Ethics – exegetical.tools

Interview with Keith Loftin, editor of God and Morality: Four Views

July 29, 2015

C. S. Lewis, in Mere Christianity, writes that “you find out more about God from the Moral Law than from the universe in general just as you find out more about a man by listening to his conversation than by looking at a house he has built.” Thinking carefully about the connection between God and morality has apologetic value, as Lewis notes. Indeed, Lewis and a great number of other Christian apologists have thought the connection such that an argument from morality to the existence of God is possible. Beyond that, such an inquiry involves thinking about both the nature of God (e.g., His omnibenevolence and aseity) and the nature of mankind (e.g., our origin and moral knowledge)….

Interview with John Goldingay on New Book, Do We Need the New Testament?

June 22, 2015

Todd Scacewater

In 2012 I was in the Dominican Republic helping to rebuild a church when I got into a discussion about whether we really needed the Old Testament. I tried to defend the OT by arguing that the NT by itself would be like a childrens’ coloring book, with all the shapes drawn but with no color to fill in the pictures to get all the fullness of the biblical picture of God and his purposes. I also pointed out that many heresies likely would arise without the OT to guide us in our understanding of God. Well, John Goldingay has done away with a defensive strategy and he’s gone on the offense. He flips the common question of whether we need the OT on its head and asks: Do we really need the New Testament?…

Doing Philosophy as a Christian, by Garrett DeWeese

April 30, 2015

Todd Scacewater

If you are a Christian academic, pastor, or scholar, and you have always felt intimidated or daunted by philosophy (or the prospect of learning philosophy), look no further. Garrett DeWeese had you in mind. This is not a history of philosophy (on which, see W. T. Jones’ History of Philosophy), but an overview of the various realms within philosophy. Anyone wishing to become acquainted with philosophy must become acquainted with at least the main areas of metaphysics (the nature of reality), epistemology (the nature of knowledge), and ethics. One could do this by surveying histories of philosophy to see how each branch developed diachronically, but one would be better served to get the philosophical categories in mind before trodding through Plato’s dialogues….

Book Giveaway, Enter Now

April 21, 2015

Todd Scacewater

To celebrate a successful month this March, we’ve decided to create a book giveaway contest. We’re giving away one free, new copy of Paul Glenn’s Introduction to Philosophy (Catholic Way, 2014). We here at Exegetical Tools want to bring you the latest resources for biblical studies, but we’re also bringing on another contributor (to be announced soon) to help educate about basic resources in different areas of philosophy. Many biblical scholars, pastors, and students feel daunted by the thought of learning…