I have had quite a number of debates with atheists over the years, but because of this Collision documentary, this last series of debates with Christopher Hitchens has been the first time I have ever been able to review any of the game footage. And the views on the You Tube trailer are well over 23,000, which is fun. I am really excited about this film, for a number of reasons, and so let me talk about it a little bit more here.

First, Darren Doane has many, many active hours and angles to choose from, which means that it will not be a fixed camera or two and some talking heads. And it is plain from what I have seen thus far that the whole thing is being handled with real biblical integrity. Both Christopher and I are being given our clean shots, and nobody is going to be edited into a victory or defeat.

Second, I am really pleased with the general format that is unfolding. I believe that there are many young people, both inside the faith and out, who really need to work through these fundamental issues of life, and who would not do so if the whole thing were too C-Spanny.

And last, some of the blog chatter has revealed a new category of individual to me. Everyone who has ever debated anything at all knows that debates are not like football games where the score is more or less objective. People come expecting their guy to win, and usually depart in the serene conviction that he has done so quite handily. That's human nature, and the consequent nature of debates. But in all this there has been a handful of Christian folks who have been kinda sorta giving the palm to Christopher for various reasons best known to their mothers, and it gratifies me to know that this documentary will do absolutely nothing to fix any of that. A movie has got to know its limitations.

Just one last post here, and I am caught up with Green Baggins. Look at me go.

There are four basic issues to respond to in this post. The first is that Lane says, completely misunderstanding everything, that the "FV definition of the covenant" says that the "covenant of grace is undifferentiated between the elect and the non-elect." This, despite the fact that over the last number of years I have made clear that the covenant of grace is not undifferentiated between the elect and the non-elect, and have done so more times than Carter's got pills. I don't know what to do anymore, so I will just stand here forlorn, arms hanging by my sides.

On second thought, I do need to say something. I will be calm. I will be as cool as the other side of the pillow. If Lane can say this, and he is one of the few guys on the other side trying to understand us, heaven knows what everybody... Continue Reading

Posted by Douglas Wilson - 11/18/2008 11:13:02 PM | Link to this post | Print this post | 7 Responses

. . . for the next four years, minimum.

Here is my next installment in getting caught up with Green Baggins. I will not be trying to pick up the thread of discussion that was going on prior to this, but simply reply to some of Lane's concerns expressed in this post.

Lane says, "I really challenge the assertion that repentance and faith are only indirectly from God." So do I actually. Paul plants, Apollos waters, and there you have the external instruments and means. But God gives the increase, and He does so immediately and directly (1 Cor. 3:6). The difference God's direct gift makes can be readily seen in the fellow who enjoyed all the same planting and watering, but who did not believe. Why did he not? Because God withheld the blessing.

Think of it this way. God's direct gift is His blessing of the intermediate means. If He does not bless those means, then those means will be fruitless. The only thing I would want to re... Continue Reading

Posted by Douglas Wilson - 11/18/2008 9:31:02 AM | Link to this post | Print this post | 4 Responses

I am just emerging from a busy season, and now have some time to get back to a promise I made to Lane over at Green Baggins. That promise was to finish our conversation, and so here I am. There were three posts of Lane's, as I understand it, that were waiting for a reply from me.

The first has to do with my historical/eschatological church distinction, as a supplement to (not a replacement for) the visible/invisible church distinction. Lane says that my distinction is diachronic, which is exactly true and was the central point of it, while the traditional distinction is synchronic, which is also true, and which is the reason why that distinction needed... Continue Reading

Posted by Douglas Wilson - 11/17/2008 5:26:35 PM | Link to this post | Print this post | 38 Responses

The word apeitheo relates to unbelief and disobedience both. It is important for us as classical Protestants to distinguish them, but is equally important for us to refuse to separate them. Far too many tight Protestants, zealous for what they believe to be the truth, are willing to sacrifice sola Scriptura on the altar of sola fide. But of course, God doesn't want that, and He doesn't want it to go the other way either. The relationship of faith and obedience, and also ... Continue Reading

Posted by Douglas Wilson - 11/17/2008 1:31:40 PM | Link to this post | Print this post | 12 Responses

"Why do we marry, why take friends and lovers, why give ourselves to music, painting, chemistry, or cooking? Out of simple delight in the resident goodness of creation, of course; but out of more than that, too. Half of earth's gorgeousness lies hidden in the glimpsed city it longs to become. For all its rooted loveliness, the world has no continuing city here; it is an outlandish place, a foreign home, a session in via to a better version of itself -- and it is our glory to see it so and thirst until Jerusalem comes home at last. We are given appetites, not to consume the world and forget it, but to taste its goodness and hunger to make it great" (Robert Farrar Capon, The Supper of the Lamb, p. 189).

"Some excellent brethren seem to think more of the life than of the truth; for when I warn them that the enemy has poisoned the children's bread, they answer, 'Dear brother, we are sorry to hear it; and, to counteract the evil, we will open the window, and give the children fresh air.' Yes, open the window, and give them fresh air, by all means . . . Arrest the poisoners, and open the windows, too. While men go on preaching false doctrine, you may talk as much as you will about deepening their spiritual life, but you will fail in it" (Charles Spurgeon, An All-Round Ministry, p. 374).

"I have defined postmodernism as a turning from rationality, and at the same time an embracing of spectacle . . . The image waits for a political life . . . . There are more reasons to fear fascism than communism in a postmodern world. For one thing, fascism is anti-intellectual (communism is predicated on 'scientific' theories). Fascism requires no rational basis other than the acceptance of a charismatic leader riding on sheer 'will to power.' However, it is also true that fascism likes to prey on demoralized and desperate societies. Hitler, for example, fed off desperate times that required desperate measures. While America is becoming more anti-intellectual (irrational), we are not yet demoralized or desperate. A consistently strong economy and a high standard of living has both spoiled us and kept us from danger. We seem to be safe for now, but the future arrives much faster than it used to . . . Such a landscape will eventually create, I think, some extraordinary opportunities for political sophistry . . . A dangerous soup is cooking" (Arthur Hunt, The Vanishing Word, p. 228).

It has been a while since I went off on postmodernism, which is clear proof that I have been being good, so allow me this oblique observation. With the election of Barack Obama, we now have in the White House the kind of protean shape-shifter ideally fitted for the pomo ethos. This provides us with a nice blend of that up and coming pomostance with old-fashioned political hypocrisy, or rather, what they call in campaigns "experience." For those who still believe that an argument ought to lead to something, and that fixed conclusions are a good thing, this promises to be an exasperating four years.

But it will not do to turn back the civic clock to a secular political modernism. That is what got us here, for crying out loud. When you are watching a movie on your DVD, and it turns out to be a real dog, you don't go back to the beginning and try it again. It will simply do the same thing to you again. Why wouldn't it?

Modernism pretends to have the truth, but without humility. Postmodernism pretends to have the humility, but without the truth. Modernism was a bad dream. Postmodernism is the cold sweats right before you wake up. Wake up O sleeper, and Christ will shine upon you.

Let me take this opportunity to commend this ministry to you. Remarkable things are happening in that part of the world, and the Slavic Reformation Society is part of it.

This exhortation concerns something we do in every worship service, and consequently it is possible for the whole thing to start becoming "old hat." I am referring to the practice of psalm singing, and want to urge you to not do it in a way that we can simply check off our list. "Sang my quota of psalms today, or this week. Off to do something else"

This is something that we get to do. This is an enormous privilege, and not a burdensome duty.

We are told in Scripture that we are to sing a new song to the Lord—this is not a reference to how old the song is, or how long you have known it. The word refers to the quality, the freshness, of the singing. When the Spirit moves, ancient songs come alive. When He does not, the song may have been written last week—and while it may be contemporary, it is not new. At the same time, we must also insist that while songs are not necessarily be dead because they are old, they can be dead and old both. And songs of recent composition can be really good. But if sluggish people sing them, the problem will become apparent quite quickly.

I say all this because we are working on our monthly psalm sings, and there is one tonight, and we are not doing this by trying to rearrange the musical furniture. That can be a help, but that is not the heart of the matter. I urge you to come this evening, prepared to overflow with songs you know, and to eagerly take in songs that you don’t know. And both kinds will be a new song.

In Psalm 104: 14-15, we are told that God feeds the world. As part of this, the psalmist mentions wine and bread as part of God’s great gift. He tells us that bread is given to strengthen the heart of man, and that wine is given to gladden the heart of man.

As we gather at the Lord’s Table, these are two things we must remember. It is true of food generally, and it is certainly true of this sacramental food. When God gives you something to strengthen you, this means that you need to be strengthened. If you didn’t need, God would not be piling superfluous gifts on you. And in the same way, when God gives you wine to gladden your heart, this means that your heart needs to be gladdened.

Christians are too often weak, and they are too often sorrowful. Because of this, God brings you what is most needful. He brings you strength in the form of bread, and He brings you joy in a cup, the joy of the new covenant.

The bread, of course, is the body of the Lord, which means that you commune with His body, and you commune with one another—for you are His body. If you want to know where a great deal of the strength is, look around you. God has given you strength in the bread He has given you. And He has done the same thing with joy. For this, just listen. Listen to the psalms, and to the harmonies, and to the words of joy. So come—bread for strength, and wine for joy.

I just finished a book that was more informative than good. The author had some really decent observations and concerns, but that was not the really illuminating part. The illuminating part was his simple reporting. The book was called Fame Junkies, and I heard the author, Jake Halpern, being interviewed on Ken Myers' Mars Hill audio journal, which is also worth your time. I get a lot of worthwhile book recommendations there.

At any rate, Halpern outlines in detail how much money and time numerous parents throw away in order for their child to become Britney Spears. The whole industry devoted to the lottery of fame is simply astounding.

So if you are a parent, and your kid knows what a head shot is, wants to audition for American Idol as many times as they will allow, and is disgracing the family name in some narcisstic fashion on Facebook, this book really is a must read. When Jesus taught us how to get ahead -- the first will be last, and the last first -- He was not referring to every aspect of life except the entertainment industry. When He taught us that the way to succeed is to die, He did not have any exceptions in mind.

At a recent conference, I had said a few things about some of the unnatural things that we call natural these days, and during one of the breaks a pleasant and informed young lady let me know something about fat-free milk, about which I must have said something. I must have said something like "never drink milk that is blue around the edges," or something similar.

She informed me that skim milk could be a lot worse, and is as opaque and as white as it is because of . . . everybody sit down now . . . an additive called titanium white. In other words, without that additive -- perfectly harmless I bet because additives usually are -- the skim milk would look a lot more like the dirty water that it naturally resembles. But when I use the word naturally here, I do not mean that there is anything natural about any of this. I checked this young lady's report out, and sure enough, the industrialists have figured out how to paint your health milk.

Another way to do this -- and it would conserve the amounts of titanium white used -- would be to paint the outside of the jug with it, and then drink the milk falsely so-called with one's eyes closed. We could do it that way.

I was thinking about the financial monkeyshines of the really smart people who have been running our major insurance companies, brokerage houses, and banks, and I was also thinking about the solons who are passing these lunatic bailouts, and a passage of Scripture came to me. It is not talking about high finance, but it is most certainly talking about the same kind of people. Everything you might want to know about the stimulus packages headed your way is found in the last italicized phrase.

That was terrible. Let's go do it some more.

Christianity Today has a collection of clips, links, and photos from the debate tour. Here.

Many thanks for the good discussion on the previous post. Obviously more is needed. In fact, when I consider the shape we're in, more is desperately needed.

I say the Apostles' Creed far more often than I say the Pledge. And when I say the Pledge of Allegiance, as noted already, it is not without qualification or reserve. It is not right for any creature to give unqualified loyalty to any fallen creature. At the same time, it is necessary -- because of my own fallenness -- to give that allegiance. To sort this out, we need to get back to basics on the matter of government.

The ultimate lord over all things in heaven and on earth is the Lord Jesus Christ. The God of this world is not the devil, not since the cross, and the God of this world is the Lord Jesus. So all authority is His, and all subordinate forms of authority have to be calibrated to His. Ideally, they will be calibrated both by those who wield the authority and by those who submit to it. But ... Continue Reading

Posted by Douglas Wilson - 11/12/2008 9:40:45 AM | Link to this post | Print this post | 70 Responses

The last day or so Nancy and I have had the wonderful privilege of visiting the folks at Trinitas Christian School in Pensacola, and were wonderfully impressed with the work they are doing as a classical and Christian school. What a marvelous place. Last night I spoke for them on "The Paideia of God," and in the question and answer session afterwards, a question was asked about my involvement in the political process. That is, do I vote and do I say the pledge of allegiance? The answer is an unqualified yes to the first question, and a qualified yes to the second. On the pledge, I won't say "indivisible," because that is an attribute of God alone, and I won't say God without making it clear I am talking about the Father of Jesus Christ. With those caveats, I am a loyal American citizen and have no trouble telling our flag that I like it -- even though it seems to need reassurances con... Continue Reading

Posted by Douglas Wilson - 11/11/2008 12:21:22 PM | Link to this post | Print this post | 50 Responses

So then, how has American Christianity come to this spot. To answer the question, we have to remember what R.L. Dabney once said, ". . . it is essential to your own future that you shall learn the history of the past truly." As we seek to pass on a legacy to our children, we keep getting tripped up by what we think happened to our fathers. So as we finish this very short thumbnail sketch of the history of Christ's Church, we must always take care to remember that it is His church, and He will care for her throughout all history, as He has to this point.

We need to have tender hearts and tough minds. In the course of his discourse on spiritual gifts, Paul exhorts the Corinthians to grow up intellectually. He attaches one warning to this -- they were to remain child-like in the area of malice. Their demeanor was to be ... Continue Reading

Posted by Douglas Wilson - 11/11/2008 8:33:08 AM | Link to this post | Print this post | 6 Responses

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