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Articles by: Matlock Bobechko

Of Secular and Sacred Wisdom: Socrates —

Part III. “What has Athens to do with Jerusalem?” Juxtaposing the ancient wisdom of the Athenian gadfly and Jerusalem’s philosopher king.

Of Secular and Sacred Wisdom: Socrates —

Part III. “What has Athens to do with Jerusalem?” Juxtaposing the ancient wisdom of the Athenian gadfly and Jerusalem’s philosopher king.

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The ancient Near East held to a spiritually intimate, yet cosmic view of wisdom, a kind of judicial sovereignty over chaos and order. Israel identified this source of wisdom as Yahweh––the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob––who was also the Creator of the cosmos and
Of Water, Wind and Fire —

Is water baptism just an outward sign of an inner reality? A brief reassessment of the Baptist conviction.

Of Water, Wind and Fire —

Is water baptism just an outward sign of an inner reality? A brief reassessment of the Baptist conviction.

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Why was Apollos baptized twice? His first baptism was administered by John the Baptist in obedience and repentance to God, to believe in the Messiah who was to come. In the same way many Protestants, particularly Baptists, affirm this view but relay it now in
Shrouded in Mystery No More —

On the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin and its implications for sacred images and iconoclastic theology.

Shrouded in Mystery No More —

On the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin and its implications for sacred images and iconoclastic theology.

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The Shroud of Turin is real. I’m convinced of it. To think such is not a testimony of my faith either, nor is it intellectually grounded in any merit of my own. The scientific evidence is so staggering, and corresponds to history and Scripture so
Of Secular and Sacred Wisdom: Solomon —

Part II. “What has Athens to do with Jerusalem?” Juxtaposing the ancient wisdom of the Athenian gadfly and Jerusalem’s philosopher king.

Of Secular and Sacred Wisdom: Solomon —

Part II. “What has Athens to do with Jerusalem?” Juxtaposing the ancient wisdom of the Athenian gadfly and Jerusalem’s philosopher king.

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On the cusp of East and West, one thousand years before the apostle Paul addressed the Areopagus, and well before Aristotle (c.384-322 BC), Plato (c.428-347 BC), and Socrates (c.469-399 BC) catapulted a new era of Western philosophy that still persists today, and roughly four hundred
Rest Assured. —

Why Christians must rest in Christ and not on Sabbath. Working out God's Edenic purpose of grace through Sabbatical soteriology.

Rest Assured. —

Why Christians must rest in Christ and not on Sabbath. Working out God's Edenic purpose of grace through Sabbatical soteriology.

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Must Christians observe Sabbath? To no one’s surprise is yet another very heated debate in the greater Christian community, particularly among Protestants and doctrinally dubious off-shoots. Throughout Christian history, Sunday was the newly appointed day of rest known as “the Lord’s Day”. As of the
Against Formlessness and Our Vocation Toward Visible Holiness —

On sacred art, rituals, gestures, and visual patterns of devotion in God's holy kingdom.

Against Formlessness and Our Vocation Toward Visible Holiness —

On sacred art, rituals, gestures, and visual patterns of devotion in God's holy kingdom.

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Before meat suits were fashionable and Gnosticism was the new black, before Baptism was reduced to works righteousness and Communion was trivialized to a game of Simon Says, and long before our world was particles and plastic, the visible world augmented divine intentionality. The physical
The “Fine-Tuning” of the Universe —

“A common sense interpretation of the facts suggests that a superintellect has monkeyed with physics.”

The “Fine-Tuning” of the Universe —

“A common sense interpretation of the facts suggests that a superintellect has monkeyed with physics.”

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It was a scientific norm to presume the big bang was utter chaos. This normality is now conjecture. Physicists, cosmologists, astronomers, and scientists of all stripes can no longer overlook the data of the low entropy state of the early universe – it was complex,
‘Twas the Night Before Council —

And other legendarium of Saint Nicholas and the Christmas season.

‘Twas the Night Before Council —

And other legendarium of Saint Nicholas and the Christmas season.

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It was a cold winter’s night in Nicaea when a sudden blizzard enclosed the known world. Unprecedented as it was, bishops trudged across Christendom by hoof and foot to assemble in what was to be the first real effort to obtain a sacred consensus—the First
Of Secular and Sacred Wisdom —

Part I. "What has Athens to do with Jerusalem, the Church with the Academy, the Christian with the heretic?" A sanctifying bridge between theology and philosophy.

Of Secular and Sacred Wisdom —

Part I. "What has Athens to do with Jerusalem, the Church with the Academy, the Christian with the heretic?" A sanctifying bridge between theology and philosophy.

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Throughout Christian history and even today, philosophy has been met with mixed emotions, whether it was measured a lower form of theological corruption, proof of God’s natural revelation, a tool of dogmatic refinement, or esteemed a servant of sanctity, even inspired to a lesser extent.
The Sound of Silence and the Otherness of Scripture —

A brief observation on Biblical interpretation and typology in Hebrews 6:13–7:28.

The Sound of Silence and the Otherness of Scripture —

A brief observation on Biblical interpretation and typology in Hebrews 6:13–7:28.

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When you read the Bible, how often do you look at the way the apostles saw the world and use that way of seeing for how you should interpret the Bible? Typology—a non-verbal prophecy consisting of signs, symbols, imagery, and allusions that point to a