal to the Evangelical Congregations and Christians in Germany 8.01 The Confessional Synod of the German Evangelical Church met in … Continue reading The Barmen Declaration
Rev Michael Curry's recent sermon at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding last Saturday has caused controversy in my home country of Australia. Comments have ranged from "Amazing!" through "American Showbiz" all the way to "Inappropriately Grandstanding Meghan's Special Day". Now I have no loyalty to or against the presiding bishop and primate of the … Continue reading Rev Michael Curry’s Sermon at the Royal Wedding
While reading Stephen D. Morrison's new book, "Jürgen Moltmann in Plain English", I came across this great quote. Here too, as in other theological work, there has been a picture in front of me. It is Andrei Rublev's wonderful fifteenth-century Russian icon of the Holy Trinity. Through their tenderly intimate inclination towards oneanother, the three … Continue reading Andrei Rublev’s Icon of the Trinity
"There is a medieval picture which shows Christ descending into hell and opening the gate for someone who points to himself as if he were saying, "And are you coming to me?" That is how I have always felt. Jesus' God-godforsakenness on the cross showed me where God is present - where he was in … Continue reading The Harrowing of Hell
