Issue
The Arts
Vol. 33, No. 1 • Jan/Feb 2024
Growing up, I always wanted to be an artist. I drew in my sketchbook whenever I had free time (all right, even when I was supposed to be doing something else). I don’t draw much anymore; I’ve long since moved on to other creative outlets. But I’m still awed by […]
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From the Editor
Growing up, I always wanted to be an artist. I drew in my sketchbook whenever I had free time (all right, even when I was supposed to be doing something else). I don’t draw much anymore; I’ve long since moved on to other creative outlets. But I’m still awed by […]
Fish and Ships: Reformed Mission Brazil
In 1556, Jean de Léry sailed across the Atlantic Ocean, the “abyss of water that is the Western Sea.” When he saw giant porpoises, sea turtles, and flying fish—just a few of the marvels and terrors he witnessed—he remembered Psalm 104:25–26: “The sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number—living things both large and small. […]
Problematic Portraits: The Lutheran and Reformed Debate Over Religious Images
The great Christian hope is that we will see God. Jesus assured us that “blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8). In this age, “we walk by faith, not by sight,” suggesting that sight is the better experience (2 Cor. 5:7–8). Waiting on this side of Christ’s return […]
Beauty, Art, and Images in Worship: Mark Mattes and Michael Horton Q&A
In the following exchange, theologians Mark Mattes and Michael Horton take turns asking each other some of the questions on their minds as they wrestle with the similarities and differences between their respective Lutheran and Reformed traditions on the role of images in worship, the difference between art and idolatry, and the nature of beauty. […]
Sunrise in the Outer Banks
My weathered family walks the eroding beaches under cream and pewter sky that’s seen vacations faded and dull with blight, the wind pulls out what’s layered beneath, the great revealer of these visions unclear in the indifferent light […]
“What Language Shall I Borrow?” Why Christians Need Poetry
I have a love/hate relationship with poetry. My appreciation for the literary form swings on a pendulum between “Is there anything more beautiful than the crafting of words?” and “What in the world does this even mean and why did I waste my time reading it?” This is not necessarily due to a deficiency on the part of the poet […]
Vol. 33, No. 1 • Jan/Feb 2024
The Arts
Growing up, I always wanted to be an artist. I drew in my sketchbook whenever I had free time (all right, even when I was supposed to be doing something else). I don’t draw much anymore; I’ve long since moved on to other creative outlets. But I’m still awed by […]
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Old Problems, New Proponents: The Sufficiency of Scripture Debate in Our Day
The church today finds itself amidst a revived trend of advocating for hearing God speaking to his people apart from his word. While there are new figures in this movement, the content of their message is hardly original. One can think of late medieval mysticism’s emphasis on a mystical encounter with God […]
“A Different Way of Being,” by David Kirwa Tarus: A Review
I have had the pleasure of corresponding with David Kirwa Tarus while writing my children’s book on Byang Kato (an important African theologian). I have a high estimation of Tarus’s work in his African context, and I am a firm believer in the importance of learning from the global church because we can […]
“The Reformers and Education,” by Harley T. Atkinson: A Review
The Protestant Reformation sought to restore Christian doctrine and* *worship practice in accord with Scripture. But this had implications far beyond the walls of the church, impacting the home, the school, and society. Veteran educator Harley Atkinson gives us the broad sweep of educational change sparked […]
“Christians Reading Classics,” by Nadya Williams: A Review
This is a tough time to be a professor of classics, the study of ancient Greek and Roman literature and culture. Howard University has joined the ranks of those scrapping classics degrees, Princeton no longer requires classics majors to take Latin or Greek, and some are complaining that the whole discipline […]
