Wyatt Graham

Faith | Books | Culture

“Do not make what is free into a must”

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Martin Luther once wrote, “Do not make what is free into a must.” Here, he was talking about the practice of matters not directly forbidden in Scripture (monastic vows, etc.). While Luther strongly and bullishly at times pushed for what Scripture said we must do, he had a place for the conscience, for Christian freedom in matters that Scripture has no direct prohibition. 

We live in a scientific age in which every jot and tittle finds its definition. But real life often does not work that way. And I suspect that we bring this scientific expectation into our Christian practice when in fact Christian freedom allows us much more leeway than we might expect. Legalism is always a danger; freedom is always ready to be lost. As Paul tells us, “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery” (Gal 5:1).  [Read more…] about “Do not make what is free into a must”

Is Philosophy Bad?

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Christians sometimes look at philosophy with skepticism. Given some of the modern philosophies and recent history, that skepticism makes sense. The Apostle Paul after all does warn against falling prey to “philosophy and empty deceit” (Col 2:8). 

Traditionally, however, philosophy (often) aimed to describe the world. It overlapped with medicine, physics, and ethics. It was a more totalizing thing, something that described how someone lived their entire life. In Paul’s day, that would have been the general way philosophy was understood. And in Antioch where Paul lived, philosophers would preach in the open spaces to persuade people to certain ways of life.

So one does not have to reach too far to understand what Paul means in Colossians 2:8. He does not want Christians to dedicate themselves to a way of life according to the tradition of men (κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπω) but rather to a way of life according to Christ (κατὰ Χριστόν). Paul did not here mean to dismiss mathematics, medicine, ethics, astronomy, and much more besides, which were all topics of ancient philosophy. He meant to warn people against a totalizing acceptance of philosophy (a way of living) that did not accord with Christ. [Read more…] about Is Philosophy Bad?

The Essential Church

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In Ontario (where I live), the government has mandated stay-at-home orders except for essential services. Churches may still meet under these guidelines but with only ten people.
 
In response, at least one church has decided to host many services of ten people; others have decided to go online; still others have decided to remain open despite the mandate. And I suppose some churches will continue to do host multiple services in the week as they had done even before the pandemic.
 
In this sense, Christians have shown in various ways that they believe the church is vital. Some use the language essential to (I think) indicate that churches should remain open like other essential services (e.g., a grocery store). In Ontario, we still can meet with ten people. But these recent restrictions do limit our freedom to worship.  
 
Here, I want to use the language of essential to argue for a particular way to describe the church’s relationship to the world: namely, how the church is to the world as the soul is to the body. 

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Does Christian Nationalism Exist?

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Commentators have dubbed Christian supporters of Donald Trump who entered into the Capitol building Christian Nationalists. The term is slippery, however. And as far as I can see, no organized, identifiable entity can be described as Christian Nationalist. That does not mean that Christians have not mixed their faith into nationalistic hopes. That does happen. So whatever else may be true, Christians have tied their religious aspirations into some sort of political entity. 

Here, I want to note a few pieces of evidence for my assertion before turning to some of the possible ways to understand the phenomenon. [Read more…] about Does Christian Nationalism Exist?

Reviewing Michael Foley’s New Translation of Augustine’s “Against the Academics” and “On the Happy Life”

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Michael Foley’s new translations of Augustine’s Against the Academics and On the Happy Life are brilliant. Every feature that I want in a translation appears here.  [Read more…] about Reviewing Michael Foley’s New Translation of Augustine’s “Against the Academics” and “On the Happy Life”

What We’ve Lost by Over-sexualizing Male Friendship

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One-hundred years ago, men customarily wrote each other letters, used words of affection for one another, and even slept in the same bed while travelling. No one would have even suggested anything by these actions but male friendship. In fact, in some churches, friends would publicly vow before the church to befriend one another. Now, however, most of these actions seem overly sexual and men avoid them. But in so doing, it seems that something has been lost, namely, the ability for intimate male friendship. David and Jonathan loved each other, hugged, and wept with each other. John laid upon the bosom of Jesus during the Last Supper. This is what friends did. Not so today. 

Of course, the way in which we show friendship changes over time. I do not think we have to somehow go back to 18th century standards of friendship! Rather, here I want to discuss very briefly the effect of an overly-sexualized view of male affection. That is: men used to freely show love and kindness to one another because that is what friends did. Today, that openness seems utterly lost because it seems to mark a sexual advance.  [Read more…] about What We’ve Lost by Over-sexualizing Male Friendship