This is the second installment of my series of reflections on Herman Dooyeweerd’s little book, In the Twilight of Western Thought. If you’re following along in this series or you’re part of the Kirby Laing Centre’s Junior Scholars Hub, welcome back! This week I’m reflecting on chapter 2: “The Concentric Character Read more…
The KLC Junior Scholars’ Reading Group looking at Herman Dooyeweerd’s book In the Twilight of Western Thought has begun, and our first session proved fascinating and thought-provoking for me. Besides Mike’s monthly posts going through each chapter ahead of our discussing it, we’ll also have some reflections from participants. I Read more…
As we tiptoe tentatively through the first weeks of 2022, wondering what lies ahead for us this year, I’ve been musing on an attitude which I’ve seen cropping up in a few different places recently – most obviously in the title of the rather universally panned Netflix mockumentary ‘Death to Read more…
When I was a young child visiting my grandparents, they often had a detective show on the TV. I can still picture Perry Mason encouraging some distraught woman to give him, “Just the facts, ma’am.” It was believed that if the bare facts themselves became known, the puzzle would certainly Read more…
I’m recovering from a Covid infection as I write. It’s been a mild one, like a dry flu, and for this I feel grateful for the vaccinations I received back in the summer. Even before contracting Covid-19, I was planning to write about the biological aspect of this epidemic – Read more…
If we want to bring the Bible into political life, we cannot do so too directly. Or so we are told. Many in Western Europe wince when politicians elsewhere quote verses to support their positions, sensing that Scripture is being co-opted. The British especially are much more comfortable with an Read more…
This week I will be giving my final lecture in a first-year university course that I’ve been teaching each Fall for a few years. It’s an overview of the Bible, Genesis 1 to Revelation 22, in one semester, based on the excellent book by Michael Goheen and Craig Bartholomew, The Read more…
‘Do miracles really happen? Is there a God or gods who actively intervene in human history?’ Lydia McCutcheon reflects on engaging with accounts of divine intervention as a historian.
At my university this semester, I’ve been thinking a lot about money. I think I’ve always thought about money over the sixteen years I’ve been here. That’s partly because it’s a university with a history and tradition of drawing some of the most affluent students in our area. It’s partly Read more…
“I will always obey your law, for ever and ever. I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts.” (Psalm 119:44-45) Academic freedom is a frequent talking point in our times – it’s often seen as under threat, whether it’s the government waging a war against Read more…