Creationism si educatie pe Agora Christi

Am pus pe Agora Christi o serie de linkuri spre documente sau articole cu privire la predarea creationismului in scolile europene. Discutia se va incinge serios in Romania, prin bunavointa strajerilor de la Humanism.ro.

Articol pe Agora Christi

Am postat un scurt articol despre religiozitatea la romani pe Agora Christi.

Emisiune despre Luther la BBC4

Aaron Shust, My Savior My God

Colocviul “Dumitru Cornilescu”

Intre 8-10 octombrie a.c. vor avea loc la Baile Felix lucrarile colocviului “Dumitru Cornilescu”, organizat anual de Radu Gheorghita, Emil Bartos si Aurel Burtic. Tema intilnirii din acest an va fi “Studiul Apocalipsei: Perspective Exegetice, Doctrinare si Homiletice”. Vor conferentia

Master - Studii interculturale si religioase

Cu mare intirziere fac si eu reclama la programul de master (Studii interculturale si religioase) in cadrul caruia predau. Iata anuntul aici:

Master in Studii Interculturale si Religioase

A tale of two Roses

The late Gillian Rose is a philosopher and social theorist whose books, The Broken Middle, Hegel Contra Sociology, Mourning Becomes the Law, and, to a smaller extent, Love’s Work provided some inspiration to my critique of post-structuralism scattered throughout parts of my doctoral work. Rose is a fascinating read. She did what few dared: critique poststructuralism at a time when most everyone that read French was head over heels with it. She was a Jewish thinker too, but a few years before her untimely death she converted to Christianity. That made her even more interesting for me. One major drawback, however, was

Saved from Sacrifice (II)

As I am progressing through Heim’s Saved From Sacrifice, I realise that sometimes initial impressions are mistaken. Heim, apparently, does not intend the association of Jesus’ sacrifice with human scapegoating practices to reveal the meaning of atonement, but, as he puts it, “We are focusing on how the cross

Saved From Sacrifice

How does one reinterpret what the atonement means today? Should one? One of my recent favorites, John Edwin Smith, an American pragmatist and Jonathan Edwards scholar, had this to say:

“When confronted with an item of faith, we want first to know what it means; and second, we want to know to what extent it is exhibited in and intelligibly related to our experience. To fail to ask these questions posed by the precariousness of our existence and the undeniable challenge to faith presented by the thought patterns of our secular world is to fall back on some form of authoritarianism. It is to suppose that the content of faith, which indeed we have only and always in earthen vessels, is to be preserved by bare repetition (i.e. by reciting a creed or citing biblical passages in response to questions ) without criticism and without reinterpretation. The quest for analogues of faith is at the same time a quest initiated by living faith for the means of overcoming doubt by attaining a sense that our faith is grounded in the structure of what there is, and is therefore more than self-indulgence or wishful thinking.” (The Analogy of Experience, p. 31).

Granted, to speak about ‘our faith being grounded in the structure of what there is’ does not sound all that pragmatist. Maybe that’s because

Boersma on divine violence

In Violence, Hospitality, and the Cross: Reappropriating the Atonement Tradition, Hans Boersma puts forward a convincing argument about the relationship between atonement and violence. It’s one of the most refreshing books I’ve read lately, given that it mixes a strong commitment to Evangelical views of Scripture with a sensitivity to the complex problems raised by postmodern thinkers.

The metaphor that guides his inquiry into the various other metaphors for atonement is hospitality, as that which Jesus’ outstretched arms on the cross signifies. From the beginning – and developing throughout history – God’s purpose has been that of restoring broken fellowship with humanity.

One of the features of the argument to which I warmed was

Working thesis on atonement and metaphor

My hunch about atonement

Why have I started to work on atonement theory? Here are a couple of reasons:

1. I need a locus of systematic theology where I can test and apply my theory about aspects in theology.
2. Although I am not a pragmatist by any stretch, the one thing I did learn from all these years of reading pragmatism is that faith must be related to lived experience if it is to have any meaning. Well, not meaning (strictly speaking), but something like intelligibility and plausibility. Here I owe a debt to John E. Smith’s reflections on faith and experience. Here the idea is that various atonement theories promote the myth of redemptive violence, thus

Stephen R. Holmes, The Wondrous Cross

I’ve just finished my review of Stephen R. Holmes, The Wondrous Cross: Atonement and Penal Substitution in the Bible and History (for Anvil) and there are a few comments that I wasn’t able to include in my review, due to space limitations.

First of all, it’s a great book. Stephen is lecturer in theology at St. Andrews University, and a Baptist minister. We’ve never met, but I’ve listened to him at a conference of the Society for the Study of Theology. If I’m not mistaken he’s a former student of Colin Gunton, and they were colleagues at KCL for a while. Oliver Crisp commends Stephen on the back cover as ‘one of the most interesting and thoughtful younger theologians at work in the UK today.’ That creates some expectation!

Although the book is written for a popular audience, it makes it pretty clear that we are dealing with a very skilled theologian. Obviously, Stephen knows not only theology, but how to teach theology. The book is abounding with examples, effective without exception.

Given the controversy

REVIEWS IN THEOLOGY

I am going to restart using this blog as a public notebook - a space where I will post thoughts, commentary, criticism, working questions and theses related to my current research projects. Part of this process includes publishing reviews of theological books. These will not be formal reviews - and certainly not reproductions of reviews I am commissioned to write for journals (copyright issues), but something like a running commentary, as I read through the book.

Why? Because the problem with notebooks is that

Living in Truth

The program of the ‘Living in Truth’ conference (September 2007, Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca) is finalized. Have a look inside (living_program_cam-final.doc) for an impressive and diverse list of participants. Also reading papers are two Romanian Evagelical theologians: Iosif Ton and Silviu Rogobete. My own paper is on the topic of ‘public theology’, probably (though I am still pondering) applied to the Romanian context over the presence of religious symbols in the ‘public’ space.

Darrell Bock la Metanoia

Sambata, 28 Iulie, Darrell L. Bock este invitat la Biserica Metanoia (Arad), unde va predica in cadrul intilnirii de seara. Prof. Bock preda in cadrul Dallas Theological Seminary si este unul dintre cei mai importanti specialisti in studiul Noului Testament. Drintre ultimele sale carti, amintesc doar doua: in Breaking the Da Vinci Code (2004) si The Missing Gospels: Unearthing the Truth Behind Alternative Christianities (2006).

Duminica, 29 iulie, Prof. Bock va tine o conferinta publica pe o tema care va fi anuntata. (urmareste site-ul Metanoia pentru detalii)

Hillsong United in Budapesta

Trends and Challenges of Congregational Leadership

International Baptist Theological Seminary (in Prague) is organizing a Director’s Conference on the theme of ‘Trends and Challenges of Congregational Leadership’. See the Registration Form

O alta pledoarie: pentru dialog teologic

Vezi aici un excelent articol al lui Eugen Matei (Fuller Theological Seminary). Din pacate sunt unul dintre cei zece teologi romani prezenti la ETS in Washington si mentionati de Eugen, dar care nu a reusit sa ajunga la intilnirea romanilor. Data viitoare.

Pledoarie pentru demnitate

 Pe Agora Christi, Danut Manastireanu, fost dascal si actual prieten si coleg, aduce o alta perspectiva asupra dependentei financiare, de data aceasta nu fata de stat, ci fata de sponsorii din strainatate. Citeste Pledoarie pentru demnitate si comenteaza!

Clarificari pe scurt

Sunt nevoit sa fac unele clarificari inainte de a-mi lua o pauza de aproximativ o luna de la blogging. Sunt doua motive pentru aceasta intrerupere (posibil a fi punctata pe alocuri cu scurte interventii care nu rapesc timp). 1) Sunt in urma cu finalizarea proiectului cartii despre care unii dintre voi stiti ca trebuie sa ajunga pe rafturi undeva prin septembrie. Pe linga acest proiect, urmeaza sa predau doua modulare intense care trebuie sa fie pregatite. 2) Am fost surprins de

Semn de viata pe AgoraChristi

Danut Manastireanu va propune spre reflectie textul intitulat ‘Presa impotriva democratiei‘, pe Agora Christi. Nu ca as vrea sa va deturnez atentia de la discutia utila despre salariile pastorilor, dar merita sa aruncati o privire si acolo.

Raspunsuri la comentarii

Apararea notiunii ca pastorii UBR ar trebui sa accepte salarii de la stat nu este una partizana, cum sugereaza Veres. Intimplator multi dintre prietenii mei buni, sustinatori ai lui Oti Bunaciu, resping aceasta idee, la fel cum o face si Oti Bunaciu in

Episodul 1: Ar trebui să accepte pastorii UBR salarii de la stat?

‘Propunerea de strategie’ semnata de Onisim Mladin este un document important, un bun punct de plecare in analiza candidaturii sale la presedintia UBR. Sunt foarte multe idei bune cuprinse in aceasta strategie. Nu pot sa le amintesc pe toate, chia daca sunt laudabile. Ma voi focaliza asupra acelor aspecte pe care le consider fie problematice, fie insuficient explicate, fie lipsite de o metodologie de aplicare.

Vorbind despre PRINCIPIUL SEPARATIEI BISERICII DE STAT, Mladin afirma ca ‘Pretul uceniciei trebuie platit de fiecare credincios, dupa cum si pretul misiunii interne si externe trebuie suportat de fiecare biserica locala. Dumnezeu nu ne-a chemat sa administram fondurile pe care Statul le-ar putea oferi bisericilor.’ Aceasta indica o continuare a liniei negrutiene a refuzului ajutorului statal in salarizarea pastorilor. Stiu ca sunt multi pastori (poate marea majoritate) care sunt de acord cu aceasta. Este o opinie demna de luat in seama. Sunt insa niste probleme legate de argumentatia menita a o sprijini.

Argumentul care pare sa convinga cel mai mult spune ca daca biserica ar accepta o salarizare statala a pastorilor, aceasta ar conduce la o aservire a ei fata de stat. Acesta din urma ar putea sa dicteze bisericilor ceea ce trebuie sa faca, sa spuna, si asa mai departe. Nu ni se spune insa cum ar putea sa survina acest control/manipulare. Sa presupunem totusi ca ar interveni. Si intr-o asemenea situatie biserica (prin UBR) ar putea face cel putin doua lucruri: in primul rind, poate sa refuze ajutorul statal primit pina la momentul imixtiunii nepermise. A doua parghie aflata la dispozitia noastra, cea mai recomandata dupa mine, este cea legala. O eventuala imixtiune a statului in problemele cultului, in organizarea lui administrativa sau doctrinara ar constitui o grava incalcare a constitutiei. Cred ca a venit vremea sa ne si bucuram de privilegiile pe care ni le ofera apartenenta la Uniunea Europeana, nu doar sa ne plingem (pe buna dreptate) de pericolele care vin de la Bruxelles (vezi drepturi pentru homosexuali samd.). O interventie, implicare, manipulare, incercare de control sau imixtiune a statului in problemele bisericii este la fel de neconstitutionala,

Serie de comentarii la strategia lui Onisim Mladin

Urmează să postez o serie de comentarii la strategia lui Onisim Mladin - candidat la presedintia UBR. In mod intentionat am incercat sa elimin anumite reflexe academice, cat am putut, si sa folosesc un limbaj cit mai normal. Aceasta pentru ca nu ma adresez unei “elite” teologice sau academice, ci baptiştilor de rând interesaţi în viitorul UBR.

Dacă mai este nevoie afirm încă o dată aprecierea şi respectul, precum şi dragostea creştinească faţă de ambii candidaţi.

Vă invit să cântăriţi bine cele spuse, să le comentaţi, să sugeraţi îmbunătăţiri, să faceţi corecturi etc.

Bono and poverty

Read this superb piece by Ryan T. Anderson, a junior fellow at First Things, on why ‘Bono still hasn’t find what he’s  looking for’. Hats off to Bono for trying and for mobilising public and especially Evangelical opinion the way he has, but this is an unbelievable waste of money. Could there be a lesson here? Maybe it is inherently impossible to reduce poverty by playing the chords of the very consumerist mindset that so often leads to it? Can we have it both ways? It woud be nice: the rich get richer while they help the poor. I wonder who benefited the most from the 100 million dollar advertising campaing, whose cash value for Afria was a pathetic 18 million? I cannot help thinking that it was the Armani’s, the Gaps and others. They could use an image lift anyway, with all that is going on around about their sweatshop factories.

Tackling the poverty situation by turning it into a profit-making solution for the big companies may not work. But is it reasonable to hope for anything close to a change of heart, of spending habits, not to mention altering those economic policies which might themselves contribute to the widening of the gap between rich and poor? Can we, that is, hope for this here on earth?

Onisim Mladin - strategie - comentarii - prolegomena

Încep aici o serie de posturi pe marginea viitoarelor alegeri pentru Uniunea Baptistă. Acest post se rezumă la punctarea unor precizări, clarificări etc.

1. Nu cred că alegerea viitorului preşedinte al UBR trebuie să se facă doar pe baza

Silence: I’m thinking!

Sunt adâncit în reflecţie asupra documentului strategic din partea fr. Mladin. Sunt multe de comentat cu privire la ceea ce este până la urmă o propunere pozitivă. Pe curând…

Strategia: Onisim Mladin

Vezi linkul aici.

Răscrucea Uniunii Baptiste…

Urmează să apară cea de-a doua “declaraţie program” pentru viitorul UBR. Urmăreşte Pătrăţosu. Ar fi într-adevăr un punct de cotitură, dacă alegerile se vor desfăşura pe baza unor strategii-viziuni-programe-planuri, decât pe baza încrederii neţărmurite în lideri. Aştept cu interes deosebit această propunere secundă. Mai ales că încă nu se ştie (sau nu ştiu eu) cine va candida.

Locul Scripturii in traditia ortodoxa

Azi dimineaţă am primit această semnalizare editorială chiar de la autor. Cartea lui Dănuţ Mănăstireanu este o interacţiune cu locul tradiţiei în teologia ortodoxă. Fiind teza lui de master, am lucrat, ca student, cu ea şi pot spune că este un text extrem de judicios, o abordare riguroasă dar în acelaşi timp prietenoasă cu mari maeştri ai teologiei ortodoxe. Aştept să o primesc şi apoi poate mă voi încumeta la o disecare mai adâncă. (Dă click pe poze pentru imaginea întreagă!)