Category Archives: Mere Catholicity

Can’t Get Sakartvelo Off My Mind

Posted on February 1, 2011 by Darrell Pursiful

The February/March 2011 Visions, the newsletter of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Georgia, is now out. It includes a brief article I wrote about the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia, which begins as follows: Imagine a denomination that upholds traditional … Continue reading →

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I Read Dead People, Too

Posted on January 27, 2011 by Darrell Pursiful

Just not as often as I would like. If someone has been dead for a while and his book is still in print and widely read, then it’s probably worth reading. And, if we’re honest, there are precious few books … Continue reading →

Posted in Mere Catholicity | 2 Comments

If I Ever Got a Tattoo, It Would Be a Coptic Wrist Cross

Posted on January 14, 2011 by Darrell Pursiful

Touching story about the Coptic community of Frankfort, Germany…and Egypt (H/T Pseudo-Polymath): “Blue bone, we’re not playing with you!” – this is an insult that many Coptic children have to get used to at an early age. For “blue bone“ … Continue reading →

Posted in Ethics, Mere Catholicity, Praying Together | 1 Comment

Christmas Prayers

Posted on January 6, 2011 by Darrell Pursiful

Tonight is Christmas Eve on the Orthodox Calendar followed by the Copts of Egypt. The BBC is reporting concerns that it may be one marked by violence. Armed Egyptian police have been ordered to protect churches where Copts are expected … Continue reading →

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Anglicans and Africans and Ecumenists, Oh My!

Posted on January 4, 2011 by Darrell Pursiful

Mouneer H. Anis has written a nice article on bridging (rather than widening) the gap between evangelicals and the traditional churches, and Michael Bird was kind enough to link to it. Bishop Anis says, This “widening of the gap” happened … Continue reading →

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A “Grail of Peace”

Posted on November 14, 2010 by Darrell Pursiful

This story is too amazing not to share. The first chalice acquired for the first Baptist church in Tbilisi, Georgia, has been discovered almost literally in my back yard: in a closet in the chapel at Mercer University in Macon, … Continue reading →

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New Saints, New Observances

Posted on October 13, 2010 by Darrell Pursiful

I’ve updated my personal and completely unofficial sanctoral calendar so that it now includes at least one commemoration for every day of the year. I hope it represents a broad spectrum of Christian faithfulness, Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox. If you … Continue reading →

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Tradition in Irenaeus

Posted on October 5, 2010 by Darrell Pursiful

Wan Wei Hsien has written some reflections on Irenaeus’s concept of “tradition” in his Against Heresies. His concluding thoughts suggest, and I concur, that Irenaeus can sharpen and narrow the way the term is often used: I wrote at the … Continue reading →

Posted in +Apostles' Teaching, Mere Catholicity | Tagged | 2 Comments

Fantastic Canon Summary Chart

Posted on September 1, 2010 by Darrell Pursiful

I’ve added a sidebar link to this interactive chart comparing various Christian and Jewish biblical canons. Hover your cursor over a note for additional information. I tell my students the canon of the Old Testament has a fairly solid core—39 … Continue reading →

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The Ancient-Future Path

Posted on August 27, 2010 by Darrell Pursiful

Chaplain Mike, who has taken up Michael Spencer’s mantle at Internet Monk, has a great post up today about misunderstandings of the Ancient-Future (some might say paleo-orthodox) approach to Christianity. He begins with some negatives: Ancient-Future is not about “older … Continue reading →

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