Papers by Jeremy Spainhour
It's a simple proposition: John's depiction of Thomas's doubt has been misunderstood at the most ... more It's a simple proposition: John's depiction of Thomas's doubt has been misunderstood at the most basic level, the object of his doubt. The simplest reading of Thomas's character is of the sole disciple who believed the divine claims of Jesus. Given that premise, the account of the encounter between the risen Christ and Thomas in John 20 proceeds precisely as could be expected if the nature of Thomas's doubt was not that Jesus had been raised from the dead but, more precisely, that he could have died in the first place. "Unless I see the wounds..." Thus, Thomas's character is intended to bring us into the mystery of the crucified God, indeed to lead us in his unique confession: "My Lord and my God!"
Religious Studies Review, Mar 1, 2012
The content of Christian theology is nothing if not complex and nuanced. Faith, in essence, may b... more The content of Christian theology is nothing if not complex and nuanced. Faith, in essence, may be something relatively simple; an orientation of the heart, an intention of the will, a determination of religious identity. But as soon as the person of faith takes up the Anselmian challenge to seek understanding of that faith, problems of where to start and how to proceed quickly become acute. Many easy solutions are offered, of course, and most of those are of dubious intellectual quality, short-changing both the integrity of the faith and the veracity of its supposed cognition. They result most often in misinformed fundamentalism or other variants of stifling naïveté. But for many Christian believers seeking to deepen their knowledge and understanding by becoming students of theology there are many worthy guides. This second edition of Anderson's Journey is one of particularly good value. It purports, in its preface, to offer a 'trusty companionship for the journey' as well as to present 'a hearty invitation' to undertake the journey in the first place (p. ix). And in an attempt to make the journey as relaxed and enjoyable as possible the intellectual demands along the way are lightened by the insertion of cartoon comment that can, at times, provide critical insight and reinforcement of a main idea by way of providing a shaft of humorous light. For some, however, they may be more of a sideline distraction, and there are times when it seems that without a deeper knowledge the point of a cartoon may in fact be lost. Still, the overall impression is of a book that deals with complex and heavy topics in a most appealing manner, and succeeding in that on the whole. One very interesting feature is that, although the book has been written and structured in a historically developmental fashion, the preface presents an alternate format whereby the book could be read thematically. By a judicious selection of provided readings, nine discrete theological topics-Faith and Reason, the doctrines of God,
Closed Communion Excludes Christ from the Table, 2023
This article was written in response to an article by Hans Boersma published by First Things titl... more This article was written in response to an article by Hans Boersma published by First Things titled "Open Communion Invites the Devil to the Table." The thesis of this article is that baptism forms the boundaries of the Church's identity while communion informs the "personality" of the Church's identity, and the latter does so in a way to ensure the Church's boundaries remain open, but open precisely in accordance with the peculiar form of the Gospel. Furthermore, I argue that any statement about communion and its relation to the boundaries and identity of the church is virtually unintelligible without figuring into argument the corresponding function baptism plays in a given tradition.
My intention with this response to help church leaders think through the ritual symbolic significance of baptism and communion in a way that will hopefully be helpful as they attempt to imbue the sacramental forms of their traditions with the theological meaning and richness proper to their object. Pastors, priests, and church leaders are not above the denominations and traditions in which they serve, and hit-pieces like Boersm'a do no good for equipping leaders to work within the confines of their respective traditions. This article will help encourage leaders to appreciate the value open communion can have, and help leaders from all traditions to serve their churches with more clarity and intention.
The moral of the story from The Ants & The Grasshopper (below, as found in The Library of Congres... more The moral of the story from The Ants & The Grasshopper (below, as found in The Library of Congress), one of Aesop's Fables, is among the most damning morals of any story ever told, at least since the morals of the Old Testament story (although in an altogether different way). In my failure to adequately censor the story selection suitable for my own children-Lord, have mercy-I made the tragic mistake of reading this utterly perverse fable to them at bedtime the other night. Since it is impossible to un-tell a story once told, I have written not so much an alternative reading but what I will tell as "the rest of the story" in a sequel under a similar title (see below).
On Barth's transition from a from-below to a from-above theology.
This paper is actually a letter written to parents of ten students whom I (and three others) led ... more This paper is actually a letter written to parents of ten students whom I (and three others) led through a rite of passage designed as an initiation to become disciples of Jesus Christ. The underlying assumption of this paper and the initiation experience itself is not that such a rite can serve as the constitutive basis of the initiate's status as a disciple; rather, the experience was designed with the goal of becoming a decisive reference point in the self-identity of the initiate's that would serve in their memory as the organizing principle for how they would henceforth understand themselves interior to the category of disciple. In addition to the reflection, worship, and prayer times (discussed in this document), my hope was to accomplish this by creating an experience of a prolonged contrasting tension between one's subjective experience with the objective world, that is, through pain confronted by beauty. This experience lends itself, I believe, to the posture of a disciple's faith, since through it we discover, as it were, the end of ourselves and the beginning of God, indeed the smallness of ourselves and the grandeur of God's creation. In other words, we learn not only that we are utterly dependent upon God but that we should prefer nothing else, since the God on whom we depend has shown himself to be so beautiful and so generous in his creative expressions and the in his giving creation to us for our care and enjoyment. Thus, the themes reflected in this letter reduce to one basic confession that the entire trip is designed to implant in the mind of each initiate as their foundation for the life of faith: "God is God and I am not." And there is nothing greater than precisely that truth.
My hope in publishing this paper here, in all its particularities, is that other Christian leaders might reproduce and/or improve upon this unique experience, for I am convinced it meets and great need in our culture.
Actual trail facts in retrospect: five nights, 53.71 miles, 11,358' of ascent, summited Windom Peak.
A video from the trip can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8I1HxZpcNM
Drafts by Jeremy Spainhour
A parable for seeing to those who see.
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Papers by Jeremy Spainhour
My intention with this response to help church leaders think through the ritual symbolic significance of baptism and communion in a way that will hopefully be helpful as they attempt to imbue the sacramental forms of their traditions with the theological meaning and richness proper to their object. Pastors, priests, and church leaders are not above the denominations and traditions in which they serve, and hit-pieces like Boersm'a do no good for equipping leaders to work within the confines of their respective traditions. This article will help encourage leaders to appreciate the value open communion can have, and help leaders from all traditions to serve their churches with more clarity and intention.
My hope in publishing this paper here, in all its particularities, is that other Christian leaders might reproduce and/or improve upon this unique experience, for I am convinced it meets and great need in our culture.
Actual trail facts in retrospect: five nights, 53.71 miles, 11,358' of ascent, summited Windom Peak.
A video from the trip can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8I1HxZpcNM
Drafts by Jeremy Spainhour
My intention with this response to help church leaders think through the ritual symbolic significance of baptism and communion in a way that will hopefully be helpful as they attempt to imbue the sacramental forms of their traditions with the theological meaning and richness proper to their object. Pastors, priests, and church leaders are not above the denominations and traditions in which they serve, and hit-pieces like Boersm'a do no good for equipping leaders to work within the confines of their respective traditions. This article will help encourage leaders to appreciate the value open communion can have, and help leaders from all traditions to serve their churches with more clarity and intention.
My hope in publishing this paper here, in all its particularities, is that other Christian leaders might reproduce and/or improve upon this unique experience, for I am convinced it meets and great need in our culture.
Actual trail facts in retrospect: five nights, 53.71 miles, 11,358' of ascent, summited Windom Peak.
A video from the trip can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8I1HxZpcNM