The Iliad And The Avengers: Will The Real Spiderman Please Stand Up? The Illiad and The Avengers may have more in common than you think. With Stan Less’s recent death, I started thinking about his work and Homer’s work. Especially and specifically, The Iliad and The Avengers. There are some interesting comparisons here and perhaps some observations of value. I ...

Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, / It is well, it is well with my soul. —Horatio Spafford, “It Is Well With My Soul” (1873) This is God’s universal purpose for all Christian suffering: more contentment in God and less satisfaction in self and the world. —John Piper, Desiring God (1996) So Much Stuff A family of ...

The only alternative to the doctrine of predestination is the assertion of the reign of total chance, of meaninglessness and brute factuality. —Rousas J. Rushdoony, The Biblical Philosophy of History (1979)  I did nothing; the Word did it all. —Martin Luther, The Second Sermon (1522) Just meaningless names and dates.  That’s how many perceive the study of history.  And if ...

It’s not a stretch in any sense to say that our postmodern world no longer believes in absolute truth. Objective knowledge and absolute truth are long since gone. Fragmentation, multi-culturalism, and rejection of any overarching meaning are now culturally normal assumptions. In essence, truth is “truth” for the moment. It becomes “truth” for this group of people or that group ...

Socialists are not against property as such; they are generally hostile to private property, and they transfer all or most property rights to the state. Rousas J. Rushdoony, Law and Liberty (1977) 19th century critics warned that under a regime of comprehensive socialism the ordinary citizen would be confronted with the worst of all imaginable tyrannies. Richard M. Ebeling, “Why Socialism Is ...

Measuring Our Responsibilities According To Jesus Jesus speaks to the principle of measuring our responsibilities and its connection to stewardship several times in His parables.  In Luke 12, for example, He describes a good steward, one who, in his master’s absence, faithfully administers his estate.  Jesus promises that such a steward will receive a rich reward:  “Truly, I say unto ...

The Incredibles and Moral Absolutes DC and Marvel comics often use genetic mutation or magic to explain the existence of superheroes and their powers. The Incredibles offers no explanations. This is fantasy, and the film simply asks us to suspend disbelief. Far more central to a good analysis of the film are the ethical standards it assumes and the ethical ...

Jesus once told a parable about a vineyard owner and some workers goes something like this (Matt. 20:1-16): A householder, the owner of a vineyard, went out early in the morning to hire some workers for his vineyard. There was normally quite a few of guys hanging out in the village marketplace looking for work according to the story. The vineyard ...

This is my response to a young pastor who had questions about boys and summer.  He said found it helpful. By Greg Uttinger Dear Pastor, First, I don’t have any divine revelation on the topic of boys and summer.  And please remember:  I have three girl-children, and we are a kind of nerdy/literary family.  Anyway, here are my suggestions. See what you ...

Have you ever thought about using the knowledge of God to think more accurately? Theologians sometimes speak of the simplicity of God.  By this, they mean that God doesn’t have parts.  He isn’t partly this and partly that.  God isn’t mostly this with a bit of that tossed in.  He is light.  God is love, justice and truth. His attributes are identical with ...