In this interview, we welcome Dr. Vern Poythress to discuss his book Redeeming Science: A God Centered Approach. Given the predominant view of conflict between science and religion, how do we as Christians faithfully approach both Scripture and the world around us? What is scientific law, and how is it an “analogous mystery” of the attributes of the Triune God? Why is there so much naturalistic philosophy masquerading as the findings of science? How do we affirm the (real) science without affirming the “metaphysical musings” of scientists? Is there any room for outside considerations when approaching the text of Scripture? Vern takes us through these questions and more, as we do a deep-dive into how faithful Christians should approach all that God has revealed. Christians can affirm the ordinary and the complexity of specialized knowledge as we – based on Scripture – develop what Dr. Poythress calls the “Standpoint of Nonreductive Affirmation of Comprehensive Coherence”. Book: Redeeming Science: A God-Centered Approach Website Some other books by Dr. Poythress: Interpreting Eden: A Guide to Faithfully Reading and Understanding Genesis 1-3 Science and Hermeneutics Making Sense of Man: Using Biblical Perspectives to Develop a Theology of Humanity Making Sense of the World: How the Trinity Helps to Explain Reality Redeeming Mathematics Redeeming Philosophy The Returning King: A Guide to the Book of Revelation The Mystery of the Trinity Inerrancy and Worldview: Answering Modern Challenges to the Bible Inerrancy and the Gospels: A God-Centered Approach to the Challenge of Harmonization “Dispensing with Merely Human Meaning: Gains and Losses from Focusing on the Human Author, Illustrated by Zephaniah 1:2-3" “Counterfeiting in the Book of Revelation as a Perspective on Non-Christian Culture” Lecture: Design in Language Other resources: Westminster Confession 1.7 “A Conditional Resolution of the Apparent Paradox of Self-Deception" by Greg Bahnsen (also see here, and here) “Why I Believe in God?” by Cornelius Van Til Commentary on Genesis (2 Vol.’s) by John Calvin A Christian View of Science and Scripture by Bernard Ramm Richard Dawkins by Ransom Poythress The Dawkins Delusion?: Atheist Fundamentalism and the Denial of the Divine by Alister McGrath and Joanna Collicutt McGrath The Bible Among the Myths by John Oswalt Religion and the Rise of Modern Science by R. Hooykaas The Fall of Man and the Foundations of Science; The Bible, Protestantism and the rise of natural science by Peter Harrison The Savior of Science; The Origins of Science and the Science of Its Origins by Stanley Jaki Admirable Evasions by Theodore Dalrymple Confessions; The City of God; The Literal Meaning of Genesis by Augustine
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1:28:16
145. Leonardo De Chirico on Pope Francis
In this episode, we interview Dr. Leonardo De Chirico about Pope Francis and the legacy of his pontificate. From Jorge Bergoglio’s earlier days as a Jesuit priest, to his official theology as the head of the Roman Catholic Church - what is Francis’s theology, and what is his relation to Roman Catholicism, more generally? Leo takes us through these questions and more, with a particular focus on the accurate understanding of the system of Roman Catholic theology and practice. Far from being someone new and novel – Pope Francis is fully Roman Catholic, in continuity with Roman Catholic “tradition”, and who has spoken clearly in his media appearances, reflecting and directing the Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church. Join us as Dr. De Chirico helps us understand the legacy of Pope Francis, and why it matters going forward.Reformanda InitiativeVatican FilesBooks by Dr. De Chirico:- Engaging Thomas Aquinas: An Evangelical Approach (also here)- A Christian’s Pocket Guide to the Papacy- A Christian’s Pocket Guide to Mary: Mother of God? - Same Words, Different Worlds: Do Roman Catholics and Evangelicals Believe the Same Gospel?- Evangelical Theological Perspectives on post-Vatican II Roman CatholicismHighlights from Pope Francis’ original and official sources:- Lumen Fidei- Evangelii Gaudium- Laudato Si- Querida Amazonia- Fratelli Tutti- Fiducia Supplicans- Dilexit Nos- Address of His Holiness to Interreligious Meeting with Young People- Message of the Holy Father Francis To Participants In the International Meeting for Peace Also see:- “Lumen Gentium” (“Ecumenical Council”: Vatican II)- “Evangelii Praecones” (Pope Pius XII)- Regensburg Lecture (Pope Benedict XVI)Highlights from Vatican Files:- “Lumen Fidei. The First Encyclical by Pope Francis”- “The Joy of the Gospel. A Window into Francis’ Vision”- “A ‘Green’ Pope?”- “Pope Francis Fears for the Planet, but Where is the Gospel?”- “Querida Amazonia: A Reinforcement of Pope Francis’ Missiology”- “‘All Brothers’: The Unbearable Cost of Roman Catholic Universalism”- “‘God has many ways to save.’: Cardinal Cantalamessa and Roman Catholic Universalism”- “The icing on the cake of Pope Francis. The Blessing of Same-Sex Unions”- “More than the heart of Jesus, the heart of Roman Catholicism. On the latest encyclical of Pope Francis”Other resources:- Roman Catholic Theology and Practice: An Evangelical Assessment by Gregg Allison- Revolution in Rome; The Courage to Be Protestant by David Wells- Karl Rahner by Camden Bucey-The Great Reformer: Francis and the Making of a Radical Pope by Austen IvereighClip 1: (Conservative?) Bishop Robert Barron on The Ben Shapiro Show, Ep. 31Clip 2/3: Pope Francis: The 60 Minutes Interview Clip 4: Pope: All religions are paths to GodClip 5: Pope Francis consoles a boy who asked if his father is in HeavenClip 6: Cardinal Dolan on significance of Pope Francis dying after Easter
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1:21:27
144. Mark David Hall on Christianity and American History
In this episode, we welcome Dr. Mark David Hall to discuss his book Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land: How Christianity Has Advanced Freedom and Equality for All Americans. Who were the Puritans and did they fit the stereotypes modern people often have of them? What was the context of the Salem Witch Trials? Did the American War for Independence fit within or violate the Christian tradition of Just War Theory? Does the evils of slavery define American ideals? How do we properly evaluate the orthodoxy of the Founding Fathers and/or the principles that motivated them? Mark takes us through questions such as these, and more – as he demonstrates that Christianity has been a force for good and a reason for progress in our history, in spite of secular narratives on the contrary. Book: Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land: How Christianity Has Advanced Freedom and Equality for All Americans Dr. Mark David Hall’s website Other books written and edited by Dr. Hall: Did America Have a Christian Founding?: Separating Modern Myth from Historical Truth Who’s Afraid of Christian Nationalism?: Why Christian Nationalism is Not an Existential Threat to America or the Church Roger Sherman and the Creation of the American Republic America and the Just War Tradition Great Christian Jurists in American History (also edited by Daniel Dreisbach) Collected Works of Roger Sherman (also see here) Other resources: Dominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World by Tom Holland Victory of Reason by Rodney Stark Destroyer of the Gods by Larry Hurtado The Puritans: A Transatlantic History by David D. Hall The Witch: A History of Fear, from Ancient Times to the Present by Ronald Hutton The Hebrew Republic by Eric Nelson Reading the Bible with the Founding Fathers by Daniel Dreisbach The American Revolution; The Americanization of Benjamin Franklin by Gordon Wood Thomas Jefferson – Revolutionary: A Radical’s Struggle to Remake America; James Madison and the Making of America by Kevin Gutzman The Fearless Benjamin Lay: The Quaker Dwarf Who Became the First Revolutionary Abolitionist by Marcus Rediker Separation of Church and State; Liberal Suppression: Section 501(c)(3) and the Taxation of Speech by Philip Hamburger Christianity and Liberalism by J. Gresham Machen E.g. John Locke: here; Thomas Jefferson: here and here; John Adams: here; Rev. King: here and here “The Disturbing Legacy of Charles Finney”; Christless Christianity by Michael Horton
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1:21:54
143. Lydia McGrew on the Historical Reliability of the Easter Story
In this episode, we welcome back Dr. Lydia McGrew to discuss the accounts of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ in the Gospels. What are some of the most popular criticisms of the Resurrection accounts, and how should we think through the issues involved? Considering the widespread dismissal of Christ’s bodily resurrection (in time and space), as well as what is often poor argumentation in defense of it - Lydia helps us to think through the evidence of the Resurrection of Jesus. What are undesigned coincidences, and how do they bolster the historical reliability of the Gospel accounts? What is harmonization and are all attempts at harmonization created equal? There are differences, yes – but can they be responsibly harmonized? Indeed, is the evidence reliable and compelling for all people to be confronted by the claims of and about Jesus even today? Lydia also helps us to distinguish between evidence-based scholarship, and scholarship that is self-referential as “authoritative” - and tells us why simply relying on rhetoric of “consensus” and “a [supposed] majority of scholars” fall short of actual defense of the Christian claims. Dr. McGrew’s Website; YouTube Channel; Podcast (past archive up to October 2024); Current podcast link“Development Theories Are All Bunk” Books by Lydia: Hidden in Plain View: Undesigned Coincidences in the Gospels and Acts The Mirror or the Mask: Liberating the Gospels from Literary Devices - Review of Michael Licona’s Why Are There Differences in the Gospels? The Eye of the Beholder: The Gospel of John as Historical Reportage Testimonies to the Truth: Why You Can Trust the Gospels Related article: “The Argument from Miracles: A Cumulative Case for the Resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth” by Timothy and Lydia McGrew Other Resources: Easter Enigma by John Wenham “Receipt for Writing a Life of Jesus like that of Dr. David Fr. Strauss” by H.B. Hackett “The Resurrection of Christ a Historical Fact” by B.B. Warfield The Witness of the Synoptic Gospels to Christ by Ned Stonehouse Christianity and Liberalism; The Origin of Paul’s Religion by J. Gresham Machen The Final Days of Jesus by Andreas Kostenberger, Justin Taylor and Alexander Stewart Passing on the Right: Conservative Professors in the Progressive University by Jon A. Shields and Joshua M. Dunn, Sr. “Viewpoint Diversity in the Academy” by Jonathan Haidt Ending Medical Reversal: Improving Outcomes, Saving Lives by Vinayak K. Prasad and Adam S. Cifu (also see here, here and here) False Positive: A Year of Error, Omission, and Political Correctness in the New England Journal of Medicine; Admirable Evasions by Theodore Dalrymple
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1:01:16
142. Ardel Caneday on Perseverance and Assurance
In this episode, we welcome Dr. Ardel Caneday to discuss his book The Race Set Before Us: A Biblical Theology of Perseverance and Assurance. When Jesus teaches “But the one who endures to the end will be saved” - how should we understand this text? How should Christians approach the juxtaposition of promise and warning in scripture without doing damage to the assurance of salvation on one hand, and the warnings toward perseverance in holiness on the other? Dr. Caneday takes us through some of the major issues involved and responds to some of the negative criticism he’s received for the book. Book: The Race Set Before Us: A Biblical Theology of Perseverance and Assurance by Thomas Schreiner and Ardel Caneday Dr. Caneday’s blog: All Things Christian “The Gospel Announces God’s Last Day Verdict for All Who Believe in Jesus Christ: Justified and Sins Forgiven” Faith and Perseverance by G.C. Berkouwer “New Lies for Old: The False Gospels of Anti-Mormonism" (Jason Wallace)
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