After two surgeries, three intense chemotherapy sessions, twenty five sessions of radiation, five falls on the floor, and several appointments and visits to the emergency room, I had a faith crisis. Why did God permit an aggressive cancer to attack my body?, I frequently asked myself. Two years and a half ago this month (December ..read more

Después de dos cirugías, tres sesiones intensas de quimioterapia, veinticinco sesiones de radiación, cinco caídas al suelo y varias citas y visitas a urgencias, tuve una crisis de fe. ¿Por qué Dios permitió que un cáncer agresivo atacara mi cuerpo?, me preguntaba con frecuencia. Hace dos años y medio, este mes (diciembre de 2024), comenz ..read more

This article offers some statistics from Heinrich Bullinger’s The Decades with a brief analysis as evidence that Bullinger must be understood as the forerunner, not the father, of federal theology, due to his discussion of the covenant doctrine is limited, inconsistent, exploratory, and slightly integrated with the rest of his theological thought. Having tested Baker ..read more

In his 1902 essay titled “Contemporary Morality,” Herman Bavinck starts admitting that there is a lack of discussion regarding moral principles and issues in his society and his church. For him, the importance of paying attention to moral principles and moral issues is that by their own nature human beings have needs, which are different ..read more

In his 1902 essay titled “Contemporary Morality,” Herman Bavinck starts admitting that there is a lack of discussion regarding moral principles and issues in his society and his church. For him, the importance to pay attention to moral principles and moral issues is that by their own nature human beings have needs, which are different from visible things. In order to live well their lives, he says, people should know the rule by which they organize their life. Bavinck claims that morality discussions can go from questions such as what is good and what is evil to practical matters such as marr ..read more

As this article from The Banner (the official magazine of the Christian Reformed Church) points out, this year’s CRC General Synod had an interesting discussion regarding Penal Substitutionary Atonement (PSA), which is one of the many theories to understand and interpret the meaning of Christ’s sacrifice. Interesting to me was the question of whether the denial of PSA might constitute a ‘heresy’ or not. The CRC synod, after some deliberation, concluded: [I]t is a serious deviation from the teachings of the confessions of the Christian Reformed Church to in any way deny that Jesus Christ’s lif ..read more

The doctrine of the image of God is based on Genesis 1:26-27; 5:1-3, and 9:3 that state that God made human beings—male and female—to the image and likeness of Him. The basic implication of this doctrine is that all human persons regardless of gender, race, and capacities are created according to the likeness or the image of God. Other texts in the Scriptures that are useful for this doctrine are Col. 3:10 where Paul speaks of the renewed human being created after God’s image; 1 Cor. 1:17 where Paul asserts that in some respect the male is both the image of God while the female is the glory o ..read more

I have been reading Aquinas, Calvin, Schleiermacher, Barth, Tillich, and Pannenberg at the seminary for some years. One interesting question I had (like many other students) was regarding some differences and similarities between the prolegomena of these theologians. For this reason I will try to respond to this question in a few sentences hoping it can be useful for those interested in the topic. For Aquinas, God reveals himself in both Scripture (through special/divine revelation) and in nature (through general/natural revelation). Aquinas follows Paul’s words in arguing that the impious mi ..read more

When one discusses Christ’s atonement and the relation between God’s wrath and love many questions and themes emerge. In this respect one can find at least three major themes in Calvin’s view of the atonement/redemption as discussed in the Institutes: the substitutionary dimension of Christ’s atoning work, the atonement as a sacrifice, and Christ’s triumph over sin and the powers. These themes not only emerge from Calvin’s understanding of the redemptive work of Christ but also are considered being central in such discussion. Atonement as Substitution In a few words, the atonement understood ..read more

Despite the fact that the doctrine of atonement was never discussed openly in one of the church councils during the early Church, it is a doctrine that stirs up controversy in many theological circles. In its basic form, the atonement refers to the meaning of the sacrifice of Christ. There are several passages in the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures that speak of the atonement. One of the most known passages in the Hebrew Scriptures is Isaiah 53. Traditionally, this chapter has been considered of speaking about the suffering servant who bores human transgressions and iniquities in order to hea ..read more