rom Us:
It is bad form, and usually bad manners, to start off anything you are about to do with an apology or explanation. When someone stands up to sing at church, and prefaces their offering with comments about how they have a bad cold and haven't been able to practice anyway, it is not long before half the congregation is mentally encouraging their brother to follow through on his professed misgivings and sit down. But this case is different. Our issue this time is entitled "A Southern Apologetic," and the potential for misunderstandings among Christians here is enormous.
First, several comments need to be made about where we live. If you look at a map you will notice that we are located in the northern panhandle of Idaho (and a fine place it is too!). But an obvious thing about this region is that it is nowhere near the Mason/Dixon line. So not only was the War Between the States long ago, it was also far away. None of our editors have strong regional ties with the South. I have a tenuous connection, having grown up in the border state of Maryland, and only one other editor has some ties to bleeding Kansas. So why do we care about this? The answer is that ideas have consequences. For theological/historical reasons, we believe the Christian church is still embroiled today in the same ongoing war -- the war over the soul of western culture.
A second observation is that in the past our national media has enjoyed going non-linear with regard to the tiny groups of white supremacists, KKKers, skinheads, assorted neo-Nazis, and other devotees of ding-dongery. You may have heard about some of this ilk living about ninety miles north of us in Hayden Lake, Idaho. And in the minds of many Americans, sympathy for the South is automatically linked to that kind of fanaticism. We are therefore pleased to insist the link is a false one. They are God-hating racists, and are also a few sandwiches short of a picnic. We are sure that there are some unpleasant people near where you live too.
So please consider what we have published here carefully. We are not trying to tilt at windmills, or refight the Peloponesian War. Our only goal is to equip you for what you must confront today.
From You:
Praise God for your efforts to speak the truth and encourage believers around the world.
As young, newly married, and newly "reformed" Christians, we have enjoyed receiving your publication more than you could know. To see God's sovereignty upheld, and His Word so zealously applied, has been both encouraging and refreshing . . . To Doug Wilson: Thank you for your "Husbandry section. We do, however, have a small concern about something you wrote in "Repenting of Abdication." You state that even if a husband comes to believe that his decision was wrong, he should not change. I hope we misunderstood you here. Why such un-Christlike advice in the middle of an otherwise excellent piece? What servant-king would not humbly admit to and/or seek to reverse a bad decision for the good of his family? To Chris Schlect: If you ever have a chance, could you further address "Biblical Church Polity," or recommend a book to read on this subject? I have long wondered about the traditional offices of "pastor" and "deacon" and how close to Biblical principles they are.
Douglas Wilson replies: We thank you for your kind letter. My purpose in making this point was to encourage those husbands who are addicted to "waffling" to pick a relatively unimportant decision upon which to practice "non-waffling." But you are of course right that one of the characteristics of a godly leader is a willingness to admit it when he is wrong.
Chris Schlect replies: I plan on writing more on church government in future columns. In the meantime, the best book on the subject with which I am familiar is "The True Nature of a Gospel Church" by John Owen
(Works, Vol. 16).
Thanks for your kind review of Baxter's Practical Works! It has pleased Him to allow us to sell nearly 50,000 volumes of orthodox literature since we began reprinting in 1988. If your readers would like to receive our book lists, they are free for the asking. Keep up the good work!
Editor replies: Interested readers can phone
Soli Deo Gloria publications at 412-238-7741. We do encourage you to phone them -- they have a
lot of good stuff.
I have been reading Credenda/Agenda and I have been blessed by doing so . . . I do have a few questions. What are the meanings and what is the purpose of your using the headings `Thema,' `Magistralis,' `Husbandry,' `Presbyterion,' `Exegetica,' and `Historia.' I have looked in my dictionary but it only contains a few of the words.
Editor replies: `Thema,' `Historia,' and
`Femina' are the Latin words for
theme, history, and woman
respectively. `Magistralis' is our
coinage from the Latin magister which gives us the English
magistrate. We have adapted the English
word husbandry and applied it to the
general subject of its cognate husband. `Exegetica' is our modification of
exegesis. `Poetics' is from the
Greek. `Presbyterion' is our modification of
presbyteros, the Greek word for elder. `Similitudes' is an English word derived from the Latin
similis, meaning like or similar.
`Ex Libris' is Latin for from the library of.
`Sharpening Iron' refers to Proverbs 27:17 , and `Cave of Adullam' refers to 2 Samuel 23:13.
Our purpose in this is simply to symbolize an evangelical return to classical Protestantism.
