Protestantism, Revolution and Scottish Political Thought: The European Context, 1637‒1651. By Karie Schultz. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2024. 208 pp. $110 (hardback). Historians have often assumed that “political concepts traditionally associated with the modern state ‒ such as consent of the governed, parliamentary sovereignty or the election of magistrates” are correlated with “a process of…
A minister holds a strange position in society. He wears black from head to toe. He is neither blue-collar nor white-collar, but is vocationally connected to both and called to minister to both. In fact, his collar is black all the way to his neck, until a hint of white wraps around the neck to…
It is widely recognized that the term “sacrament” has historically been a flexible one, even after the early church adopted it from the broader milieu of Roman culture into a specifically Christian context: “The commoner use of the word is either for a sacred rite in general, an outward sign of some more hidden reality—or…
Anglicanism has theological landmarks and boundaries guiding the flock and fencing in the faithful clergy less they lead their flocks in error. Unfortunately, these fences have been routinely ignored, circumvented, broken, and left in disrepair thereby leading flocks astray, ministers confused, and Christians in general questioning whether Anglicans have any standards of belief. The saying…
The Triumph of the Slippers: On the Withdrawal from the World. By Pascal Bruckner. Translated by Cory Stockwell. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press, 2024. 118 pp. $19.95 (hardback). The thesis of this book is presented on the second page: “This generation is in no way ready to face adversity.” The author contends that some of the…
It is a matter of historical fact—invoked by the Article and observed by Browne—that the early church conducted its public prayers in tongues “understanded of the people”: Greek, Latin, and Syriac were languages spoken by the great bulk of the nations first converted to Christianity; and therefore the earliest liturgies and translations of the Scriptures…
As I write, it is St. Augustine’s feast day. This saint perhaps has shaped Christian theology and orthodoxy more than any other since St. Paul. Yet many forget, omit, and outright never knew that yesterday was the feast day of his mother, Saint Monica. It’s poetic and appropriate that Augstine’s mother should precede him, for…
Saint Thomas and the Forbidden Birds. By James Matthew Wilson. Grove Village, IL: Word on Fire, 2024. 128 pp. $24.99 (hardcover). The current state of poetry in our day is marked by its unanchored and erratic character. As an art form, poetry stands isolated like an unfamiliar relative at the family reunion. We do not…
Concerning the practice of ordaining women, Browne is silent. This is not unusual for the time in which he wrote, when it was rare, but at least a couple of other commentators do touch on the subject. Thomas Rogers writes that those ordained “are to be men, not boys nor women,” and that they are…
In modern Christianity, Anglicanism is often misunderstood, even by its most devoted adherents. This is undoubtedly true for a variety of reasons, but the result is that we often do a pretty poor job of articulating the essence of Anglicanism, and that’s partly because it’s a trickier proposal to articulate than “we’re Catholic” or “we’re…
