September 7, 2006 – 5:33 pm
I’m doing a little research into the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem when the Jews returned from exile in the 500’s BC, and came upon this expression: Temple 2.0 - all we need now is an AJAX version; web 2.0 temple 2.0…
August 29, 2006 – 6:58 pm
Noncanonical Literature - spiritual writing that didn’t make it into the bible
August 20, 2006 – 11:56 pm
Spent much of Saturday at the PTC, at a seminar on Depression and Addiction run by Ed Welch. I spoke briefly with Ed during one of the breaks: he works for both CCEF and WTS, and has written a number of books on Christianity and depression.
The majority of the time was spent looking at what [...]
Back to part-time study and full-time work, and back in the swing of things again, I think. College study is great: where else could you borrow a book titled Reading Luke-Acts in its Mediterranean Milieu. I’m looking forward to having a better grasp of the book of Acts over the next several weeks, along with [...]
As soon as they began, they are over: two exams, and I’ve been on holidays now for quite a while. Trying to distill the course knowledge of a semester into three short essays in two hours (old testament), or four short essays in two hours (new testament) is no mean feat, but an exam paper [...]
What a whirlwind! Lectures for first semester are already over, all the assignments are handed it: it’s only the exams, and I have two subjects down, and six to go for the grad dip.
There’s a lot of study to do in the next two weeks. The strangest part? They provide a bible, but we bring [...]
Words you might encounter in theological readings, and some rough definitions.
Concupiscence
lust/desire
Profligate
recklessly wasteful
Hortatory
marked by exhortation or strong urging
Inculcate
instruct by repetition
Mimesis
art imitating literature
Orthopraxy
treatment of deformities by mechanical appliances; Orthopraxis: correct practice
Sapiental
wisdom teachings
Etiolated
having grown in insufficient light; made weak by having stunted growth
Ostraca
plural of ostracon (an inscriped potsherd / pottery fragment)
Redivivus
come back to life
Praxis
practical application of a [...]
Back on the laptop again, leaving the stack of books alone for now: I’ve looked up all the reference material I think i need, and now it’s a matter of working out what I’m going to put in this (2000 word) essay. I’ve been moving back and forth from “this is going to be a [...]
Hot dogs for lunch!
Originally uploaded by cafedave.
Ah, college lunches. After weeks of food from various nationalities, we’re on to one of my guilty favourites: hot dogs.
There’s something about hot dogs that sets them apart from all other foods. We were musing at lunch as to what the [...]
While it’s true in some sense that writing an essay is like riding a bike, I wasn’t prepared for how different it is to write a theological essay (compared to writing a multimedia essay). There are a lot more sources to wrap your head around, more complex arguments to keep track of: the outline that [...]
March 22, 2006 – 10:28 pm
Six weeks into semester already: I’ve now played piano at chapel twice, and set up a few student computers with wireless LAN access. There’s still a lot of reading to do: I’ve read three gospels (Mark on the train to Katoomba, Matthew walking on a treadmill, Luke on an exercise bike), all of Genesis, most [...]
Egyptian food at college
Originally uploaded by cafedave.
Each wednesday, there’s a communal lunch at college. Today was egyptian food; one of the students put together this feast.
February 17, 2006 – 9:12 am
Why you should read old books
February 15, 2006 – 9:07 pm
I’m only taking two subjects, so I’m officially off the starting blocks for this semester. Today we learned a lot of introductory information about the New Testament: specifically, the ancient history information bridging the end of the Old Testament, and leading into the last century BC.
Fascinating stuff; helps me understand a lot of the events [...]
February 14, 2006 – 10:33 pm
First lecture was a 6pm-9pm one, on the Old Testament. As with most first lectures, a bunch of time was spent on the usual administrative stuff, and going over the assessments - in my case, a 10 minute presentation (with accompanying paper), a 2000-word essay, and a two hour exam. There’s a minimum expectation of [...]
February 13, 2006 – 12:38 pm
“The Importance of Being Earnest: Approaching Theological Study” by Carl Trueman
The systematic theologian is pre-eminently a preacher of the gospel; and the end of his work is obviously not merely the logical arrangement of the truths which come under his hand, but the moving of men, through their power to love God with all their [...]
February 8, 2006 – 1:35 pm
The strangest time in any course of study is the gap between deciding to do the course, and starting to study. Yesterday was student orientation day at the PTC.
Now, i’m even more keen for classes to start.. I understand how to use the library, what subjects make up which degrees, all that is missing is [...]