Philip Benedict on the Character of Anglicanism

Philip Benedict, Christ’s Churches Purely Reformed: A Social History of Calvinism, Yale University Press: 2002, xxvi+670 pp, hardcover. Philip Benedict is an American historian of the Protestant Reformation in Europe, currently holding the title of Professor Emeritus (profeseur honoraire) at the University of Geneva’s Institute for Reformation History (l’Institut de Histoire de la Réformation). His book, Christ’s Churches Purely Reformed was awarded… Read More Philip Benedict on the Character of Anglicanism

September 2, 2016September 2, 2016 The Vicar's Garden2 Comments

Spring Training

I attended my first Workshop on Biblical Exposition by The Charles Simeon Trust at Tenth Presbyterian Church in Center City Philadelphia last week. I had known about the Trust’s work for some time now and I had wanted to attend a workshop but calendars, location and available funds never seemed to match up. This year… Read More Spring Training

February 15, 2016February 14, 2016 The Vicar's GardenLeave a comment

Samuel Maresius (1599-1673) on the end and use of the Lord’s Supper

Originally posted on Theologia est doctrina Deo vivendi per Christum – Theology is the doctrine of living unto God through Christ:
? “[The Lord’s Supper was instituted] to signify our spiritual nourishment in Christ, for which it is necessary that with true faith we should eat his flesh and drink his blood, that is, as…

December 8, 2015 The Vicar's Garden1 Comment

A Sad Departure

David J. Randall’s new book: A Sad Departure: Why we could not stay in the Church of Scotland, chronicles the all too familiar departure from biblical orthodoxy, this time in the Church of Scotland, and the recent sad departure of ministers and congregations as a result. It contains a narrative familiar to many of us in Anglican North… Read More A Sad Departure

November 18, 2015November 18, 2015 The Vicar's Garden1 Comment

Mainline or Sideline?

I have found these three podcasts from Office Hours on 18th century Reformed Theology fascinating and a wonderful food for thought in our own era as North American Anglicanism rushes toward “mainline” legitimacy rather than pausing to consider its consequences for future generations. The podcast discussion, begins with with Jennifer Powell McNutt, Ph.D. about her research at the… Read More Mainline or Sideline?

November 4, 2015November 8, 2015 The Vicar's Garden5 Comments

A True Cliché

We all get circulars in the post. Pastors usually receive seasonal notices from para-church organizations of a recently released method(s) to congregational spiritual health or growth. When I read them two things strike me: first, the formulaic and methodological thinking in the“if you do this, then this…” or the “A”PLUS “B” will guarantee result “C” and… Read More A True Cliché

April 18, 2015 The Vicar's GardenLeave a comment

For a Tongue Like Thunder

“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of him everywhere” (2 Corinthians 2.14 ESV). I make it my particular intercession from Palm Sunday to Good Friday to pray for all Anglican ministers who are preparing Easter sermons and services, that they will… Read More For a Tongue Like Thunder

April 7, 2015April 7, 2015 The Vicar's GardenLeave a comment

The Vicar's Garden

“But tho’ an old man, I am but a young gardener.”

Author: The Vicar's Garden