God talk

  09 10 2020 Essential Human Nature The content Bavinck starts by saying, “How we must live is determined by our answers to the fundamental questions of our origin, purpose and destiny.” Page 33 Obviously in his introduction he realises how non-Christian dogma look up, humanness as opposed to the creation Story. Humanity was created good; There was a fall and through the second Adam (Jesus) we are provided with the gift of new righteousness and holiness. The Christian confession directly contradicts the contemporary tendency, through the conflict with the ego which strives for autonomy from the restrictions of the external world and matter; Overcoming nature by reason and spirit.   At the end of Page 33 Bavinck says, “We believe that the image of God belongs to the essence of humanity: humanity apart from God.” So, there are some pointers for us. Before we move on and look at the internal content of Reformed ethics Volume 1 let us look at the basic content of chapte

What is essential human nature? This is a very important question because how we answer it will drive the machinery of our services such as health, managing of national and world resources.  One interesting point I found in his writings is that he Bavinck doesn't only talk about the nature of what it is to be human; He also says that God created all the animals and plants too.  At the most basic level we share basic needs such as food and air.  Then he goes deeper. What are some of the bench marks are our relationship to God first of all, our relationship to each other, our relationship to nature animals and plants.   These are important questions and in that sense this week I am not saying much.  I will be digging deep into the first chapter as I think for Christians they can find answers to the ecological mess we find oureslves in in this world today.  We as humans have caused destruction in this world such as the fires in Calfornia even the Covid 19 in a sense came out of man ma

  September 26 09 2020 Herman Bavinck (1854-1921)   Atelier Prinses (Amsterdam) - http://proxy.handle.net/10648/6a24ebd0-1ad9-102f-a76c-003048944028 (I took this photo from Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herman_Bavinck#/media/File:HermanBavinckBig.jpg )   We have considered the Holy Trinity in the work of Edward Henry Bickersteth and we proved that there are three persons in the Holy Trinity.   Anyhow I want to move on now to a new project and it may be that my posts might be once or twice a week as I will be reading volume one of Herman Bavincks reformed ethics.   I am so glad that these manuscripts were discovered and for a Religious Studies teacher it gives a wholistic picture to us. Karl Barth was not able to do this thoroughly although I think he wanted to.   In Dogmatic theology God is talking to us.   Where is the reciprocity without falling into some heresy?   Herman Bavinck obviously gives us a road map into the 21 st century.   Herman Bavi