Peripatetic Pastor

Author: Clay Libolt

  • POLITICS AND KOREA: A PALM SUNDAY MEDITATION

    The question was how Christians should respond to political developments. It came, as such questions often do, from deep anxiety about what was happening in her country. How should she be involved? Should she join a demonstration? Should she be shouting across the street at those who opposed what she stood for? What in these…

  • HARSH JUSTICE: PAUL AND PARTICIPATION IN CHRIST

    A Gospel for Today If the Christian gospel it to mean anything at all, it must offer realistic hope and direction for the time in which we live. Often the gospel is thought to be outside of time, describing what happened long ago and what will happen in the future—or in eternity—but having little to…

  • HARSH JUSTICE: THE GOSPELS, THE MACCABEAN MARTYRS, AND PENAL SUBSTUTIONARY ATONEMENT

    The PSA Story At the heart of evangelical Christianity is a story. The story goes like this. Humans collectively (in Adam) and individually (on our own dime) have fallen–sinned. The sins of the human race offend God or, more precisely, offend God’s justice. And if God is to be God, then God must punish these sins. Punishment…

  • HARSH JUSTICE 2: THE MEANING OF OLD TESTAMENT SACRIFICE

    Penal Substitutionary Atonement (PSA) Last week in this blog I began a discussion of penal substitutionary atonement, a teaching so much at the heart of evangelical theological thinking that it is often presented simply as The Gospel—The Good News. So what is the PSA gospel? To answer that question, PSA tells a story. The story is simple and…

  • Harsh Justice, Introduction

    BAD THEOLOGY 8: PENAL SUBSTITUTIONARY ATONEMENT Moving to a Conclusion Some time ago, I promised as a conclusion to my Bad Theology series to address what is perhaps a core doctrine in the evangelical theology toolkit: penal substitutionary atonement (PSA). PSA is the view that Jesus suffered and died to satisfy the wrath of God…

  • A Totalitarian Bent of Mind: Peter Thiel, Carl Schmitt, and “Political Theology”

    “Seeking God . . . in Silicon Valley.” In my last post I promised to turn next to penal substitutionary atonement (PSA), an idea at the heart of evangelical theology and, I’ll argue, at the heart of evangelical politics. I will address PSA soon; I had every intention to do so in this post. But…

  • Culture or Confession? Bad Theology 7

    Is God Mean? I had meant to write this week about penal substitutionary atonement (PSA). (Doesn’t that sound exciting?) I thought to call the piece: “Is God Mean?” And, in line with the direction of my Bad Theology series, to ask whether a mean God leads to mean politics. (The answer is yes.) For those…

  • READING THE BIBLE . . . WRONG: BAD THEOLOGY 6

    The gospel reading this past Sunday was Luke 4:14-21. In the reading, Jesus has returned home. With “the power of the Spirit” resting on him (4:14), he must have seemed different. He has already been preaching in the villages round about Galilee, but now at last he is home in Nazareth. His fame (Greek phēmē)…

  • THE POLITICS OF ETERNITY: BAD THEOLOGY 5

    THEOLOGY MATTERS In the previous posts in this Bad Theology series, I have tried to make the point that theology matters. White Christian nationalism, the political faith now in power in the US (and, in varying forms, in other countries), is theological. It claims God on its side. It claims to be Christian.  Not only this, but…

  • WHEN THE ORGAN GOES SILENT: BAD THEOLOGY 4

    WHEN THE ORGAN GOES SILENT I’m not sure when I first noticed that the organ had fallen silent. The synods of the Christian Reformed Church met for many years in the Calvin University Fine Arts Center Auditorium. (Lately, the synod has moved to the Calvin chapel building.) The auditorium features the impressive Zondervan Memorial Organ, built…